VIC Geelong

I was considering picking this one up. Did an inspection this past Saturday. Nice solid house, neat and tidy, on wood stumps, new/polished floorboards that didn't creak. Block of land is a bit small at 390sqm, 3m easement at rear of property, corner block. No chance of subdivision without demolishing the current house. Great location, in the growth zone, walking distance to the famous fish and chippery, 30s-1m drive to the shopping center, station not far either. Freshly rendered too. Currently tenanted at $255/week.

Couldn't find a fault with my untrained eye. Should be a good property for someone starting out, the current tenant is happy to stay on and has been there awhile. Why haven't I put an offer in? I'll look for larger block for the opportunity to develop one day.

 

Sounds fantastic, Craig! Just wondering about the properties position on the block. Is it subdividable?

 

Great job @josh123 and @craig s on settlement Exactly my experience in terms of demand in the area except my PM was too lazy to advertise at a higher price. Which PM did you end up getting in the end? I think we got in at a good time as Corio would be the only suburb this close to Melbourne to still have a 3 in front and one of the lowest vacancy rate in the state.

 

Thanks @Pentanol, I used Roncon rentals, the same company I purchased my property through. Hopefully the area keeps on growing!

 

@Robbo03, not too sure if it would be sub dividable, It has a garage which is joined onto an outside entertainment area which is attached to the house, but definitely has potential for a knock down if the area rises and 2 maybe 3 dwellings put on.

 

Just some notes about how it seems now that houses are flying of the shelf in the Geelong region, with 13 Fidge Cres breakwater selling in just one week, and 22 Bendle St (only about 3 houses from Boundary Rd dividing East Geelong from Newcomb) selling at auction for an imposing $580K! Can honestly say that aside from crossing Boundary Rd, there's nothing different in amenity across the road say in Charles St or thereabouts.

I can't find the actual sold price for 13 Fidge though, although unusually it was advertised for a specific price of $319K. I guess it got that quick smart.

By complete contrast though, 125 Garden St has had a time on market which could probably be measured by carbon dating or ring barking (Or ice-core samples). It's been on the market for i reckon at least two years, although being an oddly shaped large block of close to 1400m2, that former church is commanding a price of roughly $1.4M. I wonder if having a house in a suburb with a time on market like this is considered in the suburb average 'time on market'. It's such a contrast to the rest of the Geelong market!

125 Garden Street East Geelong Vic 3219 - House for Sale #120840705 - realestate.com.au

 

Hey everybody

Long time lurker, first time poster.

I am very interested in purchasing an IP in the Geelong region with the intent to redevelop in approximately 3-5 years. I have been looking in the Belmont region as the property there are well under my budget and decently sized. One thing I discovered was this new estate at the old CSIRO site and it has turned me off due to the increase in supply in the future.

Details of the new estate below;
Up Property - Melbourne Property Development & Investment

No Cookies | Geelong Advertiser

The property I was seriously looking into is; 65 Laura Avenue Belmont Vic 3216 - House for Sale #126050118 - realestate.com.au which resides 4 streets away from the proposed new estate.

They have not commenced selling out the stages. I believe the plans are at council as we speak. However what I can foresee is this clashing with my redevelopment plans in 3-5 years.

Just wanting all your thoughts on the matter keeping in mind my intention to redevelop in 3-5 years. Also, what other regions of Geelong would you recommend with a budget of 650k focusing on capital growth.

Thanks

 

How about Herne Hill, Grovedale, bell park, North geelong, norlane or corio? All suited to redevelopment

 

Thank you Jasper for your reply.

I have looked into those regions however I am mainly focusing to areas closer to the Geelong CBD (also keeping within my budget) more specifically hospitals (as I work in the medical field myself). The majority of my IPs are actually tenanted to health care workers both by chance and referrals. My target market are young professionals, educated with stable incomes -- this is purely for peace of mind. I feel the more 'north' I go in the Geelong region, the less these potential tenants fall within my target market.

With this in mind, I have my main focus in the areas of East Geelong, Newtown, Geelong West however keeping an eye out for the perfect deals in Belmont, Newcomb and Manifold Heights.

Areas closer to the Geelong CBD, I intend to rely on capital growth. The further away from the Geelong CBD, the more my mindset changes to redevelop in about 3-5 years -- both of which I am extremely open to doing. The reason behind my 3-5 year delay is because I currently have developments in progress much closer to Melbourne. Unfortunately, on a single income and other prospects, I don't foresee myself redeveloping in Geelong for the next 3-5 years.

I am very open to any suggestions however! You never know what you could learn.

 

Newtown, Geelong West, East Geelong and Manifold are pricey suburbs already, so you'd need to add value smartly.

Remember, Belmont is across the river from town and is the same distance to town as Herne Hill, which also has better access to the ring road.

What kind of redevelopment are you thinking of?

 

The thing with Belmont, it's a place where people seem to be willing to pay quite astonishing prices for new townhouse builds, as a perusal of a property website like realsestate.com.au shows. It's quite remarkable, and not being a builder or anything, i am not sure how much more it costs to actually build a high-end townhouse over a standard townhouse that sells for say $350K tops in many other suburbs of Geelong. An example of the ones nearby in Norlane is this one here...


