paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 We are finally in a position to buy our own place, yay! We have enough cash for a 20% deposit and other costs like stamp duty, looking for a house on approx 600sqm with at least space for a pool, if not an existing one. We are currently in a rental contract until October, and plan to go viewing houses just after our holiday in June, and maybe just before the holiday. But I am already combing realestate for suburbs of interest, and seeing what houses have sold for. It's interesting to see some lovely ones go for a similar price to crappy looking houses!! We are looking northside - maybe Aspley, Carseldine, Chermside West, McDowall and over at Nudgee, Banyo, Sandgate (may be out of reach), Deagon. Flood maps are coming in handy as parts of the latter 4 can get a bit damp! Anyone here been in the buying market in Brisbane lately? We only know folk who bought years ago! I'm hoping it won't be wildly competitive. I won't talk figures but we should be able to afford at the nicer end rather than the lower priced places that get snapped up as investments or developments. Oh, and auctions are a no-no, we just want a normal sale. Do you just make an offer over the phone to the real estate? In Scotland it was all done through a solicitor! My super scheme has a free mortgage broker service, so will book an appointment soon. Any advice or tales of experience welcome! Cheers!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 I actually boughtat auction and feel got a good price. It isn't as scary as it appears just go in with a firm limit and stick to it. Make sure you have your finances in line though. Hard to advise without knowing budget. Areas I like on Northside which im looking to buy in not to distant future are Kedron, Wavell heights or mitchelton. Mitchelton has a nice village sort of feel and on the train line. Worth a look has mainly 600m blocks. Otherwise ferny hills /grove could cater for that also on the train line and seem to be decent but affordable areas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith and Linda Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 We are finally in a position to buy our own place, yay! We have enough cash for a 20% deposit and other costs like stamp duty, looking for a house on approx 600sqm with at least space for a pool, if not an existing one. We are currently in a rental contract until October, and plan to go viewing houses just after our holiday in June, and maybe just before the holiday. But I am already combing realestate for suburbs of interest, and seeing what houses have sold for. It's interesting to see some lovely ones go for a similar price to crappy looking houses!! We are looking northside - maybe Aspley, Carseldine, Chermside West, McDowall and over at Nudgee, Banyo, Sandgate (may be out of reach), Deagon. Flood maps are coming in handy as parts of the latter 4 can get a bit damp! Anyone here been in the buying market in Brisbane lately? We only know folk who bought years ago! I'm hoping it won't be wildly competitive. I won't talk figures but we should be able to afford at the nicer end rather than the lower priced places that get snapped up as investments or developments. Oh, and auctions are a no-no, we just want a normal sale. Do you just make an offer over the phone to the real estate? In Scotland it was all done through a solicitor! My super scheme has a free mortgage broker service, so will book an appointment soon. Any advice or tales of experience welcome! Cheers!! Cannot help with your suburbs as we are on the bayside in Redlands, but I would say that it is slightly a buyers market at present away from the inner suburbs so well worth trying a silly offer it does not hurt so much when they talk you up. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Cheers folks! Oh yes, Wavell Heights is of interest but prices a bit high - the odd one sells at a price we could afford, but rare! We lived very close by on one of the only streets in Chermside that actually has houses! Love that area! I'm put off Mitchelton by tales of sardine-packed trains! I don't mind Shorncliffe line, it isn't as crazy. Oddly I prefer buses to trains, but anywhere I can get to work comfortably in less than an hour is good! Too old to do that standing nonsense haha! What puts me off auctions is the finality of it. Is it true, if a building inspection shows problems then it's tough, no negotiations or pulling out?! I'd love to attend one to watch though, they happen weekly near us (southside at the mo). I really hope it is going buyer-friendly K&L! I did see a house close to us that would have suited us perfectly (nice location, just not where we want), decent price, had heaps of opens over several weeks since mid Jan and only yesterday got its sold sign! Reason we want north is most of our friends live there. We've tried southside, and having a pool, but miss the house parties and pet playdates haha! