VIC First IP - Corio/Norlane or Melton

If you are talking about that side of town, I personally think Newcomb is the best suburb to buy in. Great houses between 300-350k. And you get decent rent there. Look how close it is to Geelong centre, and only 15 mins from Clifton springs beach. Again, I'd buy in a better pocket.

 

97 St Albans Rd east Geelong doesn't look too bad, 2 Streets from cemetery. @JacM

 

Hi guys, read this thread and found some valuable information- I am an investor based in Sydney and looking to invest in Melbourne and Melton/Geelong are places which got my attention. Not sure if I have missed the bus or do we still have some opportunities?
Price range- 250-300K
Strategy- long term hold with POTENTIAL(reno or subdivision at later stage)
Areas- ???

 

Keep your money in Sydney mate..still waiting for the boat to arrive in Melton. Don't think it has been built yet, nor is there a sea to sail it in hehe

 

There are some very good opportunities there still. Most of the places the boat has already sailed.
Check armstrong creek area as well.
Both are good suburbs with steadily changing demographics but its going to take time.

 

Thanks Greyghost and ashish1137!

Geelong- are you hinting around Newcomb ?

 

I am hinting either explore around armstrong creek region or corio is a good buy.

Mickleham is another suburb, a little out of the way though, then what you are asking.

Regards

 

Hi,

Any recommendations for a company which does pre purchase property inspection within 35 km from melbourne? Does pest inspection also gets covered under pre purchase property inspection?

Also what is the difference between building inspection and property inspection?

 

Not much has changed with my situation, still here, and still enjoying the convenience of living in an area where everything is close and also being nice and quiet.

FWIW, i regularly do my shopping fairly late, and often go to Coles at Corio Village late in the evening, sometimes 10-11pm and never had any issues at all. Five minutes away from my place. And six years is a reasonable time to encounter unpleasantness i'd suggest if it was to be around.

There's a block of land, 710m2 for sale in the Golf Course estate at the Sphinx end of Thompson Rd, with a price being asked of well over $300K.

(ad is here) 12 Baden Powell Drive, North Geelong, Vic 3215 - Land/Development for Sale #501931690 - realcommercial.com.au

Now with Newtown, Geelong West, Manifold Heights and even Hamlyn Heights all starting to all reach property prices that are double or more the cost of Norlane (5-6 minutes down the road) will there be at some point a moment when the closeness to these facilities and massive price differential starts to make Norlane seem crazily cheap by comparison? Geelong's not that big a place, and to be honest, speaking from my own opinion, i find it just odd that people will pay so much more simply to be 'within walking distance' of various cafes, shops etc. Those places in Pako and Shannon Ave are only moments away from me, and it's not like a Berlin wall is there to stop Norlane-ites from going to them.

There's a few articles in the Geelong Advertiser highlighting the attraction to Melbourne buyers who are starting to buy these inner Geelong areas due to them being half the price or less of similarly located Melbourne locales, which is driving the prices of inner Geelong and Geelong East/West to over $500K or more for properties. Just saying though, for the sake of a drive of less than 10 minutes, i have the same access to these places. And my mortgage is half the price or less.

 

Here we go.....a bit of love from this article in the Herald Sun today helps a bit.

No Cookies | Herald Sun

Still reckon as a resident here that with some properties on subdivided blocks being available for numbers starting from around the 160K mark, that investment-wise there's nothing else near this level of infrastructure and proximity to major cities and amenities than Norlane and Corio. A quick perusal of your Domains or RealEstate.com will show this. But with other Geelong suburbs like Geelong West, Drumcondra, Rippleside and Manifold Heights medians rising to amounts approaching or exceeding $500K, a suburb that is merely 8-10 minutes from these being half the price or less just HAS to start looking quite attractive. Geelong's not going to vanish, neither is the 50 minute commuting distance to Melbourne either. There'd be nowhere in Victoria inside this commuting distance to a major city where a '1' is the first number in a property price.

 

I think Geelong as a whole is a potential. I can't access the article though.

 

Another little bit of air time from the Geelong Advertiser, and an article that perhaps does give a little substance to the suggestion that there may be some action happening with Geelong's Northern suburbs.

Category: | Geelong Advertiser

Investor led to some extent, but as i've harked on about, there's a fair bit of convenience about these areas and as everywhere else rises in price, the entry point in the Northern suburbs remains as affordable as anything remotely close to Melbourne, or indeed a regional city like Geelong.

 

@Dave3214 what are your thoughts on Breakwater ?

 

Breakwater is an interesting suburb. It's kind of divided into two precincts, although sometimes the residential areas that are bordered by the footy ground, the showgrounds, Boundary Rd, Carr St and Breakwater Rd are all referred to as Breakwater even though they could be also described as East Geelong as well. More correctly Breakwater refers to the houses that run past the Showgrounds and racecourse, starting at Carr St and are on the Southern side of those landmarks.

