For-sale Aussie town attracts interest from overseas, domestic buyers

An entire 145-hectare Australian town that recently went on the property market has already attracted international and domestic interest.

The small Tasmanian town of Tarraleah, built in the 1920s to house around 2,000 European workers from the state's hydro electric dam, was put up for sale late last week.

Comprising 33 art deco buildings, a five-star lodge, golf course, church, caravan park, bar, trout-fishing dam and theater, the tourist town is expected to fetch around 10 million U.S. dollars.

But potential buyers haven't been put off by the massive price tag, with the town's real estate agent having already fielded substantial interest in the asset.

"It's only been on the market since last Thursday but we've issued 30 to 40 property reports," Tarraleah's real estate agent John Blacklow, who has never sold a whole town before, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Wednesday.

"Some of those have been overseas, a lot from interstate. I think a lot of people are more curious than anything, wondering what's this all about."

The central highlands town fell on hard times during the 1980s and 90s, leaving it largely abandoned.

Tasmania's Hydro Electric Commission eventually sold the town to property developer Andrew Kingdon for reportedly 1.5 million U.S. dollars in 2003.

By 2006, Tarraleah's deed had been taken over by Julian Homer who has since spent more than a decade restoring the town to its former glory.

On top of that, Homer has invested more than 1 million U.S. dollars in the project, and has now decided to sell up.

"We expect groups to purchase it, such as companies who want to use it for retreats, franchise operators and church and religious groups -- we've already had calls from those people," Homer told News Corp.

"Obviously I hope we make money. There's certainly been an aspect of making sure everything is correct and to period, and that cost more than if I had simply renovated them in a modern way." Endit