And that dream is alive and well with demand strong throughout the Border, North East and Riverina after two years of COVID-impacted trading.

Albury-based agency McDonald Hospitality Brokers services a large area across Victoria and NSW, specialising in the sales of hotels, motels and caravan parks and has seen many rural and regional pubs reinvent themselves to remain an attractive investment.

The broker currently has hotels under contract at Cooma to the north, Tarwin Lower to the south, Deniliquin to the west and everywhere in between.

Managing director Dan McDonald said the residential property boom had also highlighted the value of country hotels, given the residences attached to them and range of revenue streams.

"We're seeing regional and country hotels diversify outside of the traditional business model, most particularly in the absence of gaming," Mr McDonald said.

"Hotels are ideally moving into new revenue streams, such as accommodation. We're seeing hotel accommodation reopen where possible, when traditionally those areas were store rooms full of schooner boxes and old promotional materials.

"In many country pubs, the second floor is hotel accommodation rooms that haven't been utilised in some cases for decades.

"COVID lockdowns saw some businesses find the time and energy to clean those areas up and all of a sudden be able to include that in their revenue stream."

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Mr McDonald has also noticed a change in operating hours to target different markets.

"A renaissance into early morning coffee and breakfast trade to address shifts in traditional patronage have occurred," he said.

"Food-focused modern hotel offerings are of critical importance for community inclusion and sustainability.

"Takeaway business models created within lockdowns have remained as a new revenue stream in some cases.

"There's been examples of people buying hotels and putting bakeries and cafes into public bars and working towards that early morning trade.

"Traditionally, pubs would open at 10am and wait for the old school drinkers and punters to come in and that was the business model.

"Anywhere, anytime online betting alternatives and a generational shift in alcohol consumption have seen this style of trading diminish."

Mr McDonald added COVID lockdowns in the past two years emphasised the role country pubs play.

"Lockdowns prevented those opportunities for community gatherings during an unprecedented pandemic, but in most cases, it highlighted the importance of hotels in the community. From business networking to family events or even individuals who utilise pubs to connect with others," he said.

"This has been highlighted by community-based acquisitions of hotel properties where the community has syndicated to save the local pub.

"There's been examples in Victoria and NSW where pubs have been bought as a co-op on the back of that importance, because COVID lockdowns made it difficult for so many operators.

"Skill shortages and low unemployment rates have been challenging for the industry as a whole since COVID, as a result, venues have had extreme difficulty operating at full trading capacity at times.

"This has been an enormous challenge an extends throughout the hospitality industry, big or small.

"Furthermore, building insurance costs for hotels are rising astronomically and have become a key issue for the industry and many other sectors, which requires a complete recalibration from insurance underwriters as the only solution."

Dederang Hotel has bucked the trend in the industry by having the same ownership for more than three decades.

Publican David McKnight has plans to retire after 33-and-a-half years behind the bar.

"It had to happen one day and I just thought it might be a good time to put the pub on the market," Mr McKnight said.

"There's been some very good memories. It will be a sad day when we walk out.

"We leased a pub at Henty for two years before we had this one and we were in Wodonga for six or seven years before that.

"We looked at a few pubs back in 1989, but Dederang appealed to us.

"Being on a pretty major highway with the footy and cricket ground, the racecourse and golf course close by, everything is here.

"We thought it would be a good opportunity to lift up a pub that was probably struggling a bit back then."

Mr McKnight transformed the pub with renovations to its accommodation, the construction of an undercover beer garden and the addition of three self-contained units at the rear of the property.

"It's well set up for the next people," he added.

"The undercover beer garden kept us going for a couple of years through COVID. It was a real bonus.

"It's been good to us over the years, that's why we stayed so long. We'll still be living at Dederang, I just won't be behind the bar."

Dederang Hotel has an asking price of $1,365,000.

On the flip side, Sandeep Kumar has made the leap to lease his first pub, taking charge of Corowa's Royal Hotel earlier in September.

Mr Kumar has had industry experience as a nightclub owner in New Zealand, but after 16 years living in Brisbane, he jumped at the chance to move his family to the country.

"We were looking to do something different and this pub came up. We came here a couple of times and really liked it and decided to move here with the family," he said.

"It's a nice, friendly town and the people have all been welcoming.

"I wanted to give my kids an experience of a country town and get along with more people here who are really friendly.

"We'll be staying here as long as we can.

"We can't wait to meet new people on this adventure and the best part is I don't have to drive through any traffic lights here (laughs)."

It's only early days, but Mr Kumar has really embraced the move.

"Running a nightclub is totally different. I think this is a lot better because there's lots of things involved in nightclubs that you don't have to worry about with a pub," he added.

McDonald Hospitality Brokers has had a number of strong results with pub sales this year.

Walwa Hotel, Corryong Courthouse Hotel, Deniliquin's Railway Hotel and the Royal Hotel at Berrigan have all changed hands in recent months, while the agency also finalised the sale of Wodonga's Birallee Tavern in December last year.

Jindera Hotel, the Exchange Hotel at Deniliquin and the Mighty Blighty Hotel are all under contract.

"There's significant regional and country hotel interest from the market driven by regional migration and business opportunity," Mr McDonald added.

"Demand is strong, there's no doubt about it, and that's reflected in the properties that we've achieved results with."

Also among the agency's listings is Edwards Tavern in Wodonga, which has a new business lease on offer for $565,000.

The Moorefield Park Drive establishment can cater for up to 150 diners and offers a private function space for 70 people.

Meanwhile, a new 25-year lease has been offered for Moyhu Hotel in the King Valley wine region.

The hotel has a public bar and indoor seating for 65 diners, boasts a function room and lounge area, along with an undercover outdoor space and beer garden.

Moyhu Hotel doubles as an accommodation provider with seven rooms located within the popular tourism area.

The leasehold has been set at $295,000.

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