“Game-changing” megaprojects. A “critically low” rental vacancy rate. The world’s largest miner investing billions of dollars in South Australia.

These are just three big themes an expert panel pointed to as reasons why SA is grabbing the eyeballs – and dollars – of investors from across the globe.

Speaking at Pitcher Partners’ Property Lunch last week at SkyCity Casino in Adelaide, the panel – featuring a top CEO, a build-to-rent expert, a development giant and an alternative investments fund manager – said SA was quietly becoming a truly attractive place to park money in.

“We’ve got population growth happening across Australia, particularly in South Australia. We’ve got AUKUS coming up. We’ve got BHP’s Olympic Dam project, big game changers,” said ICAM managing director Freddy Bartlett.

“Looking through the short-term noise that we’ve got in terms of tax changes and interest rates, I think things are looking visibly positive.”

These projects will drive people to SA, Bartlett said. The state is set to enjoy an economic boon from AUKUS, with billions to be spent here on the nuclear submarine project and hundreds of jobs to be created too.

The world’s largest mining company BHP’s planned Olympic Dam smelter expansion is another example of companies investing in SA.

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“The short answer is we’re feeling fairly bullish on South Australia,” Bartlett said.

Daniel Palumbo – the managing director of Palumbo Group – said SA was underrated.

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“There’s a lot happening. There’s a lot that’s about to unfold, and I don’t think any of us in this room  – as clued up as we are – really understand what’s about to happen,” said Palumbo, whose company is behind projects like the Sofitel in the CBD and is soon to start construction of the Royal Apartments in Kent Town.

But Palumbo said approvals pipelines were slow, leading to construction delays, and turning off property investors.

“The time it takes to get a project up and running is having an impact on confidence,” he said.

“The government has recognised some of the pinch points and is doing something about it, which is positive, but the supply needs to keep up and construction costs are increasing.

“If we can tighten up timeframes, we can get to the construction part earlier. Right now, we spend a lot of time trying to get to construction.”

And Adelaide was still a hard sell to those not in the know, according to Sentinel Real Estate director of client services and marketing Georgina Duckworth.

“When I’m over in Asia, a lot of the time people are asking: ‘What are the opportunities in Sydney and Melbourne?’,” she said.

“That’s because they know those places on the map.

“In terms of promoting Adelaide, you do have to take them on a journey. But that conversation is starting to turn.”

She said the build-to-rent sector was becoming a particularly exciting proposition in SA, where rental vacancies were at just 0.6 per cent.

“Adelaide is coming into the mix,” she said.

“It’s taken a little bit more convincing. Adelaide isn’t the first destination that [investors] had on the map.”

Duckworth said it was simply a matter of getting people to Adelaide to show them that “this is a very liveable city”.

“You certainly need to get people here because once they see the liveability of Adelaide, it’s very convincing,” she said.

Bartlett agreed, saying he had completed a “fair few” trips to Asia.

“There are subgroups, particularly in Singapore, that are invested in Adelaide. They know the story,” he said.

“Unfortunately, the first city people think about is Sydney or Melbourne.

“The story around AUKUS is helping. That is a global story, people get that, and that is starting to put Adelaide on the map.”