Clayton Harrington, from Harrington Property Group, said he expected his Riverland Estate in Warrnambool to take five years to sell but after just two-and-a-half years it had fully sold.

Buying activity began ramping up during last year's pandemic lockdown and about 40 per cent of buyers in the estate are out-of-towners moving to Warrnambool.

When stage one of the subdivision hit the market in 2019, buyers snapped up 20 blocks in the first year but over the past year another 144 have sold.

"In the last 12 months we sold from stage 2 to stage 10 in 12 months," Mr Harrington said.

"The demand's been probably unprecedented sales within that timeframe. I was expecting it to be a five-year sales period. It's been very popular."

The buying frenzy began mid-last year as the state was gripped by the pandemic, and lockdowns and stay-at-home orders pushed people to rethink where they lived.

"It would have been June/July when things really cranked up," Mr Harrington said.

"The demand was probably always there, there was a few trigger points that kicked it off." Mr Harrington said the lower interest rates had driven the price of existing homes up which had made house-and-land packages a more feasible option for purchasers. "We always identified that site as one that was going to be quite enticing for people," he said.

Mr Harrington said the location of his development had been attractive for its easy access to the hospital, and buyers were a mix of first homebuyers, families and out-of-towners.

"Forty per cent of people out of our region have purchased that we are going to welcome to Warrnambool which is great," he said.

Mr Harrington said Warrnambool was seen as a destination that could offer a better lifestyle.

"I'd imagine that the pandemic has changed a lot for city people and their attitude to how they want to raise their families and they see Warrnambool as a destination that can offer them a better lifestyle."

The rental shortage was also playing a role, he said.