Apartments in Melbourne

Hi guys,

I will be Melbourne soon and am interested to purchase my first property. My budget will be approximately $350k-$400k and I plan to live in the property for at least 4-5 years before renting it out as an IP.

I expect to be working in the CBD and therefore would like to be within a 45 minute commute to the city centre, however with my budget in mind there aren't a lot of options available to me.

One thing I have noticed is a few old (some Art Deco) buildings with 1-2 bedroom apartments, most having less than 8 apartments and very low body corporate fees (due to the lack pools, gyms, elevators etc.).
I understand the current oversupply of new medium & high density apartment buildings in Melbourne CBD is making apartments a questionable investment choice (especially off the plan), however I would like to know if anyone here has any thoughts on these older style 'flats' which seem to be available in blue chip suburbs relatively cheap. Are they likely to suffer the same vacancy rates/poor capital growth as the newer stock?

Thanks a lot,

A

 

As long as it's spacious, got a unique layout, character, it will be sought after.

 

Spacious, older apartments are very popular, especially because they have much larger rooms than the new standard size. But watch out for possible problems with older buildings due to age.

 

I appreciate everyone's responses so far, really solid information thank you.

The Y-man, I appreciate the links. These are definitely the type of property I have in mind, as well as the approximate location. Are you expecting much growth over the next couple of years? Also, do you plan on holding this property for the long term?

 

I appreciate the hot tip re Thomastown and Epping.

Cheers,

A

 

How is the yield and CG on those kind of properties in that area?