Yes agreed, it's all back to set goals. Hence, can we say that "buy in north shore & avoid west Sydney" was based on your experience and it shouldn't serve as a general advice ?
Yes based on my experience and yes not general as my advice was in relation to what we have on the original poster and his/her question: goals, location , income, family, age, etc...
If he/she said, I live in West SYD. Same age, work locally, expect to stay, family here, then some good investments are there.
In the end: All area are good and all are bad subject to your needs.
You can only plan ahead say 10 years but planning matters. I find people don't plan enough.
The simplest example is to say to someone with three kids, yes units are affordable but probably not suitable for lifestyle. I know this may sound like the obvious but the obvious works. BUt if newly wed and not planning kids for 10 years, get a unit and work hard.
Even those with money don't plan enough.
Where I live many people desire the big acreage mini farm, it provides space, room for kids to run, land for animals, etc...
Then they realise it takes a lot of work. That Teenage Kids want to go into town or need to be delivered to school. Animals mean no holidays. Lawn needs mowing. Hello Snakes!
Investment wise they have great investment in PPOR maybe 50%LVR so are wealthy but big mortgage to boot so no spare money to invest. All assets in one place. Lose job, lose house. No flexibility.
Often they may justify, well the kids wanted horses etc.. But that is not necessary if you plan and do the numbers,
A friend next door on 1/4 acre is horse crazy. She has bid 4WD, two floats, 12's of saddles, three full size and two ponies, one we share and she uses agistment for all of them. In the ponies case we don't pay for the land as it keeps the grass down. We considered buying land but does not stack up. Much cheaper to agist. And when my Daughter is 20 and she moves to Melbourne for Uni, no need for ponies, what I do with land?
We and Her don't need land to have lifestyle of being horse mad.
Planning is very important.
Regards Peter 14.7