Frankston North Houses At Record High In Slowing Market!

[annie lumen]

The latest REIV figures for the March quarter 2011 are in. Although the Melbourne market has cooled down to what it was in September 2010, the results for much-maligned Frankston North have been a huge surprise - prices are at an all-time high and well in excess of $300,000.

For those interested in development, Frankston North is heaven - the local council is very generous to would-be developers and most of the older houses are on dual occ blocks, allowing people to either demolish and replace with two units or, better still, retain the older front house and build a new townhouse up the back. You can say the same for older parts of Frankston, particularly in Karingal.

The naysayers have been finding fault with North Frankston on these threads for many years. Those developers and investors who ignored the negativity would have done very well for themselves.

 

[Melbournian]

any figures or why is it a record?

 

[annie lumen]

You can access the figures here: http://data1.reiv.com.au/trendchart/Default.aspx

Why has North Frankston been so strong in a weak market? Because it's cheap, barely above $300,000 and with most homes on developable blocks, ripe for redevelopment. At these low prices, there's still room for growth despite all the negativity about bogans etc. The same can be said for the cheaper end of Frankston, particularly around Karingal.

 

[Melbournian]

i must say annie - that is a good tool

but let's take a closer look based on a handful of figures - average is 282K and median is 290K

Last sold beyond 300K was on 18th Feb.

Moreton St $160,000 12/04/2011
Bursaria Cr $280,000 28/03/2011
Rosemary Cr $291,800 25/03/2011
Whitewood St $275,000 22/03/2011
Chile St $267,500 21/03/2011
Tamarisk Dr $274,500 21/03/2011
Silver Av $310,000 18/03/2011
Silver Av $305,000 16/03/2011
Mulberry Cr $320,000 14/03/2011
Bursaria Cr $280,000 13/03/2011
Lambert St $307,500 4/03/2011
Marlock St $242,000 26/02/2011
Hickory Cr $305,000 18/02/2011
Pine St $262,000 12/02/2011
Honeysuckle St $310,000 12/02/2011
Pine St $320,000 11/02/2011
Bouvardia Cr $303,000 7/02/2011
Whitewood St $290,000 7/02/2011
Brunning Cr $270,000 28/01/2011

 

[annie lumen]

At the cheap end of the market, the downside is very limited. And the potential for gain much greater than, say, buying an overpriced innercity two bedder as an IP.

With half of North Frankston selling below the median of $303,000, there seems to be plenty of low-hanging fruit to be had. The big caveat emptor for investors will be this: make sure whatever you buy is on a redevelopment sized block. Most Frankston North and Karingao properties fit into this criteria. But make doubly sure by checking with the local council - I've found them to be more helpful than the local agents who are just interested in making a fast sale.

Anyone who can get into a dual occ site with a rentable house at the sort of figures Melbournian has kindly posted above will do very well for themselves in the long run.

 

[Melbournian]

i am still doing my research - at the moment the oliver's hill is the best in frankston area.

Don't buy an overpriced 2 bedder in inner city - buy an oversized 2 bedder in inner city.

 

[annie lumen]

i am still doing my research - at the moment the oliver's hill is the best in frankston area. .

Olivers Hill is the most pleasant but overpriced part of Frankston, nice as it is with sea views etc. It's great if you want to live there and have a million dollars to spare. However, if making money is your objective, there are better opportunities elsewhere in Frankston. Where then? I'm referring to the really grungy areas of Frankston, with older homes on larger blocks. Some can be had for as little as $300,000, and are ready for renting out; a few can be found with tenants in-situ. For sure, your tenants may not be the best - you won't seem them going to the opera or reading Tolstoy. That said, the worst of the bogans are moving away slowly but surely, to newer suburbs like Carrum Downs etc.

 

[Bayside]

I have been saying it for years, Frankston North is geographically in a Fantastic location. Things are getting better and better. As the population grows there will be more and more demand for this area.

 

[Ausprop]

guys don't rely on 'being cheap' as an insulator against a downturn. Mandurah is the fastest growing area in the country (I think - well up there anyway), property was cheap and has 'marvellous water views', yet that didn't stop a good kick in the guts to the tune of 30-40%. It will come back, but just saying....

 

[Bigtone]

guys don't rely on 'being cheap' as an insulator against a downturn. Mandurah is the fastest growing area in the country (I think - well up there anyway), property was cheap and has 'marvellous water views', yet that didn't stop a good kick in the guts to the tune of 30-40%. It will come back, but just saying....

Ausprop comparing Mandurah to Skankston Nth is like comparing Jennifer Hawkins to the St Kilda schoolgirl who incidentally lives very close by.

However Gangston Nth has not had anywhere near the growth Mandurah had so is likely to just be flat for 2-3 years rather than have a big fall. It always moves last in any melb upswing when it appears cheap compared to other options. That is why these updated figures following through now still show it increasing when in fact it is not.


Bayside i can't agree on it being a great geographical area, it is next to Carrum Downs, Skye and the bad parts of Seaford, hardly bluechip suburbs.

