Chermside?

[penny]

Hi All, I'm researching where to buy my first investment property at the moment. I keep reading that Chermside is going to be a 'mini-city'. My question is, have values in Chermside already risen to a point where there's not too much growth left in them based on future plans? If so, is Zillmere, Nundah, Northgate, Banyo, Geebung etc better places to buy an investment?

Also, what do people think of the new high rise apartments going up between the shopping centre and the Kedron Wavell Club? Would they be a worthwhile investment?

Thanks heaps
Penny

 

[urban cowboy]

Hi Penny,

welcome to the forums and congratulations on making the decision to start your property portfolio.

There has been heaps of discussions on the north Brisbane market and in particular chermside in recent weeks...have a look at these.

http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32651&highlight=brisbane
http://www.somersoft.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32217&highlight=brisbane

they are a good start...

to answer you're direct question, i believe Chermside has a way to go yet based on what is planned and the amount of development that is to occur there within the next 12 months at least.

I don't believe that the towers you are talking about (in playfield street and Thomas street) are worthwhile investment, however my idea of worthwhile may be significantly different than yours... as for the other suburbs you mentioned - they all have investment potential and they can all work if you buy the right property in the right spot...Depending on what you are looking at trying to achieve will depend on the right answer for you. It also largely depends on your budget and whether your looking at off the plan, completed but new, or existing blocks/sites etc.

There are, IMHO, plenty of opportunities...talk to some of the guys who have posted in the above - you'll see the ones who know the area well by the nature of their posts.

If i can help you at anytime with area info, sales data, rental information etc just PM me...

cheers - and best of luck!!!

UC

 

[penny]

Awesome. Thanks for that UC. I've got some reading to do!

I'm curious why you think the towers in chermside are not 'worthwhile'? To me they seem overpriced but if there is going to be considerable growth in the area and being so close to infrastructure won't there be potential for capital growth?

I am completely new to this world but have read that buying new is best due to depreciation which is why i was considering them.

But due to my price range I'm thinking I'll probably look for a unit around Zillmere or Nundah. I am only looking for something less than $300K.

cheers
Penny

 

[urban cowboy]

Pleasure Penny...

re the towers - my main reasoning is knowing what else you can get in the area for the same money and what you can do with it - once again it all depends on your bent as an investor and what you are trying to achieve...

in other words - can those apartments be a good investment?? more than likely - but again i think to make it a good investment you would have to buy and hold them long term without needing to worry about holding costs or how they are geared...its not that they are necessarily a bad investment - its just that I believe there is a lot better options around there.

I know the developers of the playfield street ones - they do a good product usually, its just a matter of opinion as to its suitability as an investment.

Have you sought advice from a specialist planner/advisor?? the reason i ask is your statement about depreciation...i don't presume to tell you what to do but depreciation is only one of many considerations in planning...some of the other guys here will be able to shed more light on that side of things than me.

you can still get plenty around the 300k mark in chermside and the best brand new stuff i know about is going/gone for 310-320. so it is do-able!!!

Nundah and zillmere are also very viable options - probably more zillmere for new stock as nundah is getting up there now - 12months ago you could do it and i sold heaps in there when it first started - but not now for that money - new stock is starting to hang around the 350+ mark.

 

[penny]

Thanks UC. I haven't been to an advisor, I just gathered that new was best from reading I've done. I will look into that further - thanks for pointing out to me that it's not a hard and fast rule and there may be other options.

My long term goal is to build a sizable investment portfolio so I can have financial freedom in the future. I'm in my early 30s now and on a good income. I'm thinking I'd like to buy and hold at a minimum 3 investment properties over the next 5 years (too ambitious??). My aim is to not sell anything I buy if possible and to keep building my portfolio over the years.

If I'm not going to go for new I'll probably look at around the $250K price tag. Will PM you when I've got things sorted more.

Thanks again for your reply!

cheers
Penny

 

[Kevin Hockey]

Hi Penny,

Agree with Urban on the new Chermside project. Personally I wouldn't go to Zillmere, I'd head more towards Geebung, Virginia and Banyo. If you can afford it I also recommend Nundah very highly. The area is changing significantly with the new Woolworths project and the Nundah Village upgrade. Northgate and Wavell Hts are also excellent areas.

Rentals are very high demand in all these areas.

Kev
www.gogecko.com.au

 

[Adlante]

I like Zillmere never been there myself, but from what I have read about the future gentrification of the streetscape that the council has planned is a positive for the suburb as well as the proximity to train lines, and the big shopping centre at Chermside. Also if you have a look on www.realestate.com.au and search for places between $200,000 and $400,000 there are 40 properties listed approx. Out of that 40 around 30 of them are under contract or under offer, pretty good sign to me. (Supply/demand) good idication of possible short term gains. Signs of long term gains are stated above proximity to schools, trains, shops upgrade streetscape etc. My 2 cents
Good Luck

 

[gekko_99]

I like the houses around this area, I'm sure you can still get a cheap unrenovated thing in the area on a small block for about the $350 mark but the market seems to be moving from what I hear so this might be $400k. Nearby areas like Wavell Heights and Kedron can get good city views and are worth a look into.

The new unit complex's look nice, will probably get city views, have a good position within walking distance of the shopping centre (with its cinema, bars, etc) and are close to transport though I imagine are being sold mostly to investors. The tenants will be young yuppies wanting the location and style but can't afford to live there though their flow on effect will improve the area and push up house values I think. I bet these units are being sold at top price and thats partly why I believe the houses are a better prospect.

I think Nundah is a bit of its own market its village is a bit away from Chermside though only a 5 min drive and been pretty quiet since they diverted traffic underneath though this should come to life with the new shopping centre, all the new high density resi stuff and the pubs have been upgraded to bring in a new better quality boozer.

