4 Dalton Road is for sale for $1.25m in hot market Gisborne.
Victoria’s best suburbs to buy into — and the no-go zones — have been revealed in a new report.
Hotspotting’s latest Price Predictor Index names Clyde, in Melbourne’s outer southeast, and Macedon Ranges town Gisborne among Australia’s five best prospects for future price growth.
Buyers would also do well to target Altona North, Boronia, Brunswick East, Brunswick West, Flemington, Prahran, and the Bendigo, Geelong and Mornington Peninsula regions, according to report author Terry Ryder.
But they should steer clear of the “danger” CBD, Southbank and Docklands unit markets, where sales activity had “dropped markedly” and vacancy rates had “spiked”, he said.
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Jared Gresle and his partner, Aylin — pictured with children Alara, 5 and Jayden, 3 — have a home being built in hot spot Clyde. Picture: Nicki Connolly
The CBD, Docklands and Southbank have been dubbed “danger markets”. Picture: David Caird
Property pundits have conceded buying will be challenging during metropolitan Melbourne’s stage four COVID-19 lockdown, with the market having to operate entirely online. But they’re forecasting a spring revival for the market, should restrictions ease in September as planned.
Mr Ryder said parts of Melbourne had experienced declines in sales and prices during the pandemic, while others had “continued to show strength”.
He identified 32 suburbs with rising sales activity across the city — down from 69 in the previous quarter, but still much higher than the zero recorded during the 2019 downturn.
Seven were in the Mornington Peninsula: Blairgowrie, Hastings, McCrae, Rye, Safety Beach, Sorrento and Tootgarook.
1 Knott Street, Safety Beach is on the market asking $820,000-$880,000.
Mr Ryder said the area was one of several Melbourne fringe and regional Victoria markets to boom thanks to an “exodus to lifestyle locations within one to two hours of major cities” that had been exacerbated by COVID-19.
“That trend was underway, with people moving out of the big city to regional or fringe-city areas,” Mr Ryder said.
“It was driven by technology, which allows people to work remotely, and COVID-19 has enhanced that.
“Areas on fringes of metropolitan Melbourne have thrived as a result.”
Gisborne was another beneficiary, with “steady uplift in buying activity” driving the median house price up 6.4 per cent in the most recent quarter.
345 Lauriston Reservoir Road, Kyneton attracted an avalanche of Melbourne buyers before selling well in excess of $1.275m.
Keatings Woodend agent Sandi Barry-Mueller said the Macedon Ranges had experienced “an amazing surge of buyers” from Melbourne in the past three months, with COVID-19 making many city dwellers’ tree-change desires “absolutely clear”.
She predicted “a second surge” once Melburnians could move more freely post-stage four.
“With (people realising their) ability to work from home, why wouldn’t you live somewhere where there’s fresh air and a safe community?” she said.
62 Hartleigh Street, Clyde is on the market with a $600,000-$640,000 price guide.
Clyde’s popularity among first-home buyers had helped spur 12 per cent annual median house price growth, Mr Ryder said, noting there had “never been a better time for first-timers, with interest rates ultra low and government assistance at an all-time high”.
National Pacific Properties pinpointed Clyde as a hotspot way back in 2008, general manager Stephen Copland said.
Mr Copland said the developer had three projects in the area, including the well-advanced Hartleigh and Eliston estates, with a new train station and commitment from the local council to build key infrastructure furthering the suburb’s potential.
Jared Gresle, who with partner Aylin and children Alara and Jayden is building a home in Clyde, can’t wait to move there.
“It’s a great location and is very family orientated with lots of parks and walking tracks nearby,” Mr Gresle said.
The Hotspotting report also identified 27 Melbourne markets that represented “safety for investors”, among them Caulfield and Mount Evelyn, and 11 “declining” markets that should be avoided for now, including Melton South, South Yarra and St Albans.
-with Nathan Mawby
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VICTORIA’S HOT SPOTS AND DANGER ZONES
Best bets for future growth: Altona North, Boronia, Brunswick East, Brunswick West, Clyde, Flemington, Gisborne, Prahran, and the Bendigo, Geelong and Mornington Peninsula regions
Safest markets: Caulfield, Chirnside Park, Kilsyth, Mitcham, Mooroolbark, Mount Evelyn, Parkdale, Thomastown
Declining markets: Burnside Heights, Dallas, Delahey, Doveton, Frankston North, Ivanhoe East, Melton South, South Yarra, St Albans, Williams Landing, Wyndham Vale
Danger markets: Melbourne CBD, Southbank, Docklands
Source: Hotspotting Price Predictor Index for winter 2020
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