While it has improved slightly it is still an absolute hole of a place and u would not live there unless u had no other option. Everyone i know who has escaped has no intention of ever returning to live. Any suburb they have to put bars on all the shop windows is a very bad sign IMO.

Anyway if u can make a buck buying and sub-dividing good luck but boy it will be a long time b4 they can turn that dump of a place around. The % of people on welfare would be very high.

I would hate for people to read all the positive posts on Franga Nth and think it is actually a nice place like Mandurah. Dive.

 

[Ausprop]

LOL! I have never been there but it sounds bad. (Tho Mandurah has it's rough element too).

leaving all comparisons aside, my point remains... just because something is cheap doesn't mean it can't deflate

 

[annie lumen]

People have been decrying Frankston North for years on this forum. But the proof is in the pudding, the capital gain has been excellent and shows no sign of weakening, even in these tough times.

And no you don't need to live there......investing is about making money rather than being able to boast about buying and living in prestigious but stagnant neighborhoods.

Yes, to those who love Mandurah, its starting to look cheaper than what it once was. A few years ago it was a huge bubble. But nothing in Mandurah is subdivisible. Contrast that to Frankston North where almost every home sits on a subdivisible block....

Frankston North is the most maligned suburb you can possibly imagine. That hasn't stopped a few canny investors from making a few bucks by investing there......and with much more appreciation to come, I'm hanging in there.

 

[Ms Jade]

People have been decrying Frankston North for years on this forum.

Surely you jest? More people have ramped up Frankston & Frankston Nth on this forum than any other suburb I can remember.

Frankston North is the most maligned suburb you can possibly imagine. That hasn't stopped a few canny investors from making a few bucks by investing there......and with much more appreciation to come, I'm hanging in there.

As to the dangers of relying on quarterly data: there is always variation and it never works to try & annualise it. In OO suburbs there is an influx of higher quality properties in the Spring selling season. In the March qtr there tends to be lesser stock & this is why March qtr prices tend to be down. Most of us know that Xmas holidays is a great time to pick up a bargain. I am not surprised that this pattern wouldn't hold in F. Nth. The prices there are investor-led. There's more than a few 'canny investors' pushing up prices in this suburb. Not saying it will 'crash' from such a low base. But usually there's a reason an area is cheap & in this case OOs would prefer not to live there.

 

[Ausprop]

Yes, to those who love Mandurah, its starting to look cheaper than what it once was. A few years ago it was a huge bubble. But nothing in Mandurah is subdivisible. Contrast that to Frankston North where almost every home sits on a subdivisible block....

without hijacking the thread, most of central mandurah is subdivisable and much of it was recently rezoned from R40 to R60 or higher

 

[Bayside]

Ausprop comparing Mandurah to Skankston Nth is like comparing Jennifer Hawkins to the St Kilda schoolgirl who incidentally lives very close by.

However Gangston Nth has not had anywhere near the growth Mandurah had so is likely to just be flat for 2-3 years rather than have a big fall. It always moves last in any melb upswing when it appears cheap compared to other options. That is why these updated figures following through now still show it increasing when in fact it is not.


Bayside i can't agree on it being a great geographical area, it is next to Carrum Downs, Skye and the bad parts of Seaford, hardly bluechip suburbs.

While it has improved slightly it is still an absolute hole of a place and u would not live there unless u had no other option. Everyone i know who has escaped has no intention of ever returning to live. Any suburb they have to put bars on all the shop windows is a very bad sign IMO.

Anyway if u can make a buck buying and sub-dividing good luck but boy it will be a long time b4 they can turn that dump of a place around. The % of people on welfare would be very high.

I would hate for people to read all the positive posts on Franga Nth and think it is actually a nice place like Mandurah. Dive.

Yes it might not be blue chip Brighton or Sandringham but it's not as expensive either. Tell me then........ where else can you buy a 3 or 4 bedroom house with double garage on a block of land 600sqm+ that is as close to the bay, shops, schools for $303k in Melbourne? You can't. This area will continue to get better as suburbs that are located in geographically worse areas such as Cranbourne, Melton get worse

 

[pickle pickle]

I'm interested to see if the 3 new houses they are building around Moreton Street will be sold.

 

[myoung]

I'm interested to see if the 3 new houses they are building around Moreton Street will be sold.

What type of houses are they building?

That is very close to my IP there

 

[annie lumen]

Most of the new housing is pretty standard. Beats the older houses that are being demolished. Any change in North Frankston is positive change.

 

[newbyinvestor]

Forget Frankston Nth in the current market. It's not good buying to pay $300,000 for an 11sqm hut in Frankston Nth when I can buy a 3 bedroom place on 700sqm in Whistlestop for under $340,000...

 

[annie lumen]

Forget Frankston Nth in the current market. It's not good buying to pay $300,000 for an 11sqm hut in Frankston Nth when I can buy a 3 bedroom place on 700sqm in Whistlestop for under $340,000...

Where exactly is Whistlestop? Any links you can share? I agree with you about Frankston North houses being smallish - but its the block size that interests me; most Frankston North blocks are good for development whilst still allowing you to retain the existing house, in some circumstances.