Big Is Beautiful In The South
The Sun Herald
Sunday January 24, 1993
JOHN SANIDAS
Richardson & Wrench,
Sans Souci
IN SUBURBS like Blakehurst, Rockdale, Monterey and Kogarah Bay, houses in the higher price brackets are selling well while cheaper properties in the same areas are not. Large properties are in demand because they are selling for more affordable prices than a few years ago.
Many of the people selling these houses have paid off the mortgage, their children have left home and they are looking for a smaller house. They sell the large house, buying a smaller one and invest the difference. The cheaper properties in the area - traditionally bought by young people with mortgages -are not selling well because the young and the mortgaged are concerned about their job security.
Surprisingly high sales in Rockdale include a three-bedroom cottage for$365,000 - possibly a buyer who believes the third runway will reduce the air traffic over Rockdale. A three-bedroom house opposite a reserve, with a marble interior, separate dining room, swimming pool, double garage and feature glass wall in a cul-de-sac in Monterey sold for $590,000.
A 50-square, threestorey house in Blakehurst, on a 1,000sq/m block with air conditioning, marble interior, Kyle Bay views and a poolside pergola and bar sold for $615,000. A waterfront reserve block of land with a small house on it sold for $330,000.
JAMES LANGFORD
Raine & Horne,
Palm Beach
WHALE Beach has experienced an increase in popularity over the past four to five years, possibly because of the notoriety of some of the residents. In terms of choice, most buyers look for properties close to the beach, followed by views and then a northerly aspect. Malo Road is one of the best streets because it combines all three of these features.
Two and three-bedroom weatherboard cottages that were so popular along the northern beaches at one time are disappearing at the hands of owners who build larger houses in their place.
A three-bedroom weatherboard cottage in Raynor Road, around 10 minutes'walk from the beach, sold recently for $440,000, which is around land value. A 961sq/m block of land in Bynya Road with level access from the road and panoramic ocean and beach views is for sale at $495,000.
Between $600,000 and $700,000 buys one of the newer pole houses in the area and around $1 million buys a comfortable four-bedroom beachfront house built within the past 15 years. Oceanfront houses are a little cheaper with a three-storey house in Whale Beach Road on the market for $895,000 with four bedrooms, good entertaining areas and an in-ground pool.
The $1.9 million purchase price of Lady Susan Renouf's 60-square, three-storey house remains the highest for Whale Beach and the house is still regarded as one of the best presented houses in both Whale Beach and Palm Beach. The house has a pool, northerly views, entertaining areas opening to a pool and a triple garage.
FRANCIS FUSCO
L J Hooker,
Surry Hills
FIRST-home buyers and investors are the two main buyer groups in Redfern. First-home buyers are looking for houses in the $150,000 to $160,000 price range - usually unrenovated two or three-bedroom terraces possibly with rear lane access.
Investors look for properties priced up to $200,000. They look for three and four-bedroom terraces in good enough condition to be let as soon as possible. Investors are also partial to large three-storey terraces in the area for between $250,000 and $320,000. These have four to five bedrooms and are often converted to a mix of professional rooms and residential flats.
Red brick units, built in the 1970s, cost between $80,000 and $120,000 for one bedroom and $130,000 to $160,000 for two bedrooms. Some blocks have a laundry on each floor and, if parking is available, it is usually not security parking.
Most of the modern units in the area were built by Meriton and include parking, internal laundries and sometimes pools. One-bedroom units cost between $130,000 and $150,000 and two-bedroom units cost $150,000 to $175,000
ELAINE BOWCHER
Burridge First
National,
Drummoyne
THE typical Drummoyne house, which it seems all Drummoyne buyers want to live in, has three bedrooms, a garage, lots of character and a yard with room for a pool. Unfortunately, because these houses are so desirable, the people who live in them are not in a hurry to sell them. As a result they do not come on to the market very often although an ornate federation house with three bedrooms, separate dining room, garage and pool on a good-sized (726 sq/m)block is on the market for $450,000.
A 1960s-style two-bedroom house in a quiet street is on the market for$240,000 and houses with character and brighter interiors cost around$260,000. A house with two bedrooms and a separate dining room is on the market for $290,000 and most three-bedroom houses range from the high$200,000s to low $300,000s.
Most of the units in the area were built in the past 20 years. Around$190,000 buys a two-bedroom unit in a quiet location with a pleasant outlook, garage and internal laundry.
Views cost more. A unit with water glimpses, a car space and internal laundry sold recently for $173,000.
© 1993 The Sun Herald