I have a house at Kedron near the Chermside shopping centre so my thoughts are probably bent. However it has been identified by council as a centre for growth; between it and Mt Gravatt they are the largest existing commercial centres outside the Brisbane CBD & its fringe in the Brisbane Local Authority. There's a major shortage of office space in Brisbane with office rentals the second highest in the country; these are cheap area's to get land to build this. Commercial areas are typically supported by retail and hotels, etc which means employment and improved services to the area blah, blah, blah.

I think the area will bay well but so will Mt Gravatt, Albion which has a TOD planned, Woolloongabba which is still an industrial area and the only one not urban renewed this close to town (there is a new draft plan for this but council aren't handing it out for public consultation yet that I'm aware of), the crap part of Hamilton where Portside and Northshore are going though I would think that'll be a 10-20 development process and there are probably more.

This is my take, hope it's of use to someone.

 

[letiha]

The one thing that will hold Zillmere back is the number of housing commission homes in the area and that to a lot of locals it is still considered an icky area and not one where you feel that safe.

For example I drive from Strathpine to Taigun to take my kids to childcare, I was catching the train to and from Zillmere but since it is dark now when i get off the train at 5:30pm i don't feel safe walking to my car so I catch the train up to Carseldine.

I lived off one of the side streets off Zillmere road about 3 1/2 years ago and my mum manages the local PCYC so I've seen the local area change a lot. Its just a matter of getting the right area in Zillmere, the eastern end of Zillmere road past Church Road is not nice at all as are some of the areas moving north from Zillmere road.

Should also note as far as schools go, Zillmere State School is a shocker they have to feed 50% of the kids breakfast and lunch each day, because of this taigum and a few of the aspley schools are more popular but not as easy to get to.

The local shops on the corner of Zillmere & Handford Road don't fair to well either, there are a few that have closed done or been vacant for a long time, and the new cafe next to the train station never seems to have patrons despite the station being packed. I just don't think Zillmere has moved a head that much yet.

But as far as being cheaper than its neighbours it may be a good buy, but just have to make sure it is in the right area.

 

[urban cowboy]

rumour has it that the govt (housing commission) will be selling up a lot of their properties in zillmere and stafford/staff heights soon...

given that developers are already paying solid numbers for appropriate sites, zillmere will be a "watch this space" for the next little while - if the govt sells up - i'd hedge my bets on it going ahead...

there is a lot of unit and townhouse development planned in there over the next 12 months

 

[letiha]

The question is UC, where exactley are the tenants going to go, given that the large majority of HC tenants in Zillmere are Aboriginal & TSI and that there is a large number of indigenous support organisations in Zillmere I can't see that being to easy.

I know that they have sold up quiet a few in the past few years. I think some of the worst areas are down east of church road where they have an entire unit complex that is HC, so not that great of an area.

 

[urban cowboy]

I wish i had that answer...i do know that project services (the govt arm that buys for HC, disability services et al) are buying up loads of houses that fit a certain criteria - location is not normally a big consideration.

I have sold them a few in the last 12 months and the style and location differ markedly...i may be wrong but it would seem to me that they are trying to decentralise a lot of the housing so there is not pockets of lower socio-eco housing.

They did the same in keperra a while ago...still a lot there, but they sold off some stuff under public trustee banners...there is still the ATSI support services there though.

 

[Kevin Hockey]

The stigma of Zillmere will take decades to change (if ever) from a locals perspective. My understanding is the Govt has sold off some sites but are holding onto developable sites and will buy more local brick housing. The cost of keeping the old homes was getting too high and they prefer brick for maintenance costs reasons.

When I worked at Aspley a little while ago the Housing dept came in and bought a number of my listings in Kakadu Cct and surrounding streets. They have subdivided other sites and built duplexes and high density homes. I personally don't see Zillmere changing, it would have happened by now if it was. Banyo for example has changed significantly over recent years as the riff raff couldn't afford it and moved further north where rents were cheaper.

Kev
www.gogecko.com.au

 

[BoatBoy]

The stigma of Zillmere will take decades to change (if ever) from a locals perspective. My understanding is the Govt has sold off some sites but are holding onto developable sites and will buy more local brick housing. The cost of keeping the old homes was getting too high and they prefer brick for maintenance costs reasons.

When I worked at Aspley a little while ago the Housing dept came in and bought a number of my listings in Kakadu Cct and surrounding streets. They have subdivided other sites and built duplexes and high density homes. I personally don't see Zillmere changing, it would have happened by now if it was. Banyo for example has changed significantly over recent years as the riff raff couldn't afford it and moved further north where rents were cheaper.

Kev
www.gogecko.com.au

Surely as new blood buy's into Zillmere the stigma will change, and like most areas, the local's will miss out.

I remember other crap areas that they could'nt give away like New Farm, Bulimba, Sandgate and Mango Hill [North Lakes].

At the end of the day, it's cheap, close to major arterial, shopping, work and rattler.

I would put Deagon in a similar catagory, but I could be wrong.

BB

 

[Kevin Hockey]

Hi Boatboy,

Yes, I accept your points however....

Also it's full of fibro homes, unit and townhouse sites which have become Ghettos and many low lying flood level areas. As earlier pointed out the local shops are struggling (prob from the costs of cleaning all the graffiti). As you said, it is cheap, which attracts low socio economic and not a lot of money to put back into local economy. The local shopping centre is Taigum which doesn't do a roaring trade by any stretch of imagination. Westfield Chermside is killing Taigum and Toombul, turning them into ghost towns.

Managing rental properties in Zillmere can be a real nightmare. We had regular dramas with Zillmere tenants. I just don't see any real reason why Zillmere would have significant change when other suburbs such as Geebung and Boondall are close by and have so much more to offer.

Kev
www.gogecko.com.au