Hervey Bay

cathyb, I have been eyeing it up for some time, but I have struggled to do any research.

What I do know is that the premium water properties are just as astronomical in price as the rest of Qld.

And this seems to be inflating prices in the surrounding regions, which I personally am unsure is justified due to population size and infastructure.

In saying all that I would think lifestyle IP's would do as well as anywhere due to the large tourist industry.

These are just my assumptions based on talking to other Qld people and watching the market over the last 2 years. You know what assume can do !
 
Cathy,
I may be able to shed some light on things, I just recently (last month) spent a whole day up there going round all the real estates seeing what they had on their books. The average starting price for something that would suit the investor was around 170. There was one for sale in Long Street, Point Vernon(a suburb of Hervey Bay) which was one street back from the water and had glimses of H2O asking 185k. By the time it reached Saturday's Paper, it was 225k. People are now thinking their places are all goldmines. The new prison has opened up at Aldershot(just outside Maryborough) and apparently most of the warders would rather live in Hervey Bay than Maryborough as it is a lot more up-market. Maryborough has a lot more blocks of 4 & 5 units at very reasonable prices. Very strong rental market. Blocks of 4 in Maryborough are going for roughly 230k to 260k.
If you are going for Hervey Bay, the best suburbs for growth would be Pialba or Scarness. My best friend purchased a basic 3 br lowset brick at Point Vernon at Christmas for 136k and is now worth 185k. Rents for $185 per week.
Jimbo
 
Hi Cathy

I used to live in the Bay and like to keep an eye on it.

In the last 12 months the house prices have gone up, due to the jail near Maryborough. The biggest industry in the Bay is unemployment. (That comment will upset some.) It is very tourism orientated and reliant. (Check the size of the Centrelink building.)

There is a large proportion of older people who have retired there, although I've only observed that, not checked the stats.

There are some areas that are very low and would be problematic. A topographical (spelt correctly?) from the Council would be Step 1. They show the land in regards to "above sea level" areas.

The back of some of the suburbs is swampy and there is also a problem with sandflies/midges. Also there was a sawmill at the back of the Bay and this may cause sinking problems in these areas, I think.

Pt Vernon is purely a residential suburb in the sense that there is only a couple of corner stores and a servo. That is why it is so expensive, I think.

There are a huge number of shopping areas being built. There is a modern hospital, a university campus, a TAFE, plenty of schools and shops.

There is a bus service available in town.

Dundowran, Howard and Torbanlea are the outskirts suburbs. I did notice in the papers, that when the jail and it's related boom started, a large number of houses in the Dundowran area suddenly appeared on the market. Just my observation. These areas are a long way out of town and my guess is that there may not be any public transport available for these. If there is, it may not be very frequent.

As with alot of towns, there are alot of housing areas where you need a car for getting around. Keep this in mind when looking.

I guess it depends on what you are after. I would suggest living in the Bay for a while, using that time to learn about the area and then see what you think. You can't beat local knowledge. Oh, and always lock up.

Good luck and enjoy.
 
Hi Cathy,

We bought a house there just over a year ago and the value has gone up quite a bit since. We've had two real estate agents ring us to see if we're interested in selling. They need some good rentals as a lot of them are holiday rentals, not year round.

There is a new complex recently opened (I think it's Outrigger) near the harbour and another development was happening when we were up there last August. Still some bargains to be found I think. We had a look at Burrum Heads and did consider it, but the sandflies and mossies seemed to be much worse there and not much happening as opposed to Hervey Bay, which has the hospital, uni, shopping centre, etc.

Best of luck to you with your job.

Cheers,
Kathryn
 
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