Seniors are looking at healthcare access and social opportunities nearly as much as price and leisure when it comes to retirement, according to a new report.

Citro’s report into the best retirement destinations in Australia included a few surprise entries on its top 10 list.

The report ranked locations based on their access to healthcare, the cost of housing, social opportunities and leisure activities.

Number two on the list, Ingham in Queensland, was significantly cheaper to buy or rent a house than the others in the top 10, and also scored highly in “social and retail amenity, as well as health care”.

Ramon Jayo, the mayor of Hinchbrook Council in Queensland, said the town had seen a much-needed influx of retirees.

“Over the last year or two, really since COVID, there has been a migration of out-of-towners,” he said.

“A few months ago at a community meeting down there at Forest Beach, I didn’t recognise a least of a third of the crowd that was there, and I’m born and bred in Ingham.”

Its roughly 4500 residents are still well below the town’s historic highs.

Jayo said that the town’s proximity to Townsville, access to nature and beaches and reasonable house prices made it attractive to retirees.

“We were the fastest declining population and the oldest population in Queensland,” Jayo said.

“We’re still the oldest population in Queensland, but we’ve arrested and changed the declining population.”

Different experience

Citro named Armidale in New South Wales as the top destination, while Hervey Bay at number four offers something different from Ingham to its north.

Its mayor, George Seymour from Fraser Coast Council, said that Hervey Bay’s beautiful year-round climate and beachside locations make it attractive to tourism and new residents alike.

“A lot of people retire here after holidaying, they may come here and stay in a caravan park 20 years earlier and remember what it was like,” he said.

“It’s a great place to retire, whether it is playing bowls, or going camping and we’re quite connected to the rest of the country with direct flights to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane from Hervey Bay airport.”

Hervey Bay is known for its whale watching. Photo: Getty

Seymour said that it is “the best place in the world to live”.

“I have British, American and Australian citizenship and I chose to live in Hervey Bay,” he said.

“We come out way ahead in terms of happiness surveys because the city is focused on lifestyle.”

The median house price in Hervey Bay was $637,000, while the median weekly rent is $578.

Aerial view of Hervey Bay, Queensland. Photo: Getty

Challenges

Although espousing the positives of a town like Ingham, Jayo recognises that there are challenges with living in the tropical environment.

“The Herbert River drains nearly 60 to 70 per cent of the rainfall in the wet tropics, so all of that goes through Ingham,” he said.

Armidale in NSW was the top-rated spot on the list. Photo: Getty

“We’re developing land and properties outside those flood-prone areas, so people can have the peace of mind from a disaster management perspective.”

The Council’s development of new property, combined with flood risk, contributed to Ingham having the lowest median dwelling price in the top 10 of the Citro report.

The top 10:

1. Armidale NSW
2. Ingham QLD
3. Maryborough VIC
4. Hervey Bay QLD
5. Belconnen ACT
6. Rosebud VIC
7. Mandurah WA
8. Wallaroo SA
9. Launceston TAS
10. Echuca VIC