What is wrong with Kensington & Flemington, Melbourne?

[qprjames]

I've also been looking in kensington/flemington for the same reason although now i'm thinking of waiting 2 years incase prices inner city drop off (sticking my money in shares for the time being). I'm a single bloke in his late 20's, so for me, as long as i can find a nice town house for around 600k with a locked garage, i dont really care whats happeneing around me to be perfectly honest. I'm not going to spend an extra 400k just becasue the street is tree lined and its deemed safer to walk around at night time.

Having said that, if i was female, or was looking to have kids soon, i woudnt think this area is suitable.

But yes value for money so close to the city....great....i guess it depends on you're whevver you want safety and overpriced, or value for money and a rougher area. I'd rather have the latter.

 

[Blair]

Oh well, it's not exactly safe to walk around anywhere at night these days. I wouldn't want to walk around the CBD at night by myself either.

What about Richmond and Abbotsford? They seem a little pricier than Kensington and Flemington, but still not bad!

 

[Deltaberry]

The comment abt refuges etc has truth to it. Can't let political correctness cloud investment decisions.

Perhaps more importantly, even if it wasn't as true as ppl made it out to be, the stigma exists. And stigma (ie goodwill) can be worth a lot.

 

[rodericb]

Kensington Banks is built on the former saleyards and abbatoir. I did hear someone say that the southern most part was department of defence land. At the school on the corner of Racecourse Road and Smithfield road there is still some of the wooden structure of the salesyards themselves. The walkway under Epsom road was where the cattle were driven to the other yards and the abbatoir. The place used to smell pretty bad at times. This was about twenty years ago. The area was identified as an area for a high density housing development for battlers and so building began.

Firstly, a disclaimer - I own an IP there and I also rent a place there to live in. Properties in Kensington Banks are a bit hit-and-miss. Some are fairly poorly built - usually identified by the fact that they're in a row, which were part of a particular builders allotment.....they're under the pump to get them finished, cut a few corners and the rest is history. The structures of the buildings themselves seem okay, it's just the little details which got missed. Stuff like flashing in the roofs, waterproofing wet areas and installation of fixtures and fittings which is a bit Jerry Built considering the same-build of the places. There's not a lot of insulation in them so they can be like ovens in the summer time. Reminds me a bit of Ikea furniture.

Some of the places have already had a good chunk of work done to them after ten years, from repainting, recarpeting etc to new kitchens/bathrooms. As an investor you'd want to be fairly handy as some have dramas, or are just a bit tired and down-at-heel. I don't know the proportion to rentals vs owner occupiers - maybe 50%? I've heard of some apartments balconies leaking through to another apartment underneath (into loungerooms etc). Plenty of balconies there leak... you can see the water stains in the plaster underneath. I've totally redone the balcony in my IP (bluetongue board, relevel the fall, re-membrane, retile with non-porous tiles). Appliances might be getting to the age where they're starting to fail, hot water systems going kaput (mine did a month ago but I got 13 years out of it) and central heating systems full of dust. Back to the water thing, a place a few doors where I live had the balcony ceiling collapse a couple of weeks ago.

Some parts of it is very high density and have virtually no parking on the street. So it can be a ***** if you get visitors. It's a bit far from the commission flats for the residents of it to casually hang around although I think there may be some people in Kensington Banks houses and apartments who are on rental assistance or the properties are owned by the government.

Advantages are that it's actually quite quiet in just about all parts of it, it's close to two train stations (Kensington and South Kensington), there's a nice shopping strip nearby, Newmarket Woolies and Coles at the Showgrounds are a quick drive, a few parks and it's very close to the city. There are some really ace houses with unique designs and floorplans and a lot of possibilities for owner/occupiers. There seems to be a real push to revalue the place upwards and I'm wondering how much further it can go.

My post is a bit negative on the place - I've been bitten a bit by the build quality but luckily bought there when it was much cheaper so have the $$$ buffer with the yield and my ability to fix these things.

 

[Cobblestone]

Didnt police have problems with Somali teenagers running amok there a year ago?

I have friends who lived in the commision housing in Kensington and every time we drove past or went into their flat, we met Afghani people, Vietnamese, Combodian, African and some shady Aussie (can I say bogans junkies)? Wow my post is completely politically incorrect and racist based on my real life observations.

Then again, St Kilda, Balaclava and Glen Iris has many Jews living there... is that racist too?

PS how exactly is it unfair to say that Jewish folks like to live around St Kilda while Lebanese and Arabic people prefer Broady and Coburg? Seriosuly.

it is racist to assume that all foreign people in these areas are from third world countries. Having said that... they are pretty average areas.. i know many melb suburbs well from a previous job.. and anywhere you are approached by hookers and drug dealers on the street in broad daylight is dodgy.

