Weekly Market Update - 18th September 2017
By | 18th Sep 17

Melbourne Property Insights by Frank Valentic

Melbourne’s market had another consistent clearance rate with 74% of properties selling with 992 auctions on and there are now some more choices for buyers with the larger amount of properties being sold in spring. The biggest result we saw was a house backing onto a train line in Albion Street, Balaclava which sold for $1,750,000, $150,000 or 9.4% over reserve, just showing you how strong the market is as properties that are in inferior locations like this one are selling well with four upsizing families fighting it out.

There are definitely more opportunities in the apartment sector as there hasn’t been much capital growth in the last four years with apartments, which we have seen across the board. We bought a property in Hawthorn for $450,000 which was sold for $426,000 four years earlier just showing that the apartment market is not moving at the same pace as the housing market. Read our comments in Scott Carbines article, it was great to see our repeat clients Josh and Mac featured.

There are many more Melbourne buyers looking for a tree change or sea change and moving from the Melbourne hustle and bustle to a more relaxed atmosphere in country or coastal areas. We recently purchased for quite a few clients that have downsized and moved to country or coastal areas and have a city base to return to. 

One of our most popular strategies when we purchase a house is to convert one of the rooms to a second bathroom, potentially making you over $100,000 in added value. We do this regularly in laundries where you can add a shower and turn it into a second bathroom. This can be a great way of adding instant value to a property.

Please don’t hesitate to check out our website for more information about our popular Buyer’s Advocate, Sellers Advocate, Owner’s Corporation and Property Management services and our latest newsletters as well as our future one bedroom Group Block opportunity in Brunswick (approximately $295,000 each).