WWYD - Sydney PPOR 5-10yr strategy

You've said it's quiet, with no one out and about. What exactly do you want to see? What would you think of as 'positive' or 'good'?

 

Understand the peace and quiet is part of the appeal for those who live there. We were hoping to see people going for walks/runs, out with pets and kids, sports games being played, playing in the parks, kids playing in the streets etc. Even the swimming pool at Baulkham Hills had very little sign of people accessing the facility. I'm conscious that we may not have gone at the 'right' time and also, that we currently live in a bustling inner west suburb which may be driving some unconscious bias.

 

Could be.
Ok, people don't play in the streets but I'd say people are active in the Hills. You'll probably find nothing you want to buy in North Epping based on your budget of 1.4-1.5mill, but North Epping is nice and would probably tick many of your boxes otherwise. It's green, has good sized blocks, its in between the north shore and the west and you see people going for a walk on the streets enjoying the neighbourhood.

 

Soccer season hasn't started yet.
People don't walk or run in the hottest part of the day. Have a look 2 hours before sunset.
No one plays in the streets. They have spaces in their houses and backyards and their own pools. That's the point of a big house in the burbs.

You like bustling, that's great. You won't be impressed by the outer suburbs.

 

This was a fascinating thread to read, loved how your so open to sharing your thought process and ruling things in and out.

In terms of answering the 'what will perform well':

> Sydney land is great, but its specific land thats even better. Not just any house somewhere because its a house on a decent block. If its a close walk to railway or shops, then it's likely going to do well. If not, i'm not so sure i see more upside here than other stock type in the period ahead --- the spread between apartment & houses is larger than ever at present, so there's probably more value in apartments at present given its lack of relative growth in the previous 5 years. More medium term though, i imagine houses will then outperform units again.

In terms of 'WWID' - when in these shoes pre-kids and DINKS, we bought a pretty poor home on a great block near railway in the Inner south west. Needed to renovate it to live in it, it did well, and funded an upgrade to an area/house we actually wanted to live in 5 years later or so. Much better longer term outcome than buying a unit, but also had liveability downsides.

I'd buy this and make it as liveable as i could (Its 400m to a TOD impacted station and a large enough block to matter):
https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-nsw-bardwell+valley-144412184

 

@Trainee - agree that the middle of the day is not the ideal time for people to be out and about and as I said, we will revisit at a different time of day to get another perspective. It's likely that the outer suburbs aren't for us, however I wouldn't have known this had I not visited in person to suss out the area. Also, having a 'neighborhood living an active lifestyle' was not a consideration until we actually visited and made the observation - it's also not a deal breaker, but something we are keeping in mind.

@Gockie - thanks for the recomm, we are planning to visit North Epping and may be able to afford at an increased purchase price if we sell an IP.

 

Hope you're enjoying your house hunting as it should be exciting and fun. For starters I agree with @Redom and would buy that house or something similar in the inner south west. I've felt for some time it's an undervalued area that close to the Sydney cbd and amenities with an upbeat vibe. But just to throw it in as an option, a house in my hood here at parramatta including my own would be well within that budget.https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-nsw-parramatta-144159636. I'm about a 10 minute walk to parra station/westfields/parra square. Advantages are it's super convenient and the trains really are constant including fast trains to the cbd. Obviously easy access to Blacktown/Mt Druitt, not as easy for LNS but if you look at our yellow T1 train line it does go through North Sydney. I've been here for about 16 years and it has and continues to feel more vibrant. I could wander into Parra anytime of the day on any day including weekends and there's a lot of pedestrian traffic, little events and stalls and buskers, and regular festivals. I'm feeling it's gentrifying into a young, dynamic, upwardly mobile, upbeat kind of vibe. I still lean heavily towards the inner south west, but just saying it's an option. Maybe have a wander through Parra/Harris Park if you're ever in the area. Oh and my dog loves parra park, awesome park, had tropfest there a few years ago, heaps of concerts there. New aquatic centre is a gem too. Go parra.

 

You'll see loads of people out with their pet dogs at Epping oval (which is at the entry area of North Epping). But it has to be at the time of day when the dogs are allowed to be there. It seems like the whole neighbourhood is out playing with their dogs then!

The other great thing about North Epping is that it's surrounded by Lane Cove National Park. Great to be out in the park enjoying nature. The odd snake does sometimes makes its' way into the neighbourhood though.... but then you see the odd goanna or echinda too.

 

The reason people move to the Hills is for peace and quietness, to escape the overcrowded and the “on top of each other” feeling.

I agree with Gockie, people are pretty active in the Hills but they also have more options, most have indoor gyms and swimming pools and there are also more reserves and parks around so you won't see them on the street compared to the more dense areas. Also Saturday at 2 pm is a very popular kid-activity slot so they are probably at piano or swimming classes. You would see plenty of people exercising, playing tennis and riding in the early mornings and evenings. The dog parks are pretty busy too!

It is all down to personal preference, for example, I wouldn't live in the Inner West even if someone paid me money

 

A little off topic... apparently quite a few people in the Blue Mountains moved there from either the Inner west or Byron Bay areas.

I think the Hills has the trees already so residents there don't have any desire to move to the Blue Mountains.

 

I take it you were nowhere near Greenway Oval, at Cherrybrook; it is pretty full of all those things on a Saturday.

 

Yeah definitely, I went for my usual walk in Crestwood reserve yesterday. I was It is so beautiful here, with so many trees and just the right amount of people - they all seemed happy and active. So hard to find places like that in Sydney now days. Looking at areas like this makes me think all is right in the world.

 

How about buying half a duplex?

1/1 Montague Road, Cremorne, NSW 2090 - Duplex/Semi-detached for Sale - realestate.com.au

The guide price on this one is $2.1 million, which is outside of your budget, but I'm sure that there are similar and cheaper properties elsewhere.

My idea would be to buy half now, and the other half down the line. This one could be combined with the upstairs easily because the staircase is inside.