 

[qprjames]

I dont feel the above comment is racist. maybe a little politicalyincorrect yes, but then again you cant do anything these days without offending one group or another!

And yes certain 'foreign groups' do change the characteristics and the dynamics of certain areas. Personally i'd rather not live in an area with a large chinese population, as these areas are often not looked after so well, and the surroundings just become a little bit cheap and tacky. Obv a percentage of this group, can 'add' to an area but it is a minority, not a majority.

Racist - No

Politicaly correct - No

Honest - Yes!

 

[jradical]

I've lived in the Kensington Banks area for the last 3 years. It is a lovely area with walking tracks and the maribyrnong river close by, and grassed areas throughout.

I have a two bedroom townhouse that is in good condition. I can see what previous posters said about the build quality as you can see water stains on some properties, but my house is quite good and not in need of too much maintenance. There are quite a lot of young families in this area, and it is a generally quiet area.

There are some properties in Kensington Banks that look to have government assisted tennants, but I have no problems with this. They cause no problems. The large commisions flats are not too close.

House prices have gone up in the last 3 years with two bedromm townhouses going for around $500k - $550k, whereas 3 years ago, they were in the $400 -$450 range. I think there is more growth to be had in the are, but may slow down in the near future.

House outside of the Banks area are where the money is though. Large 3-4 bedroom houses are now selling for $1mil and above (I would love one, but just out of my reach at the moment!)

 

[Deltaberry]

I dont feel the above comment is racist. maybe a little politicalyincorrect yes, but then again you cant do anything these days without offending one group or another!

And yes certain 'foreign groups' do change the characteristics and the dynamics of certain areas. Personally i'd rather not live in an area with a large chinese population, as these areas are often not looked after so well, and the surroundings just become a little bit cheap and tacky. Obv a percentage of this group, can 'add' to an area but it is a minority, not a majority.

Racist - No

Politicaly correct - No

Honest - Yes!

It's not racist. I have no personal agenda against Somalis or whatever... just saying

a) There's stigma which affects house prices
b) I believe crime rate correlates with them

Thus from an investment perspective, you just need to weight these things into consideration. I'm sure they're nice people and the stigma wouldn't be there if they had the opportunities we all had. Just a misfortune of circumstances.

 

[Melbournian]

stick to where more and more people (ethnic groups) who has lots of money invest.

e.g. Caulfield.

 

[ken_melbourne]

Firstly, a disclaimer - I own an IP there and I also rent a place there to live in. Properties in Kensington Banks are a bit hit-and-miss. Some are fairly poorly built - usually identified by the fact that they're in a row, which were part of a particular builders allotment.....they're under the pump to get them finished, cut a few corners and the rest is history. The structures of the buildings themselves seem okay, it's just the little details which got missed. Stuff like flashing in the roofs, waterproofing wet areas and installation of fixtures and fittings which is a bit Jerry Built considering the same-build of the places. There's not a lot of insulation in them so they can be like ovens in the summer time. Reminds me a bit of Ikea furniture.

Some of the places have already had a good chunk of work done to them after ten years, from repainting, recarpeting etc to new kitchens/bathrooms. As an investor you'd want to be fairly handy as some have dramas, or are just a bit tired and down-at-heel. I don't know the proportion to rentals vs owner occupiers - maybe 50%? I've heard of some apartments balconies leaking through to another apartment underneath (into loungerooms etc). Plenty of balconies there leak... you can see the water stains in the plaster underneath. I've totally redone the balcony in my IP (bluetongue board, relevel the fall, re-membrane, retile with non-porous tiles). Appliances might be getting to the age where they're starting to fail, hot water systems going kaput (mine did a month ago but I got 13 years out of it) and central heating systems full of dust. Back to the water thing, a place a few doors where I live had the balcony ceiling collapse a couple of weeks ago.

rodericb - Am in total agreement with you regarding the quality of the build in Kensington Banks. I'm an owner occupier who bought a few years ago, and despite loving the area and surrounds, find myself increasingly spending more time patching various aspects of the house (and noticing that my neighbours are working on the same things too).

Currently having issues with my balcony leaking water which is damaging the garage ceiling below it. Curious to know who you used to have your balcony redone as I am on the lookout for a builder atm.

 

[Wunderbar]

ironic that the terrace houses built 150 years ago will last longer than structures built 10 years ago lol

 

[rodericb]

Currently having issues with my balcony leaking water which is damaging the garage ceiling below it. Curious to know who you used to have your balcony redone as I am on the lookout for a builder atm.

