Newcastle townhouses, Waratah West

[Grevillea]

Hi all,
I am looking at Newcastle at the moment as I think it has potential, have been offered a townhouse in Waratah West for 295 k. It's brand new and in a dev of 16, near the uni.
Any thoughts on this location? Any thoughts in value for maney with his price? I am not yet familiar with Newcastle.

Thanks, Grevillea

 

[Simon]

Happy to help you mate.

Waratah West is a rougher suburb to the west not far from the uni. A lot of housing commision homes some of which are being redeveloped.

You might pick up something a bit cheaper there due to lower land rentals. Anything you buy anwhere here will rent well as Newcastle has 1% vacancy throughout and area near the uni are in higher demand.

I wouldn't live there with my family though but I guess I am not your intended demographic

Cheers,

 

[Grevillea]

Thanks heaps, Simon,

will continue to do my due diligence!
Grevillea

 

[Peggle]

While it may not overly affect values, I think that Simon's comments won't necessarily apply to the whole area. Yes, there are quite a number of post WWII fibro style housing commission homes but there are also areas that were developed later that won't have that "Housing Commission stigma" attached..........and no, I wouldn't live there but I wouldn't live in some of the trendy beachside suburbs either.

 

[jimbo_jones]

Hi all,
I am looking at Newcastle at the moment as I think it has potential, have been offered a townhouse in Waratah West for 295 k. It's brand new and in a dev of 16, near the uni.
Any thoughts on this location? Any thoughts in value for maney with his price? I am not yet familiar with Newcastle.

Thanks, Grevillea

Hi Grevillea,

A couple of other things to consider...
Newcastle is currently planning significant redevelopment of the city. Whilst not all of the plans are concrete, they generally involve:
1. Redevelopment of city centre with large retail mall;
2. Shift of the CBD further west to connect with Honeysuckle;
3. Increase of building heights/densities in west to correlate with [2];
4. Further development of Honeysuckle precinct;
5. Relocation of some university faculties into CBD.

I would suggest that you do a little research into the future plans for the city area. There are still many surrounding suburbs that, IMO, are undervalued when considering the long term plans of the city area.

Good luck


James

 

[lizzie]

just consider you can buy a very nice 3 bed/1 bath/sgl gge detached home in waratah west for around $260-280k - of which i own two. they're great little rentals and never vacant.

http://www.domain.com.au/Public/Sea...=H,S,X,T&ptdes=Houses&searchterm=waratah west

if you're buying for the uni market then you need to buy something within 1-1.5 kms at the most. most uni students are lazy by nature and won't walk any further than that. but! i would suggest you buy something that is not specifically aimed at uni students. newcastle has a low rental vacancy at the moment (less than 1%) but student accomodation is very specialised, and if not let at the beginning of the uni year than there is a good chance it will stand vacant for a long time.

http://www.domain.com.au/Public/Sea...es=All Property Types&searchterm=waratah west

however, if you've checked the potential rental returns and the depreciation available, and the figures stack up then go for it - buying something is better than nothing and the newcastle market has been steadily creeping up for the last 12 months. newcastle was also not really affected by the sydney downswing as it tends to have a high owner ratio, and a very solid feeling of community.

 

[Simon]

just consider you can buy a very nice 3 bed/1 bath/sgl gge detached home in waratah west for around $260-280k - of which i own two. they're great little rentals and never vacant.

C'mon Lizzie - nothing in Newcastle is vacant long!

I agree something is better than nothing and I own a property in the next suburb, North Lambton and it is a solid little earner but not great growth. Bought in 2003 for $315K and bank just conservatively valued it at $350K. But I do get $550pw rent so that helps...

 

[lizzie]

C'mon Lizzie - nothing in Newcastle is vacant long!

only my glazed stare at having junior home for 2 days with tummy bug and cold all rolled into one, and hubby away interstate ... actually, it's easier with him away, only one kiddie to look after!

i've owned the two at waratah west since early 2004, when vacancy wasn't so low - it's a good rental area.

just remember that simon's great cashflow property is student housing, let by the room. that would explain his higher than normal rent.

 

[Peggle]

just remember that simon's great cashflow property is student housing, let by the room. that would explain his higher than normal rent.

How do you arrange the individual leasing details on this type of situation?

Also, do you have empty rooms during the longer uni holidays, etc?

 

[Simon]

How do you arrange the individual leasing details on this type of situation?

Also, do you have empty rooms during the longer uni holidays, etc?

I manage it myself and have developed a little niche market I exploit. It wouldn't do so well otherwise

During the holidays I let it to ESL students studying english prior to the uni year. This is also a hands on deal that takes a little more time.

Fortunately I have the time and inclination to look after it myself. Wouldn't recommend it as a hands off business.