COVID restrictions in NSW were "horrendous", Hunter property developer Keith Johnson says.
"I think it's as though we were in a communist country. We're not used to that," Mr Johnson said.
Asked if the restrictions went too far, he said: "In hindsight, how would I know?"
"I think the biggest issue is how people are feeling mentally," he said.
"But we certainly never want to see those restrictions again."
Mr Johnson said it was important to keep an eye on the difference between deaths and hospitalisations from COVID, compared to other diseases like influenza.
"But who am I to say this? What would have happened had we not shut down? I'm just happy it's over [lockdown] and we can move forward.
"I don't judge or say we did it wrong, I just hope people get vaccinated and that we do our best.
"We'll be getting boosters, like we've done with other diseases. And then we have to get on with it."
He believed people should be "united" and "work together" to manage the pandemic and return to normality as much as possible.
He said people in this country, for the most part, followed the COVID rules and restrictions.
"It showed Australians are very patriotic. They want the best for their country," he said.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has said the state is committed to avoiding any further lockdowns in NSW, and the measure will only be used as a last resort.
He also said that "targeted restrictions" could be used in "circumstances where they are required".
Under the NSW government roadmap, more restrictions are due to be lifted on November 1 [including regional travel] and December 1 [including freedoms for the unvaccinated].
The state is close to achieving a vaccination rate of 90 per cent for those 16 and over.
Newcastle businessman Jeff McCloy said there may have been an "overreaction" in some aspects of the pandemic response in Australia, but "if you're in the position of making those decisions, you err on the side of caution".
"I guess I'm trying to say NSW was reasonably managed, Victoria was terribly managed and Western Australia is just a joke," Mr McCloy said.
The former Newcastle lord mayor said Western Australia's response had been "cruel" in not letting people into the state, including not allowing some Western Australians back in.
"The same thing happened in Queensland when they shut out Queenslanders going back home, who couldn't afford to pay for their quarantine," he said.
"If they had a COVID test and didn't have COVID, they should have all been allowed back."
Mr McCloy avoided the NSW lockdown, spending 10 weeks in Queensland.
"It's probably the longest I've ever been away from business," he said.
Johnson Property Group and McCloy Group, which have developments in the Hunter, have performed strongly during the pandemic with rising property prices.
Mr Johnson believed the Hunter property market had boomed because "people want to get out of the city".
"They realise they can work from home and still connect to the city," he said.
One buyer at his Trinity Point development in south-west Lake Macquarie had dramatically changed his lifestyle.
"He used to go to his warehouse every day, now he goes once a month and the business still operates well," he said.
"I think people have been shocked at how well people work unsupervised."
Nevertheless, Mr Johnson said his business would seek to return to normality.
"I'm a people person. We still need face-to-face meetings and we need to socialise," he said.
"We're not made to sit at home in front of cameras. Everyone is sick of Zoom."
He said people had been eager to return to the Trinity Point restaurant named "8 at Trinity".
"People are happy to see each other again," he said.
Mr McCloy believed the Hunter's property market would continue to be "enormously strong".
"I think the regions will continue to grow. The unprecedented demand will continue," he said, particularly given the capacity to work from home.
"People are quite wary of high-rise apartments in cities where everyone gets in a lift. And we haven't even started immigration back yet."
The McCloy Group was among the businesses that thrived during the pandemic, but Mr McCloy noted that "everyone had different circumstances".
"We adopted a policy at the office to work from home. We did all the normal hygiene practices, social distancing and we had lots of Skype meetings," he said.
"We used technology as much as we could. We haven't quite got a paperless office, but we're close to it."
He said the ability to work from home "gives people more freedom".
"But contact with fellow humans is extremely necessary. It's part of the reason we have all these other issues when people are cut off from their family.
"On a personal level, I just asked everyone in the family to use common sense. That's not going in big crowds or big lines and keeping out of Sydney when the virus was rife."
He said young people had rebelled against lockdown, which was "understandable, particularly in Victoria".
