Hi all,
Has anyone invested in any regional areas in S.A. eg: Whyalla, Port Pirie, Murray Bridge, Port Augusta etc. if they have do you have any problems or can anyone tell me about these areas
ThanksI once met a girl who lived in Elizabeth. I couldnt tell you much about the area, but from what I can remember, the front of her house (well it was her mother’s actually) was quite nice, but it was late at night when the taxi dropped us off. Hope this helps!
Elizabeth is certainly not regional, it is an Adelaide suburb!
Thanks, Festers. You are right again! But it was late at night and I was a little pre-occupied!
Babs, as a Queensland looking on the net, I started drooling over what 40 000 buys in regional SA. I think it is way positive but that’s just from the net
Thanks to you both for your input, I’m just unsure about Elizabeth due to the high crime in the area, I could be wrong, but people have just told me that don’t bother with that area and smithfield plains. I know being an ex Victorian that Bendigo was a brilliant place to invest especially in the lower rental market, which was in high demand about a year ago, I not sure of Bendigo’s situation now. Why I’m interested in Whyalla and places like that is you can buy a masionette x 2 for total $75,000, but I just don’t have any idea what’s the demand like!
PS: Harold I know what you mean the housing prices feels like its christmas!
I’d be worried about the population growth of some of those places. SA as a whole is growing slower than the national average, and many country parts of it even slower.
But having said that, you might do OK with villa units or duplexes (for example).
Flats/villas are a small proportion of the housing stock in many country towns. Given changing demographics, with more single, childless and older people, could attractive well-located villa units (for example) still be a reasonable investment in such places, due to their relative scarcity?
This is especially when for similar rents tenants could choose between an old fibro house on a big block and a modern brick unit with less garden to look after.
If well-located, the unit might win out.
Peter
Hi Babs,
These are areas where I have done some extensive research on. Yes there are many properties in Whyalla where cashflow positive is well and trully achieveable, (especially the half masonite properties), however the vacancy rates in the area is at around 14% which is extremelly high, in addition its population has been decreasing for many years now and is expected to continue to do so according to ABS. A proposal for more funding for schooling was knocked back by the government. Whyalla’s Port used to be so much busier compared to now. Industry wise, BHP has already or is about to move away. It still remains the second largest regional town in SA with a population of 27,000. The birth rate has increased by 2% but 5% are moving away from the area. It has a unemployment rate of 11% which has reduced from 13% (this is good news but still too high). The local council has a plan in place to drive more tourism into the area. Look I believe the negatives outweigh the positives in this case. Remember this is just my personal opinion and dont base your decisions just on what I say. Do your own due dilligence and speak to the agents in the area to get the info.
Hope this helps.
Good Luck,
Mannie.“It’s too late to go back and make a brand new start, but from today you make a brand new end”.
Gidday babs,
Last Saturday’s realestate section of the Advertiser might be of some help. Page 13 tells of a catalogue auction on Tuesday 2nd September with 17 maisonettes being offered for sale. Prices are expected to start from 28k. Mannie has done some good work for you with the stats. I can on offer additionally that the Whyalla local goverment is just about giving houses to any professional poeple who are prepared to move there.
Regional town of Kadina was half reasonable until September last year. Now you are hard pressed finding anything for sale at all. There seems to be a buying frenzey throughout that entire area. There have been properties recently go on the market on a Friday and being sold by the Monday.
Generally something to be really careful of in Country SA is the price of some properties as they are on lease hold land. You might be looking at a bargin until you find out about the lease. The SA goverment does convert lease hold land into freehold title but at a cost. When totaled with the purchase price it can be very expensive.Don’t give up, The bush can be very kind as well!
Spider
Comming from resgional SA I know all to well that most of the younger generation is moving to the city. I have relatives that have lived in Whyalla for years and there is so many properties on the market that have been for sale for a long time!!! The general consenses from people there is that the town is slowly dying. Port Lincoln, where my parents live, would have been a good place two years ago but now the median house price has almost doubled. Not too sure about SE SA… Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Wilko
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