Newcastle Inner City Suburbs

[HomeBuyAU]

p.s. your vege garden looks great. i put my "no-dig" organic garden in about two months ago (or was it 3), 8x1m, and can't keep up with the lettuce, spinich and herbs. the tomatos and corn are going nuts so looking forward to a great harvest in another month or so ... excuse the mounds of building materials around it

Your garden is also looking good too, cool! I like the mulch.

As for the homes for uni students. I'm wondering if it is such a great idea to buy my first IP as a student house? I would prefer to have less risk in my first IP as it is a big move to rent a house out and I know Uni Students can drink a fair bit and have a lot of parties like we all have in the past.

If I'm also looking for a more modern type of home rather than a character house then what suburbs would be worth considering that can bring in good rental returns? I have not lived up this area for very long so I don't know much about Newcastle besides driving through to Kotara a few times to the shops. Propertunity has mentioned North Lambton, anything else?

hey Propertunity, I'm buying as soon as my tax return assesment arrives, anyday now but then I have to wait for the banks to process the loan etc so it could be sometime yet.

Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread here

 

[bespoke]

About Islington,
I too have a inbuilt stigma about Islington,(having been born and bred in Newcastle) but I just had a thought. Maybe all of us Novocastrians, past and present, should take off our blinkers and look at it from an outsiders point of view. How many places in cities in Australia were overlooked by locals because of local biases only to be snapped up by out of towners who made a killing in capital gain? I'm sure there are plenty of examples.

If I were buying in Islington, I'd stick to the North eastern side of Mayfield Road. I think the prossies only work that pocket of Islington between the railway/Beaumont St/ the TAFE/Mayfield Rd. And I thought the bikies had moved out of Islington, could be wrong though.

Give Hamilton North a look as well. Not as expensive as Hamilton, small suburb, close to everything.

And all you people talking about buying in Newcastle.... SSSSSSHHHHHHHH.................. don't let the whole of Australia in on our secret.

 

[lizzie]

nah - bikies are still in fern st. the problem with islington isn't just a "stigma". the residents are fed up of waking up to back laneways and footpaths scattered with used condoms and needles and demanding the police do something about it ... but nothing changed for the last 20 years there. the police move in, the prostitutes move down the road, the police move out, the street pro's move back in.

i'd agree hamilton north is a good area - i did a subdivide there (two houses on one block) and made a small killing, so have fond memories.

simon macks (on here somewhere) has a student house where he rents only to medical students. apparently it is alwasy fully booked with no problems - as medical students don't have time to party! the property is in lambton north (i think), so chase him down and have a chat if that's the path you're interested in. requirements to turn a house into student accomodation is different from a straight rental - but returns can be very good. if you are after student accom then don't rule out birmingham gardens, waratah west and jesmond.

see - depends on what you want, there is a suburb for everything!

 

[auror]

Thanks for your thoughts on Islington, lizzie. Would be interesting to see if it gets cleaned up , it reminds me of Erskineville, Sydney (unfavourable and looked down upon part of sydney, but now it's all cleaned up and it's proximity to the CBD means it's booming!)

Just to clarify - north of Hamilton Station (ie. islington) isn't great, but south of it (ie. hamilton)? That's funny that there's such a divide with that suburb of islington.

 

[HomeBuyAU]

"City's green vision
BY JACQUI JONES CIVIC REPORTER
22/09/2009 4:00:00 AM

NEWCASTLE'S suburban centres would feature leafy boulevards and outdoor dining areas, cultural precincts and regional employment and transport hubs, under new civic blueprints to be discussed at tonight's council meeting.

Corridors through Mayfield, Broadmeadow, Islington, Adamstown and Hamilton are singled out for attention under an urban renewal plan.

The desired character of Newcastle's suburbs is also examined in a residential development strategy.

Highlights include a proposal to revamp Mayfield, which planners said suffered because of air and noise pollution from nearby industry and heavy vehicles using arterial roads.

The vision is to widen streets, plant trees to transform Maitland Road into a boulevard, and create outdoor dining strips.

Broadmeadow could harness its busy roads, rail services and commercial and industrial businesses to become an employment centre and location for a regional bus-rail interchange, the plans suggest.

In Islington, street prostitution and incompatible mixed-use development has created setbacks, the documents said.

Instead, the suburb's diversity and character should be promoted.

In neighbouring Tighes Hill, a cultural hub with art galleries and studios along Elizabeth Street is envisaged.

The plans said heavy traffic on Glebe Road, Adamstown, especially at the railway crossing, was a problem that needed reviewing.

New buildings should be designed to cope with the traffic volumes and capitalise on the passing trade.

The concept for Hamilton builds on its cultural and entertainment attractions."

.

I wonder if any of these ideas got approved at the meeting?

 

[lizzie]

I wonder if any of these ideas got approved at the meeting?

of course not. newcastle has a hopeless "decision making" council as they don't want to offend the vocal minorities - nothing happens at state or federal level because it is one of the safest labor seats in the country (stoopid stoopid voters) ... it's only taken 20 years (that right 20), for the decision to be made to knock down the cancer riddled, earthquake damage, falling down deco surf house at merewether beach and allow a developer to build a lovely new restuarant, public amentities, cafe facility ... yet it's now bogged down again by the minorities all wanting their slice.

our inner city is deteriorating rapidly because they can't make a blimin' decision about anything - so the developers don't want to move in until there is certainty - there are more vacant shops in the cbd than those with tenants because the parking is ridiculous - the hertitage buildings are crumbling because council can't decide what to do with them.

and then they argue meeting after meeting about petty issues like "for outdoor dining should the tables be on the cafe side of the footpath or the road side?"

really frustrating - one reason why i'd never get into politics. i couldn't stand the lack of decision making or direction!

however ... once out of the cbd - the council is very good for small developers like me!

 

[Casserole Dish]

Wanted to put a vote in for New Lambton. We lived there (as renters) and I worked in Cardiff. Close to everything, walk down the street to the cnr pub and up the street to Blackbutt Reserve.

Great neighbours, quiet area... great place to live

 

[Elfsmum]

Stockton

My hubby likes the idea of Stockton, I'm not convinced. I think it is too dear, and even though it appears close to the CBD of Newcastle, you need to rely on the ferry (runs every half hour), otherwise a 20 minute drive. What are your thoughts?

 

[Propertunity]

My hubby likes the idea of Stockton,

Why?

I'm not convinced.

Me either. The median price has fallen in 2008 & again in 2009. Lots of other places in Newcastle are doing (much) better But look, long term Stockton has done OK.

I think it is too dear,

Compared to what? The median price there in only $330-350K depending on which data provider you believe.