Father did it for me. Ascot Maintenance have done some bits and pieces for me and I've found them to be good. You're looking at a fair chunk of money to redo a balcony - I've heard of an apartment balcony requiring $25k worth of work to stop it leaking into the apartment underneath but it mus have been pretty bad.

ironic that the terrace houses built 150 years ago will last longer than structures built 10 years ago lol

It sure is. There's a row of terraces in Gower street which look real old, and real solid. They are probably the 19th century version of the bigger, newer places in Kensington Banks. Plenty of crappy places in the older parts of Kensington and Flemington which didn't even have running water thirty years ago!

 

[Sexyv40]

Hi we have a 2 bedroom apartment in Kensington which we have had for approx. 4.5 years. Each time the tenant moves out (twice now) it has taken a little while to rent. The rent seems to be slowly dropping each time. It is semi renovated with off street carpark in and older building in Bayswater road which is close to the main drag.

Is it due to all the competition from all the new apartments? We are also going to install a split system air con unit over summer to make it more attractive. Current asking price is $330 per week. Any tips / comments appreciated.

Link to current add below. Bear in mind we have already put in new blinds etc and are getting new photos as the current tenant has only just moved out.

http://www.realestate.com.au/property-apartment-vic-kensington-404633405

 

[JamesP]

If you buy a rusted out caravan ideally with asbestos and put it in the carpark of Box Hill train station, you could probably rent it out for $1200p/w in this market.

On a sub $1000 Caravan that's like 120% return p/w :O

 

[JamesP]

stick to where more and more people (ethnic groups) who has lots of money invest.

e.g. Caulfield.

I'd strongly advise against. Caulfield has the highest Jewish demographic (45%) out of any suburb in Victoria. It would be financial suicide trying to compete against investors of that calibre. They much rather pay an extra 20k to a fellow Jewish seller than non jewish knowing the importance of keeping money in the loop so it eventually evens out for the better. You will be marginalized out of that market unless you are also Jewish or find a non jewish buyer (and there might be better prospects elsewhere in that regard).

 

[S.T]

Hi we have a 2 bedroom apartment in Kensington which we have had for approx. 4.5 years. Each time the tenant moves out (twice now) it has taken a little while to rent. The rent seems to be slowly dropping each time. It is semi renovated with off street carpark in and older building in Bayswater road which is close to the main drag.

Is it due to all the competition from all the new apartments? We are also going to install a split system air con unit over summer to make it more attractive. Current asking price is $330 per week. Any tips / comments appreciated.

Link to current add below. Bear in mind we have already put in new blinds etc and are getting new photos as the current tenant has only just moved out.

http://www.realestate.com.au/property-apartment-vic-kensington-404633405

You seem to be getting a lot of hits on the advert, over 2000. So people are wanting to live there, there is the demand.

Perhaps you need to look at updating to compete with newer apartments, the new split system will go a long way to help. The pics look awful, dark and dingy which is bad for a ground floor apartment.

Do you get many people coming to the opens or is this your first one?

 

[Sexyv40]

Thanks simtr agree with photos we are going to get some new ones done they are not helping The current tenant is moving out today so have not been able to get any done yet. Might look at re-adjusting the rent slightly as well.

 

[Neptune]

I know this part of Kensington and this street very well. It's actually quite a nice street. We have an IP in Kensington too that settled in Jan of this year - (2 bed apt). On first open for inspection we had 15 groups through and 6 applicants so we could pick the best tenants. We were lucky that we could advertise it during the settlement period. I'm pretty sure now we could have got an extra $20/week but just happy it was leased straight away.
So I think the demand is there and it's a good location and I think the rent being asked is reasonable too. As others have said, the photos are letting you down plus there is no furniture either which doesn't help.

Have you researched what other apartments in your block and in the street have rented for in the last 12 months?

 

[The Y-man]

I'd strongly advise against. Caulfield has the highest Jewish demographic (45%) out of any suburb in Victoria. It would be financial suicide trying to compete against investors of that calibre. They much rather pay an extra 20k to a fellow Jewish seller than non jewish knowing the importance of keeping money in the loop so it eventually evens out for the better. You will be marginalized out of that market unless you are also Jewish or find a non jewish buyer (and there might be better prospects elsewhere in that regard).

More importantly, the Melbourne Eruv is located here - although it has been recently expanded (to include parts of Bentleigh, Moorabin and Carnegie - in case people were wondering why prices in these areas were going up).

http://www.cosv.org.au/eruvmap.pdf

The Y-man

 

[Sexyv40]

Neptune thanks for the tips. Yes another agent had commented furniture may help but at this stage we may need to rent some for a week which could get expensive. Others in the same area have rented anywhere from 300 to 340 so in the ballpark. Which agent did you use if you don't mind me asking?