Rothwell Hill, Ascot Vale pinpointed as Melbourne investment property hot spot

Rothwell Hill, Ascot Vale pinpointed as Melbourne investment property hot spot
Staff ReporterDecember 7, 2020

Pockets of two Melbourne suburbs, Thornbury and Ascot Vale have been pinpointed by Wakelin Property Advisory as having long-term investment potential. 

An “undervalued precinct” is typically a section of a suburb where there were certain attributes that meant there was more potential for growth, Jarrod McCabe, of Wakelin Property Advisory, said. 

The pockets should have all the characteristics underpinning demand and growth, not just one attraction such as relative affordability compared with the neighbouring suburb, he said.

A case in point is Ascot Vale, which has good access to the city by trains, trams and roads.

Union Road has a really good village atmosphere; it’s really gentrified noticeably over the last five to 10 years, and has got a real variety of shops, cafes and restaurants,” Mr McCabe said.

“Proximity to Union Road and the train station are very important, so the Rothwell Hill section … is highly desirable; particularly towards the northern-end to Maribyrnong Road.”

There were also some very good pockets just west of Union Road, but buyers wouldn’t want to go too far west because it was further away from public transport and cafes, he added. 

Parts of Thornbury where the house median is still in the mid-$900,000s, compared with Northcote’s $1.05 million median could be worth a look by investors, especially areas close to the High Street village and train line near St Georges Road. There were opportunities towards Merri Creek, but be cautious of industrial areas, he suggested.

In comparison to undervalued precincts, Mr McCabe compared ”hot spots” to the property investment equivalent of “the latest fad diet” seen on the cover of women’s magazines. 

He said a hot spot was typically an entire suburb experiencing short-term price growth, and had only a few characteristics for consistent strong performance. 

“What will happen is you’ll get growth in the short term, while whatever new infrastructure or industry is being put into the area,” he said. “But once that becomes the norm, most likely the capital growth will revert back to its previous performance rather than continuing to be a high performer," Mr McCabe said.

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