Hi Eric
Thanks for that extra information.
Morwell is undergoing transformation, and while it is still not 'commuting' distance to eg Dandenong, the freeway and the fact that developments are now reaching eastwards past Pakenham make it not quite as far away as it way.
Believe me, wreckers are relatively cheap to pull out unwanted equipment and previous 'improvements'.
Opportunity, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
Can you see the opportunity?
At less than $30,000 you could have a lock up shop within spittin' distance of a major regional shopping centre.
Even if it just sat there for a year, that would be approx 8% x $30,000 interest plus council rates & insurance eg another $1,000 - $1,200 - not really expensive while you then do your market research.
Think laterally. What is missing in the area which you could go through the planning process to provide.
Medical Centre? Dental or Denture Clinic? Accountant, Family Planning etc etc With your own front door, you offer street appeal and the choice of operating hours not available to tenants of the centre. What about a film processing (reatil) shop?
In other words, the zoning is Retail which is for the purpose as described. Changing to 'commercial' is not a big deal and may be worth a try.
I guess off street parking is somewhere around. Does the shop have rear entry, laneway or service yard? Is it sewered? Does it have waste (blood) disposal facilities?
Is there an upstairs?
Remember, with commercial you buy the footprint and the concrete shell. Anything else is usually junk so don't bother trying to value obsolete equipment.
How many square metres? Commercial rentals are based on nett lettable area. Does it have inside WC & ensuite, or could one or two be plumbed in? How far away is the nearest bank? Does the area need another credit union or financial services centre? Where is the nearest newsagency, and what hours do they operate?
My own commercial property was a lemon for a long time, now it has a thriving tenant who has brought the right service into the area. When I bought it, it was used as a bank, and was zoned Public Use 1, even though it was in the main street. I had to apply for a permit to operate a retail store. There was a small fee for this and it took about three weeks.
Take a day off and go lean on the counter at the local Shire Offices. Ask them as many questions as you can.
Go to
www.doi.vic.gov.au for the planning scheme on line for the municipality. (Department of Infrastructure) This will show you every single tenement (property) for the municipality.
Check out the zonings before you go to the Shire - the more info you have, the better quality questions you will ask.
Applying for a permit for change of use needs to be accompanied by a written submission and fairly substantial documentation. This may include showing internal partitioning and even placement of furniture, fire systems etc the application will cost somewhere between $50 - $1,000, plus drafting and / or survey fees, somewhere between $1,000 - $5,000, depending on how complex things are. (My Medical Centre change of use application has cost about this so far) However, the local Shire may be just as happy with a photocopy of the information which they already have on file, 'whiting out' the bits you are removing and sketching in whatever you may be adding, then resubmitting a couple of copies of the modified plan. (That's what I did with the shop!)
But firstly, you have been attracted to this property. Unless you secure it by putting money down, you could do all this research and find it has been sold. There will always be a useful purpose particularly for a retail premises, and obviously the big investors have put up substantial funds for the new shopping centre close by.
Eric, property is my passion. I don't think there is anything not worth something, just about anywhere on this planet. People think I'm 'lucky', but the properties which I have bought over the years have all got some 'point of difference'. One house on a busy road sat on the market for months before I bought it, and now it has improved remarkably simply because it is in such a good position.
The little shop sounds like a great opportunity to give the area something special - why not go for it!
cheers
Kristine