NSW Hornsby or Baulkham Hills

Could you please clarify why you feel Kellyville might grow better than Hornsby/ Bh ?
Are you referring specifically to the older houses in Kellyville with land over 600 sqm ?

 

An above average house in a cheaper suburb will always outperform a below average house in a more expensive suburb.

Edit: Just noticed that Kellyville is now priced same as Baulkham Hill so you probably need to look at The Ponds, Box Hill etc..

 

Agree.
Cherrybrook

Thanks, Box Hill is a sure no for me given the lack of trees and poor commute to the city.
I understand prices have grown there significantly but for me somehow can't accept life there

 

I think a 3 bedroom duplex in Cherrybrook will always be desirable. Just stay away from powerlines.

 

I don't think the OP will find an above average house in Kellyville within their budget...

 

I can see there is a lot of demand for cherrybrook probably driven by CTHS

Yes, I think standtall did correct and clarified he feels the same.

 

A Cherrybrook townhouse is then your best bet .. Cherrybrook market is usually a bit quiet between April to June before really picking up in later half of the year due to parents buying before new school year.

 

I’ve got nieces there. I think the teaching is really good there, plus the students get a massive choice of subjects from year 9 and up because there are so many students. I wish I had those options going through high school.

 

It’s actually crazy .. 40km from CBD yet $1.6m isn’t enough for a decent house .. I feel for FHB trying to enter the housing market in Sydney.

 

Highly recommended .. Cherrybrook public schools are among the very best in Australia.

 

@KingCantona7 We were in your position middle of last year and around the same budget as well. We've looked at all of the suburbs in your search area and bought a house in BH. Prior to that we were living in a new estate out north west Sydney after moving out of our rental in in the Lower North Shore to see what it's like. The estate we lived in now has 1.6M 5 bedroom houses on 350 sqm.

New estates have shiny new facilities but the lack of greenery is definitely a problem. Summer is so bad out there with not much shelter in the parks and if you have young kids it's a problem. Also the smaller land size and having your neighbour so close to your house is not great. Public transport to the city or parramatta is definitely a problem from that area as well as access to things like childcare (the nearest childcare with a spot for our child was a 30 min drive in peak hour), and major shops (rouse hill shopping centre is the only place to go). If you haven't bought in the area pre-2019 you're probably not going to see much growth as more stock would come into the market and they all look like your house or even better - shiny and new.

We've done an analysis and BH came out as best value for our budget (metrics: Schools, commute to the city, growth, land size, access to facilities like hospitals). We managed to find a house near the border of Castle Hill and BH so we get to enjoy a 5 min bus ride to castle towers/metro. There are frequent busses on Old northern road to the city and castle hill metro. In the future, it will take around 35 mins to Barangaroo from the CH station. The area is gentrifying with more in my industry (tech) buying up there as we all start to have children and crave more space.

If you can find a decent block with a liveable house for that price range there's def room to add value.

The only downside is most of our friends live in the lower north shore so if you've built a community in Hornsby then that would be a major change for you.

 

Wow well written thanks bsar
Appreciate your detailed response all very valid points.

 

Huh? The area is gentrifying? LOL

I dont quite understand that statement at all. Gentrifying to what? Your not going to get a better family oriented suburb than BH anywhere in Sydney. There is nothing to gentrify to anywhere around these areas - they are fully gentrified already and one of the most safest suburbs you'll find to raise family.

Op,

Just buy yourself something like this. Nice home built with some heritage. Much better than the bland new builds you find out in Schofields, The Ponds etc....plus those areas are too far for you especially if you work in Parra.

https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-baulkham+hills-138284302

Or even something like this in Winston Hills. This one will be solid house and foundation. Some TLC over the years and you could transform this into a beauty and value add at the same time.

https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-winston+hills-138330494
https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-winston+hills-138279734

They should just be in your budget for now. I've been paying close attention and there is no chance Sydney is dropping in price yet. In fact Sydney is well into positive territory this year. Core logic daily indices have Sydney ticking well up in January.

And I just read this article. Crazy - there must have been 200+ ppl there last weekend. The best time to buy is when your ready to buy. Dont try to time the market.

Sydney auctions: Crowd swarms Epping house as it sells for record $4.5m - realestate.com.au

 

Good luck on the search! Crestwood estate is pretty awesome. I like the Excelsior area as well and Excelsior public school is pretty good. There's the newly refurbished aquatic centre in there that's about to re-open near Alfred Henry Whaling Memorial and you have the Hills Kindergarten nearby. Overall there are no bad pockets in BH but probably when looking at a property check the BAL rating as some houses in BH are in Bushfire zones but that's the case in a lot of houses in the upper north shore anyway.

 

I guess it feels like it is! I see a lot of KDRs and more money is being poured into this part of the Hills with a change in the typical buyer in the area - above average earners who have been priced out of the Upper North Shore and are about to start a family or has a young family. While it's nowhere near a "Mount Druitt", as you probably know the houses in BH are typically older and looks a lot worse for wear than the hills suburbs around it.

 

I still own a house in St Ives. Have you been around there? The houses around there - some of them are ancient and need a crap tonne of work. Doesnt stop them fetching $3M+ a pop.

St Ives compared to BH whats the main difference? To me they feel identical. Same demographics in both areas yet most would say St Ives is a much better area. There is NOTHING in lifestyle, safety or demographics between them. Your paying simply for the location of the land.

 

But if you look at the top end of the market...you can't really compare

 

St Ives demographics are a lot better - income levels, professions, outright house ownership .. I know St Ives very closely. It’s worlds apart from Baulko which is still predominantly a tradie suburb… it’s not just perception,

 

Baulkham Hills is cheaper because of surrounding suburbs like Winston Hills, Toongabbie and Seven Hills are a lot more cheaper. Once that pocket gentrifies, prices will pick up in Baulkham Hills as well.

 

I dont agree with that at all. I know the area very very well.

No idea where you say its worlds apart. thats just laughable mate and thats putting on your snobby hat. My mom and dad still live there in St Ives and let me tell you there are many are living there due to family inheritance and homes being in the family for generations not because they are superior to ppl in the Hills area.

Heaps of tradies and non executives just regular middle class folk there.