Latest news with #RickyForte
News.com.au
5 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Brickie's slick Herne Hill renovation doubles home's value in four years
A premium renovation that almost doubled the value of an original Herne Hill home has scored the suburb's most expensive sale of the year. Buyers from Newtown paid $1.4m for the transformed four-bedroom house at 5 Knight Ave. The quality of its contemporary rear extension and refit added $662,0000 to the value of the 714sq m property in four years. Geelong Real Estate Co. listing agent Ricky Forte said the front bedroom was the only thing he recognised from when he last sold the retro solid brick home for $738,000 in 2021. An open-plan living zone featuring high raked ceilings, timber floors and a sleek kitchen is the centrepiece of the redesign. 'They had done a really comprehensive, beautiful renovation,' Mr Forte said 'All the people that went through it were from Newtown, Geelong West, Manifold Heights … predominantly, as always, it was the Geelong people that were happy to fight and stretch.' He said three of the four parties that made offers on the house were considering renovating their existing homes but had been put off by construction costs that could amount to $800,000 for something similar. The buyers paid $50,000 above the top asking price to secure the property. 'I felt like nobody wanted to renovate and if you can get one that everything's been done then you just sign on the dotted line as opposed to 18 months of hell,' Mr Forte said. The vendors called on their family's construction experience to pull off the renovation – one is a bricklayer while the other's father is a builder. Recycled brickwork features in a new covered entertainment area overlooking the home's landscaped back garden. The renovation also replaced the dated 1970s brown kitchen, added a fourth bedroom and a stylish ensuite bathroom. The sale is the third million-dollar result in the street, just one block away from the Newtown border. Mr Forte said the same house in the 3220 postcode would set you back to close to $2m, which made the sister suburb an attractive value proposition. 'I think it has given a lot of people confidence that you could do a big renovation in Herne Hill and get your money back,' he said. He said another buyer who recently paid $705,000 for an older house at 18 Ashbourne St, Herne Hill, was among those who inspected the Knight Ave property for inspiration. 'He's pulling his apart and is going to build it to the Knight Ave level and now that's given him the confidence that renovating at that level that the money is there,' he said.
News.com.au
23-05-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Geelong suburbs where buying is better than renting revealed
More Geelong suburbs are within reach of renters trying to break into the housing market after this week's interest rate cut, new analysis shows. Research from Finder reveals it's already better to buy a unit than lease one in Geelong West and Whittington. The Reserve Bank's decision to cut rates by another 25 basis points further opens the door to other suburbs by shrinking the gap between more expensive weekly mortgage repayments and rents to less than $50 a week for units in Norlane, Bell Post Hill, Lara, Herne Hill and Manifold Heights. There's a further glimmer of hope in the house market, with renters needing to find less than $100 extra a week to buy in Norlane and Breakwater. The research assumes homeowners purchase at the current suburb median price, with a 20 per cent deposit, a 5.81 per cent interest rate and a 30-year loan term. When the rate cut is passed on, paying off the mortgage on a unit would be $30 a week cheaper than renting in Geelong West and $17 cheaper in Whittington. This would increase to a saving of $41 and $28 a week respectively, if the RBA cut rates again. Geelong Real Estate Co director Ricky Forte said Geelong West units remained one of the few affordable footholds into the market. 'With median prices around $500,000, it's a way to break free of rising rents without sacrificing location,' Mr Forte said. 