QLD Atherton PPOR

Hi all,

Have been living in cairns for sometime now and have fallen in love with Atherton. We currently own in Cairns however as we plan on starting a family in the next year have been looking for a quiter town with all the amenities needed to settle down and grow roots.

I am in a secure job that is looking to expand services into the tablelands and my partner and I quite frequent atherton and surrounds and have fallen in love with the place. No real plans to purchase an IP as this purchase is emotional for sure. Growth in the area has been pretty flat although this is the standard for FNQ anyway.

Just curious if anyone has lived here or know of people who have lived here and their thoughts on Atherton. Also with a population below 10k would we be foolish to purchase here rather than just rent?

Warm regards

 

I reckon in all my years of hanging around here, this is the first time anyone has asked about Atherton. It's a nice town.
It seems that this is a lifestyle decision and you are realistic about the growth, so that's good.
Most people would suggest you rent there for a year to make sure life in a small town will suit you.
Scott

 

Nice part of the world!

My only concerns would be infrastructure related.
Is having the airport, medical specialists, Uni and better schools a few hundred windy kilometres away going to drive you nuts?

 

Make sure you are handy with the Gerni!

Thats my main gripe about the tablelands - the damp
you see a lot of houses where people let plants grow up to them which is a massive no no

Depends how much your spending and if it could be viewed as a decent investment if not lived in by you

If your going to blow 500k in atherton then i would make.sure you like it first. If your spending 3's i wouldnt worry as much.

 

Thanks for the responses guys, I think for the amenities this would not be too hard to deal with, the drive isn't too bad I can do the giles range in just over an hour which is a beautiful drive. I'd be driving it for work anyway.

In terms of potential investment for the future it's got it's pro's and cons. I like that the vacancy rate is very low ( 0.40% ish) I also know being in the industry that their is a phenomenally high demand for NDIS and child safety accommodations in the tablelands which are quite often long term tenants that will always pay on time. Child safety services will often pay a premium as well.

I also know that a nicely renovated home in Atherton can perform very well on Airbnb (some three bedrooms at over $120 a night). Once covid is done and dusted you could do very well with an air bnb in Atherton, problem would be servicing this between visits. Atherton does get a lot of tourisim during peak season so there is always that option, benefit is it's proximity to the tablelands so wouldn't have problems being booked out for weeks by families.

I think insurance prices are also far more reasonable in the tablelands so the property would never cost me anything to hold if we did decide to rent it out.

Down side is the growth and yields however I am not quite fond of 5% yields in a town that small which quite frankly I could do better investing in brissy to achieve better yields and better growth potential.

I'm not quite sure what would need to occur for growth to come to the tablelands, I think its a slow burner for the next cycle as Cairns would need to move and grow a fair amount until places like innisfail, mossman and the tablelands begin experience growth as people leave Cairns for more affordable accommodation, this will be a long way off anyway. Part of me wonders if this purchase is better suited for when we wish to retire and can buy after a cycle or two..

Really appreciate the feedback, I guess I'll sit on it for some more time and use this thread to provide any interesting feedback on how Atherton is performing etc as it may be of interest to others down the road.

 

Rental market has been incredibly tight as of recent with what appears to be a rise in the rental price for what is listed. Quite a large demand.

We have also spread our search to babinda which appears to have seen a recent rise in the median house price market.

 

A bump to the thread, anyone any updates?

I've observed the rise in Babinda too, I have observed it as people being more optimistic than realistic. The listings overpriced for what one actually gets and within town better prices to be found for more. I am assuming this is because Gordonvale is rising and the new highway infrastructure.

I hear your observation of the low possibility of demand rise as other places around cairns are more likely to boom first (would for us be a reason for PPOR).

What are your observations now that the country has gone through a big rise?

Cheers!

 

Acerage would be a more rationale financial pick. They outperform small blocks in the Tablelands market.

 

My friend owns a place in Malanda that is currently rented. The rental market is quite good in that area apparently because the schools in the areas have excellent reputations plus the lifestyle aspect.