Southern Highlands sees capital gains on high quality renovated homes: HTW residential
Rental enquires as well as sales have been strong according to many local agents, according to the latest Herron Todd White (HTW) residential report.
The valuation firm suggest in locations across the nation, the downtime delivered by isolation has spurned on owners looking to improve their assets through maintenance and upgrade. This month’s HTW report highlights where renovations are on the rise and the price points and outcomes those markets can expect.
The report notes most agents are reporting that the private inspection only approach to viewings is working very well for agents and prospective purchasers, as it allows for both parties to feel a bit more relaxed rather than experience the typical madness of an open home.
"Overall we are seeing consistently good sale prices across the board, particularly within the rural residential space.The standard sub-million residential markets are still moving, just at a much slower pace.
"This is possibly due to purchasers in this price range being the most likely to be impacted by the ongoing and uncharted economic waters in which we currently find ourselves," the valuation firm said.
"Given the lockdown guidelines that have been in place over the past six weeks, many people have taken the opportunity to start those little jobs around the house they haven’t had time to begin.... or finish for quite a while. So are we seeing a rise in the amount of home renovation in the local area?
"The short answer is that it appears to be fairly steady as far as major renovations such as kitchens, bathrooms, decks, etc however we are certainly noticing a rise in smaller cosmetic works including paint jobs, landscaping works and general tidying up," the valuation firm continued.
"As far as major renovations within the local economy, we haven’t seen the bottom to middle range of the market achieve outstanding capital gains from buying and renovating since the market peaked in mid 2017.
"We do note that as always we have seen good scope for capital gains on good quality homes in good suburbs and streets that are being renovated to an extremely high level of finish."
These properties tend to appeal to local or Sydney based downsizers looking for high quality product in blue ribbon locations on sub 1000 square metre blocks that are easier to manage than the larger traditional homes, the report noted.
A family retreat set upon two hectares in Bundanoon has recently been sold for $1.675 million.
The house at 639 Old Argyle Road (pictured below) comprises four bedrooms, updated kitchen, renovated bathroom, and two car garage.
It also features study, fireplace, established gardens and fended paddocks.
A current listing is a four bedroom house in Burradoo with newly refreshed interiors.
The home at 12A Phillip Street (pictured below) has been listed for sale with $1.45 million hopes.
It features new kitchen, formal and informal living zones, gardens and double garage.
"We also notice a strong market for rural residential properties that have also been renovated to an excellent standard as well as the addition of good equine site improvements which appeals to the Sydney market looking for a hobby farm with good access to the city," the valuation firm said.
"As affordability goes, we consistently hear the phrase Highlands tax from home owners and investors alike when talking about the cost of local tradespeople.
"Due to this, we are seeing owners bring trades in from Sydney or up from Goulburn in the hope of getting a more cost effective job done, but remember you get what you pay for and as always the importance of seeing a tradesperson’s work before hiring them based on price is as important as ever," the valuation firm said.
"Going forward we believe it’s likely that the renovation market will retain the trend of seeing good quality renovation achieving the price point it deserves."
