I know!! Pretty good houses near the waterfront at Birkdale from about 700k, canal houses 1mill plus. For us Sydneysiders.... you could trade in the normal nothing special house here and live the waterfront mansion life there... and still get change. In fact my beautiful spot (Birkdale), with water views, walk to trains I bought in June is cheaper than my 1br unit near Sydney CBD, the 2 br unit at West Ryde and roughly on par pricewise with my 2 br Townhouse in Greenacre which is nowhere near trains... its got better land than my ppor too, for around 1/3rd of my Sydney ppor price....
Haha yes - exactly my thoughts. I recently did a loan for a FHOB young couple earning some decent money, but nothing extraordinary or mind-blowing, for a $1.5m purchase. It was for a nothing special place. That coin would get you the dream house in an area about the same distance to the CBD! With rates this low, DINKS situation, you don't really need to be on super extraordinary cash to have that sort of budget for your own home. Hence i can see some movement in this premium market just based on macro factors and liveability.
Is there anyone stomping the pavement in the Wynnum/manly area that can give some insight on what is happening in the market their currently?
The bayside area waterfront here unlike in sydney consists of mangrove swamps. Low tide its muddy sands even at manly waterfront. Zero waves for surfing. Same in birkdale. Water quality is also muddy at times. Evening times a lot of mozzies and sandflies/midges that really bite.hmb Birkdale sounds nice but the shops there and schools are very limited. Pretty isolated suburb. Train takes forever to get to cbd. (One hour) plenty of land there. Sunshine coast and gold coast have the proper beaches and surf.
Still a very nice lifestyle area. And a tip. The neighbours at my Birkdale place says that our houses avoid the mozzies/midges because our land is up high (we are about 20m up). We get the cool breezes and no annoying insects. Re: mangrove swamps and beaches, yes, true, but people take their boats out and go to any of the beaches on the islands... beaches all to themselves! Otherwise you can drive to Gold Coast. Commute to city - I didn't find the drive from Birkdale too bad... (but then again, I'm from Sydney where people often travel over an hour to go anywhere). It takes me nearly an hour (door to door) from my house to my workplace in Parramatta that's only 10km away in a straight line. Land - I found there is a scarcity factor of well priced land near the water. Actually unlike Adelaide's southern suburbs where it's easy to pick up houses with water views... go to Hallett Cove and further south... many have them. The prices of the houses near the bay has to go up.
Surfies won't buy in manly Wynnum . Boaties will . Boaties have more money than surfers ......... They're older , can be lazy and don't want to drive long distances to catch the perfect wave . They want to be able to walk into the boat , stroll over to the club , have a few beers and dinner with their mates and whinge about how they got caught on the wrong side of the fleet coming up the windward Mark or missed the start because their new crew didn't pull the jib in fast enough .... Then there's the fisherman ..... They don't want surf either Cliff
Hi All, To all the Sydney folk, coming from a local and like mined property investor, let me raise a few points: Bay side Brisbane and Bay side Sydney there is no comparison, Proximity to "water" and the CBD = good investment has no correlation here Bay side suburbs are not a "destination" spot for Brisbane locals, maybe for a quiet BBQ or picnic other than that they have no "pull" factors. Buying for a PPOR or life style reasons is OK just do your DD on the "life style" factors and public transport servicing. I'm not saying these suburbs don't represent good buying opportunities, I suppose you need to establish your financial goals and the reasoning your buying here.
Proximity to "water" and the CBD = good investment has no correlation here - what is this based on? 14% increase over the past 12 months would suggest things have been tracking along OK... Bay side suburbs are not a "destination" spot for Brisbane locals, maybe for a quiet BBQ or picnic other than that they have no "pull" factors. - try getting a park on the esplanade on a Saturday or Sunday morning...especially when the Jan Powers markets are on. Buying for a PPOR or life style reasons is OK just do your DD on the "life style" factors and public transport servicing. - lifestyle factors are great: I get phenomenal breezes, water views, 2 minutes to the bay where I can kayak/run/drink beer/eat food/etc, 20-25mins to the valley in peak hour traffic, etc. And it's very well serviced by public transport (there are 4 train stations in the area).
Had a look at a few places over the weekend in the Wynnun, Manly and Lota areas. Nice location and a lot of newly renovated or properties under renovation atm. You would need to be aware of the character and fpa zoning for the region.
Hi Sean That is the opinion of many people in Brisbane , but I have also met a number who love living there and would not live anywhere else in Brisbane . All the people I've met who have lived there , loved it and would be more than happy to move back there . There is no comparison . The two bed unit we bought in Wynnum for 545 on the waterfront with drop dead views straight out over the water , would be in the high 1 mills if it was in a similar position in Sydney . Cliff
I was sitting in a Accountants office that overlooks that small area late last week,and there is a lot of redevelopment going on in the area,and some of the best fish and chips and parks on the strip in Australia..
Just if you are looking in the area, older places can still be good value.... my one in Birkdale I bought for 490k, good land. House behind mine sold for 821k very soon after, but it was a new build. I feel mine has a much better aspect though, and better views to the water. I'm holding it for the lovely spot... The cheaper older properties in the area are all being replaced by new builds or being renovated (i'm seeing more knockdown/rebuilds though). Its just such a nice peaceful, relaxing area.
Nice one @Gockie, I guess you're right the new H&L package in Wynnum is already expensive hence there is not much room for CG due to the marketing and builders take profitable cut in the development.
Hi @Tekoz, I don't know if you are only restricted to new builds... but if you are, I think best to do it yourself... don't pay a developer...they are in it for the profit which won't make it a great investment. However if you can get it cheap (desperate developer needing to sell), or possibly via NRAS which has cashflow benefits.... its possibly ok.
@Gockie Somehow yes.. because newer built should be less problematic and more desirable by tenants. Thanks for the tips I'll keep that in mind.
Somehow: 1. New property depends on the developer/builder reputation, some can be good and some can be bad. 2. New property can generate more depreciation which in turns means greater negative gearing component, this strategy can only works for high-income tax bracket. Correct me if I'm wrong.
The unit with sea views in Wynnum will not be anywhere near the %growth that it's opposite numbers in Sydney have posted. As @sash correctly pointed out in another thread, brisbanites think a bit differently than sydneysiders. They would rather go for something closer in without the views of course rather than a Bayside. Not overwhelmingly so, but significantly so. And also as @seanbrissy said re the lack of pull factors. The bay, as pretty as it might be, is not a significant enough drawcard as compared to what else you can get for the same price closer in.