'You can buy a neat two-bed unit here for the same weekly cost as renting and you're walking distance to everything.' He said crunching the numbers around paying off a mortgage versus rent had become a serious part of decision-making for homebuyers. But Doolan Finance mortgage broker Sarah Daly said it wasn't the only consideration, as renters had to factor in security and future returns. 'Even though rent is expensive with the way rates are, it is still more affordable, in most cases, to rent. But what does that look like long term?,' Ms Daly said. 'Just because it's more affordable to rent you're not taking into account your future growth of assets so I think it's got to be looked at as to whether you can versus whether you should.' She said confidence was returning to the Geelong market, with inquiries increasing on the back of the first rate cut. Hayeswinckle, East Geelong agent Tiffany Simpson said it was prime time for first-home buyers, who felt more confident to use their full borrowing capacity than they did 12 months ago. 'It is an opportune time because I don't think there's going to be any incremental increases, if anything there will be slow cuts,' she said. 'It is trending in the right way, and it may not be significant right now, however if you're able to secure something now going forward it should become more affordable. 'If you wait too long then you will miss out because the competition will only increase.' RENTING VERSUS BUYING IN GEELONG Suburb Property type Median asking rent (weekly) Repayments (weekly) after this week's cut Difference between repayment and rent Difference between repayment and rent after 3rd rate cut Anglesea H $600 $1464 -$864 -$825 Armstrong Creek H $530 $705 -$175 -$156 Bannockburn H $590 $851 -$261 -$238 Barwon Heads U $640 $1117 -$477 -$447 Barwon Heads H $660 $1540 -$880 -$838 Bell Park U $465 $550 -$85 -$70 Bell Park H $490 $663 -$173 -$155 Bell Post Hill U $450 $472 -$22 -$10 Bell Post Hill H $520 $716 -$196 -$176 Belmont U $440 $583 -$143 -$128 Belmont H $490 $759 -$269 -$249 Breakwater H $463 $556 -$93 -$78 Charlemont H $520 $667 -$147 -$129 Clifton Springs H $495 $708 -$213 -$194 Corio U $350 $412 -$62 -$51 Corio H $420 $531 -$111 -$97 Curlewis H $515 $692 -$177 -$158 Drysdale U $450 $594 -$144 -$128 Drysdale H $500 $770 -$270 -$249 East Geelong H $520 $830 -$310 -$287 Fyansford H $650 $1065 -$415 -$387 Geelong U $520 $667 -$147 -$129 Geelong H $550 $954 -$404 -$379 Geelong West U $450 $420 $30 $41 Geelong West H $530 $922 -$392 -$367 Grovedale U $435 $538 -$103 -$89 Grovedale H $510 $719 -$209 -$190 Hamlyn Heights U $425 $576 -$151 -$135 Hamlyn Heights H $490 $781 -$291 -$270 Herne Hill U $370 $399 -$29 -$18 Herne Hill H $470 $759 -$289 -$269 Highton U $440 $542 -$102 -$88 Highton H $550 $934 -$384 -$359 Indented Head H $460 $759 -$299 -$279 Jan Juc H $680 $1377 -$697 -$660 Lara U $460 $485 -$25 -$12 Lara H $560 $737 -$177 -$158 Leopold U $440 $524 -$84 -$70 Leopold H $500 $705 -$205 -$186 Lorne U $600 $954 -$354 -$329 Lorne H $680 $1689 -$1009 -$963 Lovely Banks H $580 $911 -$331 -$306 Manifold Heights U $350 $395 -$45 -$34 Manifold Heights H $510 $1366 -$856 -$820 Marshall H $495 $683 -$188 -$170 Mount Duneed H $550 $759 -$209 -$189 Newcomb U $390 $518 -$128 -$114 Newcomb H $450 $596 -$146 -$130 Newtown U $450 $624 -$174 -$157 Newtown H $578 $1247 -$669 -$635 Norlane U $400 $412 -$12 -$1 Norlane H $400 $489 -$89 -$76 North Geelong H $465 $661 -$196 -$179 Ocean Grove U $500 $804 -$304 -$282 Ocean Grove H $580 $1036 -$456 -$428 Point Lonsdale H $620 $1309 -$689 -$654 Portarlington U $450 $765 -$315 -$294 Portarlington H $490 $936 -$446 -$421 Queenscliff H $530 $1735 -$1205 -$1158 Rippleside H $605 $1334 -$729 -$693 St Albans Park H $475 $634 -$159 -$142 St Leonards U $430 $619 -$189 -$173 St Leonards H $480 $781 -$301 -$280 Thomson H $440 $556 -$116 -$101 Torquay U $620 $954 -$334 -$309 Torquay H $690 $1274 -$584 -$550 Wandana Heights H $653 $1003 -$350 -$323 Waurn Ponds H $520 $830 -$310 -$288 Whittington U $413 $396 $17 $28 Whittington H $450 $574 -$124 -$108 Source: Finder. Assumes homeowners purchase at the current suburb median price, with a 20 per cent deposit, a 5.81 per cent interest rate and a 30-year loan term.
