Hi all, First time poster, long time lurker. I am in the process of getting a pre-approval for a loan. We can buy up to $650k with enough to do a decent renovation (the Reno will be on the cheap due to a large amount of family assistance). We have decided on reservoir for a number of reasons. I’ve been keeping tabs on the area the last 6 months and I am interested in others thoughts on the below properties that have sold and how they would ‘rank.’ 1) https://www.realestate.com.au/property/webview/52-arundel-ave-reservoir-vic-3073?client=iphone This was quite a ‘cute’ house that needed a lot of work, but could come up fantastic. I do love the weatherboard look. It was quite far north however. Unsure of the selling price but keen to find out. A true 2bdr but possibly too close to Mahoney’s road/ring road. 2) https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-vic-reservoir-133014182 This was the ‘ugliest’ but actually had an easily converted 3bdr/bungalow. Toss up between this and the first with how much work is needed, although the yard was in a better condition for this. This area seemed a fair bit better than the other two but I doubt our budget will get us into this part of res. Interested in the sale price. The similar house next door sold for $920k a few years back (renovated). 3) https://www.realestate.com.au/prope...t:view&sourceElement=search-box&client=iphone Again needed work, albeit not as much as the other two. If we had our finances sorted in time we probably would have put an offer in on this place. In my head I have ranked them 2, 1, 3 based on my research of the area, proximity to stations and other sales prices but would be interested in others opinions who are familiar with the suburb.
I would say that you need to watch out for the high voltage power lines that cut across Reservoir. Nobody wants to buy near those and is reflected by lower prices. But yes, 3 and 2 are closer to station and would be a plus, assuming that none of them are impacted by high voltage power lines.
I would check the noise for Arundel. Plus for me would be keon park stn and 902 bus stop nearby. The lines are behind the sheds on the other side of Keon Pde at this point so should be fine. Bigger land than clinnick The Y-man
Thanks Y-man for the reply + info on bus and power lines. I did have a bit of a listen at Arundel but it’s hard when it’s not the middle of the night. Definitely agree with the block size, it’s just that Reservoir is such a big suburb, it literally could be 3 or 4 separate suburbs each with their own ‘median average’ and vibe. I really like Preston/Coburg North but out of reach from a price perspective.
My comments are predicated on the interest in reno. Wow - I like the features in 1 and the design. That ocean liner (30s?) fireplace and the wall paper are insane but needs a bit of toning down - plain carpet? 3 seems badly disjointed and not a good reno option. Hard to comment on 2 as no interior shots or floor plan.
I also appreciate that these three properties have sold recently and there are others on the market, it’s just I looked at all of these so it will help me form a better opinion of the area.
The only other thing is (I think) it's miles from any shopping (not sure if that's an issue for you but...) Have you looked at T-town and Epping out of curiosity? The Y-man
Yeah 2 was a site for sore eyes. Structurally it was okay, but needed a fair bit to it (had missing doors and no electricity to one room). Typical clinker style and definitely the ugliest of them. Did ask about floor plans but not available. 1 seriously will come up a treat for whoever bought it if they do it well. Deceased estate so there was junk everywhere (grand piano and aviaries). Agree 3 - it was just a bit more spacious I guess and was in our budget ball park whereas I don’t think the others will be. The street and location for 2 was the appeal if I’m honest with the actual house less desirable.
Yeah we did, but we need somewhere that is bike riding distance to our work and anything further than Res was going to become too far. Shopping centres not really a concern for me, maybe for resale but I’d prefer to do the shop at Preston market once a week.
Can't offer you much advice but I've lived in Reservoir for 13 years and still am living here! Not too sure what the whole appeal is where I am it feels like a walking graveyard. On the plus side when you decide to go for a walk you'll come back with all the lemons you can carry. (Every Italian here has a lemon tree in their front yard)
I do love a good lemon tree. Do you know of any rosemary bushes overhanging the footpath anywhere?? I’m sure with 13 years you could offer lots of advice. For us it was proximity to the city and some other suburbs for work, the ability to have a free standing house with a yard and something we can renovate that was within our budget. Reservoir ticked all the boxes. I’ve spent some time there since, love the proximity to Preston market, northcote/Thornbury, love the vegan/vegetarian food options nearby and that there are lots of parks.
Bumping this as it seems I learnt a trick to see the sale price when it is advertised as contact agent. Not sure if anyone cares but: 1) $600k 2) $662k 3) $650k 1 imo is an absolute steal at that price. Even 2 is pretty decent value given where similar houses have landed in that area.
I only checked out 2) from Oldlistings, it was advertised at $725k in June 2020. A fair haircut if accurate but if it needs a lot of work then probably still too high.
Yeah it was a bit strange that it was listed as a single price instead of the usually 10% range. Maybe it works have been set at 660-725?
