Fitzgibbon Chase, QLD?

Hi all

I've been keeping a close eye on Fitzgibbon Chase on the northside of Brisbane lately.

I'm looking for an 'easy' investment - buy and hold for a fairly long period and something which will be easy to rent out, hopefully to stable tenants (e.g. families). Returns don't need to be astronomical, provided they are reasonable and fairly constant. Likewise with Capital Growth, I'm happy with slow and steady.

What I have in mind is a brand new 3 bed (+ multi-purpose room), 2 bath, 1 car home on a fairly small block of around 270sqm. Total cost after all is said and done, will be pretty much bang on 400k.

In terms of the area, this is what I'm thinking:

PROS
- Fitzgibbon Chase is a well thought out development including shops, lots of green space, community centre, plenty of on street car parking etc within it.
- Close proximity to Carseldine train station (less than 10min walk), and potentially the future northern busway station (noting that it's been put on hold by the current government but will likely happen eventually)
- When the Roghan Rd/Norris Rd link and the Linkfield Rd overpass is finished, it will have excellent access to the Bruce Highway as well as Bracken Ridge.
- Close proximity to major employment hubs including the Carseldine Government precinct (old QUT campus), Chermside and (to a lesser extent) the airport.
- The whole development will have Fibre to the Home connected.
- The particular blocks I have in mind are 1 minute walk from a park with play equipment etc.

CONS
- Small land size - but this seems to be the way everything is going now so will likely become more common over time.
- Many of the remaining blocks are fairly close to the train line (around 100m away and at least one additional row of houses and a large sound barrier fence between the proposed blocks and the train line).
- Currently a large amount of supply in the area, but will likely reduce when the development wraps up in around 18 months time.

I note that there are similar sized properties available in the older parts of Fitzgibbon for around the same price (or in some cases a bit cheaper) on blocks around 350-420 sqm, however these are generally either a further distance from the train station or much older (10 years +) stock which will likely require more maintenance/renos sooner. I can't think of many places on the north side, without going much further out, where you can buy a 3 bed house (as opposed to a townhouse) brand new for $400k.

So, what do you think? Are there other pros and cons I haven't thought of? Should I take the plunge?
 
Hi, I was in Fitzgibbon on the weekend having a look as well. I'am from Sydney so it was interesting to learn more about North Brisbane Suburbs.

I agree with your analysis. I like the estate and how it is land locked. I have the same questions as you regarding your options so can't give any answers however, I feel if you can get a larger lot size, with a good floor plan, i would take that even at the far end of the estate.

I was a little uncertain about the builders on the estate, maclaren was the one that seemed to be the best quality. The others look very cheap.

We were seriously considering a NRAS townhouse there, but because of a no back out financial clause in it, did not proceed.

However I imagine that it is highly likely if you bought anything there the chances of growth are very high.

My wife and I are over analytical and it is hard for us to accept imperfect floor plans, lot sizes, and over pricing so at this rate we may never buy anything.
 
I wouldn't worry too much about the floor plan unless it is absolutely horrible. Everyone thinks differently.... so a renter may like it.
 
Hi, I was in Fitzgibbon on the weekend having a look as well. I'am from Sydney so it was interesting to learn more about North Brisbane Suburbs.

I agree with your analysis. I like the estate and how it is land locked. I have the same questions as you regarding your options so can't give any answers however, I feel if you can get a larger lot size, with a good floor plan, i would take that even at the far end of the estate.

I was a little uncertain about the builders on the estate, maclaren was the one that seemed to be the best quality. The others look very cheap.

We were seriously considering a NRAS townhouse there, but because of a no back out financial clause in it, did not proceed.

However I imagine that it is highly likely if you bought anything there the chances of growth are very high.

My wife and I are over analytical and it is hard for us to accept imperfect floor plans, lot sizes, and over pricing so at this rate we may never buy anything.

Thanks for that and I'm glad you are having similar thoughts to me. When you say 'maclaren' looks to be the builder of choice...do you mean McLachlan Homes? They are the only ones with a 2 storey display home. If so, I agree - they seem to be by far the best quality of them all and their prices are also quite reasonable considering their inclusions. We will be building with them should we choose to go ahead with it.

On that note, has anyone ever had anything to do with McLachlan Homes?
 
I wouldn't worry too much about the floor plan unless it is absolutely horrible. Everyone thinks differently.... so a renter may like it.

Floorplans do bug me. With the one we were considering, it had two rooms and a media room all 3x3m. Am i correct in thinking that you should have at least a main bedroom minimum 3x4m (and ideally with an ensuite) if you hope to sell to an owner occupier in the future?
 
Thanks for that and I'm glad you are having similar thoughts to me. When you say 'maclaren' looks to be the builder of choice...do you mean McLachlan Homes? They are the only ones with a 2 storey display home. If so, I agree - they seem to be by far the best quality of them all and their prices are also quite reasonable considering their inclusions. We will be building with them should we choose to go ahead with it.

On that note, has anyone ever had anything to do with McLachlan Homes?

My bad, not good at remembering names. It was McLachlan Homes. Good luck with it. I don't think we will purchase there. 250sqm land size for a house is hard to get my head around.
 
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