In 2020, Orange experienced a growth rate of 1.16 per cent – with a population of 38,820 (in 2020) it is the thirteenth most populous place in New South Wales. The steadily growing community, combined with city-dwellers seeking a tree-change, has contributed to the establishment of high-quality restaurants, community events and retailers – without compromising on the benefits of living in the country.  

A major infrastructure development in the CBD of Orange has been underway since October 2020 – and will take place over three years. The works include building a mall in Anson Street and introducing a community square to McNamara Street. The updates will include a space for an outdoor cinema and opportunities for live music events and produce markets.  

 
Who is buying in Orange? 
Sydney families looking for a tree change and larger block sizes are flocking to Orange in their droves, enticed by the town’s culture, education, fresh produce and health facilities. The first home buyer market is also strong, with young professionals embracing flexible work practices and searching for affordable land in regional centres. 

The Grace display home in Orange offers a taste of what a tree-change could be like for you and your family, offering spacious, open-plan living on one level. Clever zoning and a seamless connection with the outdoors allows enough space for your family to grow – or accommodate guests – in the future.  

Schools in Orange  

The area boasts 16 different schools, including eleven primary schools, three secondary schools and two combined (primary and secondary) colleges.

• James Sheahan Catholic High School 
• Orange Public School  
• Catherine McAuley Catholic Primary School  
• Orange East Public School  
• Kinross Wolaroi School  
• Orange High School  
• St Mary’s Primary School  
• Bletchington Public School  
• Bowen Public School 
• Glenroi Heights Public School  
• Calare Public School  
• Orange Christian School  
• Canobolas Rural Technology High School  
• Orange Anglican Grammar School  
• Canobolas Public School  
• Nashdale Public School 

Restaurants and leisure in Orange  
Known as a fertile area for wine growing, several wineries sit among the rolling hills surrounding the township of Orange. Borrodell Estate is a fifth-generation winery, specialising in sauvignon blanc and pinot noir, with an especially spectacular view from the onsite restaurant Sister’s Rock Restaurant. Other Orange local wineries include Philip Shaw Wines, Ross Hill and Swinging Bridge Wines.  



Residents of Orange are spoilt for choice of their ‘local’ with family-friendly pub the Ophir Hotel, Hotel Canobolas (for a feed and even accommodation for guests) and The Greenhouse of Orange. Weekend breakfast hotspots include Groundstone, Bills Beans East Orange or, for coffee connoisseurs, Academy Coffee.  

If you’re moving to the country for the outdoor activities, then Orange is the place to be. Whether you’re looking for hiking trails, outdoor activities for the kids or mountain biking trails, the terrain around Orange has it in spades.  

How to get to Orange  
The city of Orange is a four-hour drive from Sydney – through the Blue Mountains. The Orange Regional Airport is also a key transport hub with QantasLink, Regional Express and Link Airways operating out of the regional centre. The airport itself is located 15kms southeast of Orange and is a 15-minute drive from the CBD.

These are towns and suburbs where families can enjoy each other’s company, where kids can grow up and parents can relax. Sakina Homes understands that access to schools and transport is just as important to our customers as green spaces and retail centres, so we only build in locations that are well-connected, thoughtfully planned and offer residents the lifestyle and amenity they are looking for. 

These are some of the most sought-after locations we build in: 

Marsden Park

This in-demand location has some great packages, offering brand new four-bedroom homes for an affordable price. Located on the crest of a hill with spectacular views all the way to the Blue Mountains, Horizon Marsden Park has a great choice of lots offered as house-and-land packages at a fixed price. Sakian Homes’ Horizon development at Marsden Park has a city-meets-country appeal with homes located just a short stroll to schools, parkland and shops. A great choice for young families, it also appeals to downsizers looking to be close to their grandchildren.  

Camden and South-West 

With a village vibe and heritage architecture, the historic suburb of Camden has become a gateway to Sydney’s south-west for families seeking a slower pace of country life. Once a thriving agricultural heartland, this charming community has been growing consistently over recent decades and offers the perfect work/life balance for young families. Camden’s town centre is well established, dating back to early colonial times, so it offers a strong community, plenty of good schools and solid transport links – and is only an hour from the CBD.   

Box Hill 

Box Hill, in Sydney’s outer north-west, is undergoing a major transformation thanks to a huge population boom across the Hills Shire. The popularity of neighbouring suburbs, the expansion of the Sydney Metro Northwest rail line, and plans for a major new mixed-use town centre has established Box Hill as the new place to be for homeowners looking to settle in the Hills district. Combining a country feel with rapidly growing infrastructure in the form of shopping facilities and new schools, this suburb is perfect for families looking for a slower pace of life, quality amenities and plenty of space.  

Googong 

A brand-new township just 16km from Canberra’s CBD, Googong will eventually become home to around 18,000 people over the next 10 to 15 years. The well-established Googong North already boasts eight playgrounds, two dog parks, three playing fields, two tennis courts, six netball courts, a pump track, a private early learning to year 12 school, and a shopping village. A strong community is already forming with a primary school, large town centre, shopping and entertainment precinct and sports centre are also on the drawing board. The whole suburb has been designed with sustainability in mind and almost one quarter of the site is dedicated to open space.  

