Would you buy near powerlines?

You could take the long term view: when society goes fully off grid using local solar generation and battery storage the lines will be decomissioned and you will get an instant windfall. Buy more I say, in 50-100 years you will be laughing!

 

I think the only buzz they may get is the sound emanating from the power lines....

 

Just an update. I went for a second look at the property and decided against it and told the agent there and then. The powerline were too dominating and close for me. I would rather find something that isn't going to cause me to worry. Thanks for your help again forum, much appreciated.

 

I wonder how the prices have been like in suburbs like carlingford. There would be some properties that have powerlines through them that were bought prior to the boom in 2013. I wonder how much they are worth now.

I know of a property in Ermington (Sydney) that sold for $745k odd in 2016 (700 sqm I think). Last traded for 645k in 2010. However i believe it was a combination powerlines and heritage listed older run down weatherboard home (that in my opinion has no character).

22 Cowells Lane, Ermington
Sold Price For 22 Cowells Lane, Ermington NSW 2115 - 2012524023

 

From my experience, every time I have a sale property not major power lines or power station there are always buyers who will not consider the property. That being said they have always sold and not really at a discount. Some care, some don't.

 

Maybe if they are far away enough and a real bargain(like 20% off)I would consider it -otherwiase not worth the resale and possible higher vacancy rates.
Does anyone have any experience of testing the radiation that comes from them and how far away you need to be for them not to effect you?

 

There's a real aura about you, glowing in praise.

A mate developed a couple of duplexes in Carlo back in the '90s. Very close to power lines - good landscaping obscured alot of sins.

 

If they're within 50 meters the property may not be liable for LMI. That would kill your resale, and your ability to borrow against the asset will be impacted.

In short. No.

 

Cancer cause studies are pretty difficult from a scientific testing point of view & there is so many other causes its really hard to definitively go "yes, this is causing cancer." Who would fund it? The energy companies aren't exactly motivated to do research that would require them to dig thousands of kilometres worth of tunnels... And then we'd have to study the impact on high voltage underground cancer causing cables on local flora and fauna + water, etc.

FWIW though, yes there has been some studies into it and there is an association between exposure to powerful electromagnetic fields and I believe leukemia in children (presumably they use children because shorter lifetime = can rule out or limit a lot of other causes.) I don't believe anyone has proved a causal link though or done much research into impact on adults.
Childhood cancer in relation to distance from high voltage power lines in England and Wales: a case-control study

http://grouper.ieee.org/groups/scc28/sc4/NRPB.limits_15_2.03.04.pdf


Why risk it?

 

Why risk it?

Because it may be an opportunity that most people write off -and being far away from the property may be fine for your health if researched .There are tools you can use to test it apparently .

 

There are tools you can use to check the EM radiation, but there is no definite "safe" level. There is growing evidence that levels that were previously thought to be safe might actually not be. Most of that research is around non-thermal magnetic fields (e.g. ELF fields) and microwave fields. We simply don't have enough data or research yet to know what electromagnetic fields do to people on a biological level. Which is why EM radiation is ranked as Group 2B - possibly carcinogenic by the WHO (although so is coffee..)

One thing I do have to say I find quite interesting about power lines is there is so much fear about them, yet plenty of people are really happy to live right next to major roads & there is a stack of evidence about how bad that is for you. Fine air particulate from exhaust fumes is Probably much more likely to give you cancer than power lines.

 

There are tools you can use to check the EM radiation, but there is no definite "safe" level. There is growing evidence that levels that were previously thought to be safe might actually not be. Most of that research is around non-thermal magnetic fields (e.g. ELF fields) and microwave fields. We simply don't have enough data or research yet to know what electromagnetic fields do to people on a biological level. Which is why EM radiation is ranked as Group 2B - possibly carcinogenic by the WHO (although so is coffee..)

One thing I do have to say I find quite interesting about power lines is there is so much fear about them, yet plenty of people are really happy to live right next to major roads & there is a stack of evidence about how bad that is for you. Fine air particulate from exhaust fumes is Probably much more likely to give you cancer than power lines.

.....True that !

re power lines ...if we dont know for sure -nothing is worth risking our family for

 

I bought my first investment property in Koonawarra NSW three years ago and it was right next to high voltage powerlines. I forked out a 20% deposit and picked it up for a good price. It has since been revalued and has gone up 50%. I was able to borrow against it and buy my second property in a neighboring suburb away from the power lines. I might struggle finding a buyer because the higher the price the more the buyer needs to fork out to make up the 20%. Nevertheless I was able to purchase my second property with the CG from the first so It has definitely been worth while for me.

 

In a booming market even dogs can go up. Busy roads, termites and power lines are often ignored in irrational times.

 

It definitely depends, I know that parts of Bulimba sit underneath high tension powerlines (as well as being near an army barracks). It's very much a blue chip suburb.

https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-27...982hhi9mHjZqpL-Jag!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1

I think they look awful (especially the large concrete poles), but it doesn't seem to have had an effect at all.

I like to think the local residents can hear a low humming at night

 

Try this place, a short walk away from where I live:

164 Glengala Road, Sunshine West, Vic 3020 - View Sold History & Research Property Values - realestate.com.au

It's literally a free standing house, no neighbours, right underneath the power lines!

Interestingly enough, the reservation is 4 houses wide, but numbers 162, 166 and 168 were never fenced up and built on. Same goes for the western side of Collenso St.

 

They're not so bad. The ones near my place are really bad.

50 by Alex88 posted 9th Jan, 2017 at 3:27 PM

The Illawarra region is still in boom territory so ill ride it out and sell when it levels off. I've had my place valued three times in three years and the power lines didn't seem to have a big impact on the value of the property. Whether or not it would sell for the valuers price / how long it would stay on the market is a different story but the valuers are very kind to these properties so it increases your buying power.

The cons:
> Cant get LMI, need to fork out 20% deposit.
> Hard to sell/ might take a long time to sell/ might need to reduce price.

The Pros:
> No issue getting tenants
> Great valuations

This has been my experience and I've been lucky to purchase in the 2013 boom. The place had very positive cash flow and that's what got me sold on it. I wouldn't recommend buying such a place now where the market is beginning to level but I wouldn't dismiss it entirely either.

 

Power lines that close you could probably create a secondary transformer winding in your back yard and get free power

 

No I wouldn't.

Maybe just in nsw only, but banks won't lend over 80% (if LMI is taken) if the power lines are 250m or under to said property.

Assuming the average customer cannot get LMI waiver, that means regardless of the value of the property in the future, you can only ever borrow up to 80%.

 

Yes thats a good point. I was quite fortunate to buy just before the big boom but circumstances are different now. I bought for $265K and the latest valuation came back at $410K. 80% of that is still $328K so I was able to borrow quite a bit whilst still saying under 80%.

I've been keeping an eye out on other properties near the power lines and they've all sold for a good price so somebody out there is buying these places.