2/7 Karrin Court Norlane Vic 3214 - Unit for Sale #125473194 - realestate.com.au

By complete contrast, Belmont's townhouses are on another plane altogether as these example show...such as these here....

2/23 Rotherham Street Belmont Vic 3216 - House for Sale #126159102 - realestate.com.au

2/35 Digby Avenue Belmont Vic 3216 - Townhouse for Sale #126123506 - realestate.com.au

43B Francis Street Belmont Vic 3216 - Townhouse for Sale #126004018 - realestate.com.au

2 Hawthorn Avenue Belmont Vic 3216 - Townhouse for Sale #126235154 - realestate.com.au

So buying a regular older place in Belmont might be well worth it as the profit margin on these townhouse builds seems to me to be quite high. It's a highly desired suburb for homebuyers to want to get into, and these townhouses would be almost the highest priced ones in the Geelong region, maybe apart from Newtown which is nearer to the CBD. Adds an interesting wrinkle to buying a place in this part of Geelong.

 

Most definitely. I have a strong emphasis on research in regards to anything that I do. I would definitely examine the property closely considering all the standard variables such as location, amenities etc as well as how I would add value that would make my property more unique to others.

Thinking of a multi town-house development depending on size of the original block.

Thank you Dave for your reply. I have crunched my numbers and would highly agree that there is a larger profit margin in Belmont in regards to townhouse builds. My main issue is this planned new estate at the old CSIRO facility. I fear it will clash with my plans.

When I do intend to develop, I foresee an increase in demand in the area due to this new estate and put quite frankly, what I plan to do is 2 double story townhouses on 300-350m2 blocks (after subdivision) -- the same type of housing which will be built at this new estate/site. As with future potential buyers, the question arises is this; Why would I pay $x for a house in an old street where I can pay the same amount if not less for the same sized house 4 streets down in a brand new street?

If I was in the financial position to redevelop ASAP, I would scoop up the opportunity.

For more information in regards to this new estate, click here Amendment C251 & Permit 408/2016 Former CSIRO Site - 1 Henry St. Belmont - City of Greater Geelong

Because of this, I have redirected my line of sight to more the northern side of Belmont closer to the river. With that being said, I have also looked into Breakwater. I have not looked into it further than cross checking what is for sale VS what has sold. But I would like to hear your thoughts about Breakwater. As i continue my due diligence, I am sure I'll find more information to contribute to the discussion.

 

Speaking of Newtown, have I missed the CG train here? Or is there still room to move. I found 412 LaTrobe Terrace Newtown Vic 3220 - House for Sale #125220374 - realestate.com.au a few weeks maybe a month ago now and it is still on the market. My intentions for this would be an IP with a rental return of $500-600/week I suspect.

As the location is prime, I found it odd how it is still up for sale. Am I missing something here? Did the CG train already leave?

 

It's prime, but boy howdy...it's a BUSY road...right opposite Kardinia Park...and traffic almost constantly from early morning until evening. Something to consider. Newtown though as a rule is one of Geelong's most expensive suburbs. You may get better value on the east side, South Geelong which is nearer to that suburb's train station and just as close to town, without the busy traffic.

 

Yup as stunning as that house is, it's literally on Geelong's busiest road! And that's always gonna keep a dampener on its price...

 

I did drive past this in the middle of the day a week ago and I suppose I would suspect my perception of a 'busy road' is far different from maybe yours because I didn't think it was too bad. With that being said, I have considered your opinion and this morning have organised an inspection of the property during peak hour to hear/see it for myself.

Good advice Dave!

Most definitely. I particularly like how its in RGZ though. If I could score an awesome deal on this property, then perhaps it would be worthwhile. Perhaps closer to the 500 mark rather than the 600 mark.

 

I forgot to add, I highly agree that being on a main road will severely dampen its price and long term potential capital growth. I can understand why the campaign to sell this house has been going since late April. With the same amount of money, as Dave mentioned, it would be worthwhile to look towards the East Geelong region.

 

No need to be afraid of other developments.... All bodes well for continued growth and gentrification. I love seeing new stuff coming up. The UP proposal seems very good.

 

I would strongly agree as a long term investment. However their development especially during stage 1 would clash with my development and I fear due to an increase in supply, my townhouse development will be overshadowed by the developments 4 streets down. Because let's face it, if it were me I would rather live in a new estate with a bunch of nice houses than an old street where I am the only nice house both of which are the same value -- and that's the reason why I have become apprehensive.

Of course, it's difficult to say what their house and land packages will sell at when the time comes around but I can foresee it would be similar to what I would sell my townhouses for. However, if anybody has the capacity to develop now, by all means go for it because if I had the means to develop now or next year I would jump at this opportunity ASAP.

With the above being said, I've directed my line of sight to the northern aspects of Belmont; a bit further away from Henry Street

 

Hey mate

Im looking in the area myself. Looks like you got a good buy. What kind of renos are you doing and what kind of budget are you working with?

Cheers