Orange

Sakina Homes is proud of its regional roots, which is why you’ll often hear us championing the charms of Orange. Three-and-a-half hours west of Sydney, this large country town has it all – a fantastic food culture with lots of great restaurants and cafes, as well as good schools and a relaxed country feeling. Housing is affordable, but of excellent quality and there is space to spare! The rural lifestyle the town offers is enviable, allowing families to spend more time together without the added strains of long commutes and the high property prices of the city. As a large bustling city, Orange has great job opportunities, but still gives you the chance to sit down at the dinner table with your family to enjoy locally produced food. Bon Appetit! 

Interested in learning more?  

Contact us to discuss your new home, or visit one of our display homes to see our designs in person. 

This masterplanned community just over the ACT border, has already been two decades in the making and will eventually become home to around 18,000 people over the next 10 to 15 years. 

Developers Peet and Mirvac first had plans for the 800-hectare site approved in 2011 after around 10 years of environmental and community consultation, and engagement with all levels of government.  

In 2014, the first residents moved into Googong North, the first of five self-contained neighbourhoods in the town. Today, Googong North is home to eight playgrounds, two dog parks, three playing fields, two tennis courts, six netball courts, a pump track, a private early learning to year 12 school, and a shopping village. Construction will soon commence on the town’s public primary school, which will open in Term 1, 2023.

Construction has also begun on Googong’s $143 million town centre and the town’s major shopping and entertainment precinct, which is expected to open around 2024-2025. This second neighbourhood includes a proposed public high school, indoor pool and sports centre, tennis facility, library and community centre plus another 1,800 homes. 

Almost one quarter of the site is dedicated to open space, including Googong Common, which weaves through the centre of town and links up with the protected Googong Foreshores.  

The town also has an integrated water cycle management system that reduces its potable water use by about 60 per cent and recycles more than half of its wastewater. These initiatives earned Googong the Green Building Council’s first 5-star Green Star – Communities rating. 

Googong is also set to become a Smart City, after the developers secured a $1.1 million federal government grant to invest in technology infrastructure such as waste management, utility consumption and the maintenance of amenities. The first element is already in place with the installation of a smart wind turbine and solar-powered pole – a foundation component in the township’s high-tech backbone.

These initiatives, along with a strong community development program, earned Googong top honours from the Urban Development Institute of Australia, winning the Excellence in Masterplanned Communities and Excellence in NSW Regional Development categories in 2019, and the Property Council of Australia’s ACT Development of the Year in 2020.   

Peter Leeson, Sakina Homes’ regional sales manager for ACT says the appetite for land in Googong has been “incredibly strong”. 

“The town has been so well planned and offers residents fantastic amenities at an affordable price point within a short drive of Canberra’s CBD,” he says. 

“The developers have put an incredible amount of thought into creating a strong community here and it shows.” 

Who’s buying in Googong?

“We’ve seen strong demand from first home buyers because of the land prices are lower than in Canberra but you’re still within a 25-minute drive of the city centre so it’s an easy commute,” Peter says.

But Googong’s affordability, amenity and a strong sense of community is also proving a major drawcard for families looking for a bit more land to build their dream home. 

“The planning laws in NSW are different from the ACT, particularly in terms of setbacks, so you can build a larger home on your block,” Peter says. 

“We get a lot of enquiries from families who are looking to design and build their dream home and settle down here for good.” 

Sakina Homes’ Bedarra home design on show at Googong’s new display village has been designed to offer families that creative freedom to personalise their home with a layout to suit their lifestyle. The four or five-bedroom floorplans include a large integrated kitchen, living and dining area with an adjacent al fresco entertaining zone, plus the option of a master suite upstairs or downstairs. The Eden home design, also on display at Googong, conceals a similarly spacious interior behind its single-storey façade, with cleverly planned kids’ and parents’ zones offering plenty of spaces for families to come together or spend time separately.

Schools in Googong

The Anglican School Googong is a co-educational, open-entry school in Googong North. It currently caters for Early Learning through to Year 10 but will eventually take students all the way through to Year 12. A public primary school is scheduled for completion by 2023 and a public secondary school is also proposed as part of plans for Googong Central. There are also several public primary and secondary school options in nearby Queanbeyan and a variety of private schools around the ACT.

Shopping and leisure in Googong

The majority of Googong’s five neighbourhoods will have a local shopping centre, with Googong North’s the first to take shape with an IGA supermarket, liquor store, pub, café, pizza shop, hair and beauty salon, GP, vet, physiotherapy, pharmacy, gym and childcare centre. Work is also being finalised on a dentist, allied health services, and a restaurant. 

Googong Central will house the major shopping and entertainment precinct with up to two major supermarkets, retail shops, cafés, restaurants, a Community Centre, fire station, library, and more. 

There’s plenty to keep residents entertained outdoors, with local sporting clubs already established, plus fishing and kayaking on Googong Dam, swimming at the Cascades or White Rocks Reserve, and plenty of trails in the area for walking or biking.  

Eventually, Googong will boast eleven playing fields, ten tennis courts, six netball courts, a regional playground, thirteen local parks, an indoor pool and sports centre, and over 15km of walkways, bike paths and bush trails. 

Googong also has a packed program of community events throughout the year, from kite festivals and fishing fairs through to large-scale celebrations for Halloween (Boogong) and a music festival, Googfest. 

Restaurants in Googong

Mocker Bean Café, Bangkok Bean van and Gorman and Co. pub are popular local outlets for residents, and there are more to come when the town centre opens around 2024-2025. There’s also a variety of options in nearby Queanbeyan and Jerrabomberra.