In any case they are still relatively close to the Geelong CBD, only about 3-4 K's from it, and are also the same postcode as east Geelong, and thus are not that far from the premium areas of Garden St. Many factories are along Fellmongers Rd, and also Leather St, but there's houses that have a good look over the river too. Those roads i mentioned get a fair bit of traffic now that the modern Barwon River crossing now runs along Fellmongers Rd, so that has to be taken into account, but it's also better in linking the Princes Hwy to these Eastern suburbs as well.

Most of the houses in this area are privately owned, and some the traditional brick commission house style of the late 60's. There's not a lot of shopping in walking distance, but a short 5-6 minute drive will get you to any of Bellarine Village, Newcomb Central or even High St Belmont's major shopping precinct. So it's quite handy in that regard.

With prices still in the mid to high 2's, there's value here i reckon again given that it's closer than Whittington to the CBD and it's the same postcode as East Geelong which has houses around the 600K mark for a standard type in Garden St and immediate surrounds. Similar to Norlane in one sense, the big variation in prices in an area which is much more compact than a capital city to my mind makes the cheaper suburbs pretty good value, as all the good bits are still a short commute away for these cheaper suburbs. Spending a few minutes in a car daily is worth the 200-300K difference in mortgage as far as i'm concerned, just for the sake of walking or not.

 

Hi Dave, I've been reading your comments here and ive bought an IP in Norlane near Bunnings for under 300K 2 weeks of purchasing got rented out for 300pw thanks for your honest comments i really belive Norlane has potential and the outskirts suburbs around Geelong..

 

Well done Kaskourelis, reckon you can't go wrong there to be honest. The Bunnings was a big boon i reckon for Norlane, being a readily identifiable brand and around there are quite a lot of the 'New Norlane' houses which i am guessing you've been looking at. I just reckon for where it is with regard to infrastructure and even for employment precincts (Cotton On is just a short distance away, and Avalon only 15 k's up the road) it stacks up well.

To put it another way, if one lives around here and has their 10 minute commute to and from work locally in Geelong, say using even a moderate rate of pay of $20 an hour, that may save $40 a day compared to living in an outer suburb of Melbourne and commuting an hour. The cost of depreciation on your car, and the utility of having extra leisure time at home surely must be factors people should also consider when buying a place. And while Geelong obviously doesn't have the sheer overwhelming choices of cafes, restaurants and entertainment of Melbourne, does everyone partake in those daily? Nearby Separation St is starting to see some new eateries open up, and Pakington St is only a 10 minute drive away.

I reckon being stuck away in some outlying Melbourne new estates with roads built for traffic volumes 40 years ago just doesn't compare to being close to a regional CBD with roads that are designed for large traffic volumes. I'm happy here, and for just $280 a week, i'm buying my place for less than the rent you're getting for your IP. And even that's cheap for what you're near infrastructure-wise. I read some of those Sydney and Melbourne prices.and shake my head......... I'd buy my place and retire on the difference!!

 

Northern Health Hub Chosen For Barwon Health-North

I confess i have a IP in Norlane WEST (even i wish it was recognised and not clubbed with rest of Norlane) with approx 700sqm land and hoping CG next 2/3 years will make up for the sluggish rate thus far...knowing what i know now i would have invested closer to mebourne or closer to Geelong cbd...but it was my first IP...rookie mistake

 

It will have to come soon i reckon. I'd actually like to think we can get Norlane West to be renamed 'Lower Lovely Banks' or even Bell Park North,

But i was reading this article today talking about 'pedestrian friendly' suburbs, where you can ditch the car and just walk, cycle or commute by public transport wherever you may go. But given they were talking about some Sydney suburbs that have a median of over a million dollars, my thoughts are that my '99 Verada and the few thousand dollars of fuel it may use in a year is a hell of a lot cheaper than the interest on a mortgage a million dollars more than mine is. And with Geelong, if i want to go to Pako or the CBD, it's only a short drive. I'd probably take as long getting into Geelong from my place than someone driving from say Manifold Heights at school time.

It's something maybe i just don't see the value in, and perhaps i'm a bit different to many, but i'd gladly continue to pay my $1120 a month to buy my place than double that a month simply for the 'cachet' of being able to walk or cycle to a place instead of drive. But a place in Wirraway Cres sold for $400K (on a larger block of 817m2) but that's still a good sign to see a 4 in front of the prices here.

Sold Price for 6 Wirraway Crescent Norlane Vic 3214

I still reckon a big selling point is the fact that if you're a Melbourne commuter, you go home and get home without facing a single traffic light. Come off the Anakie Rd exit and you're home! It's a nice feeling to have i reckon.

 

Hi @JacM, between Melton and VIC - Plumpton VIC 3335 which one that is better for investing for CG in the next 5 years from now ?

 

Hi @Tekoz

Nobody can assure you of what capital growth will do . It's a bit like asking what the tattslotto numbers are for this Saturday night.