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 Cheers folks! Oh yes, Wavell Heights is of interest but prices a bit high - the odd one sells at a price we could afford, but rare! We lived very close by on one of the only streets in Chermside that actually has houses! Love that area! I'm put off Mitchelton by tales of sardine-packed trains! I don't mind Shorncliffe line, it isn't as crazy. Oddly I prefer buses to trains, but anywhere I can get to work comfortably in less than an hour is good! Too old to do that standing nonsense haha! What puts me off auctions is the finality of it. Is it true, if a building inspection shows problems then it's tough, no negotiations or pulling out?! I'd love to attend one to watch though, they happen weekly near us (southside at the mo). I really hope it is going buyer-friendly K&L! I did see a house close to us that would have suited us perfectly (nice location, just not where we want), decent price, had heaps of opens over several weeks since mid Jan and only yesterday got its sold sign! Reason we want north is most of our friends live there. We've tried southside, and having a pool, but miss the house parties and pet playdates haha! The first of the next generation trains has turned up for testing and around mid year these new 6 car trains will replace the remaining 3 car trains causing issues on the Ferny Grove line. People will often budget for a building inspection pre-auction so they can decide whether to go ahead. What are you looking for in an area ? Schools, parks, cafes, culture, quiet, lively etc ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 (edited) First of 75 new trains being towed into new maintenance yard for anyone interested. [YOUTUBE]ZSiT8ija3Z0[/YOUTUBE] Edited March 11, 2016 by fish.01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 The first of the next generation trains has turned up for testing and around mid year these new 6 car trains will replace the remaining 3 car trains causing issues on the Ferny Grove line. People will often budget for a building inspection pre-auction so they can decide whether to go ahead. What are you looking for in an area ? Schools, parks, cafes, culture, quiet, lively etc ? Looking for quiet, not near main road, can definitely do without schools! Not bothered about cafes or bars as long as transport is good, but then we can use uber for going out! But must be good peak time transport for work. House type pref two storey, far more space than two humans and a cat should need, cos we have lots of stuff! And mainly renovated/modern though we can do minor renos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Oh, and no social housing nearby. Been there, no thanks, not again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 First of 75 new trains being towed into new maintenance yard for anyone interested. [YOUTUBE]ZSiT8ija3Z0[/YOUTUBE] Swoo! Nice!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 (edited) Looking for quiet, not near main road, can definitely do without schools! Not bothered about cafes or bars as long as transport is good, but then we can use uber for going out! But must be good peak time transport for work. House type pref two storey, far more space than two humans and a cat should need, cos we have lots of stuff! And mainly renovated/modern though we can do minor renos. Not sure of budget range but there is this type of renovated 60's/70's houses in The Gap that keeps prices lower. The peak hour bus to the city is around 30 minutes from this part of The Gap. Obviously a very respectable, peaceful and green suburb. 4 bed, 2 bath, 2 garage, pool, on 708sqm land at $599k: See: http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-the+gap-121204382 Is just near the new beach, swimming hole and canoe launch at Enoggera Dam: Source: http://www.sweetwaterfishing.com.au And right next to Mt Nebo and The D'aguilar Range overlooking the lovely Samford Valley: Source: https://travelingwithlyn.files.wordpress.com/ Edited March 11, 2016 by fish.01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 (edited) Or if you want to keep the price lower you might consider something like this renovated home in a family pocket of nearby Ferny Grove: 3 bed, 1 bath, 2 car, pool, on 561sqm land at $480k See: http://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-ferny+grove-121857742 It is a 30 minutes peak hour trip to the CBD on the Ferny Grove train line and you would always get a seat as first on Edited March 11, 2016 by fish.01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Bloomin 'eck fish, either of those would be pretty sweet for us! The Gap is a bit far from our mates, but sweet for work travel. I've not seen much as nice as those in the suburbs I mentioned at the start! They really do tick all the boxes. Budget is good for the Gap house, but really don't mind spending less :-) Lots of thinking to do, but plenty time too :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 For anyone wondering where these suburbs are in relation to the city, look to the right of the television towers at the top of this picture. You will see a gap in the mountains (around 6km from the city) which is the entrance to "The Gap" suburb: Source: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 11, 2016 Share Posted March 11, 2016 I went to see this one in the gap. great pool, been on market a while, (I saw it a while ago) now trying auction but probably open to offers. Would be in range they were hoping and failing for 700 https://m.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-the+gap-121448334 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 11, 2016 Author Share Posted March 11, 2016 Sweet house lastone, but small for the expected price! Sweet pool though!! Have to weigh this all up. Our friends in Deagon would be half an hour from Ferny, which is nearly as long as from southside! But then with a possibly tiny mortgage - so what! Much thinking needed... No rush, just testing the water!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 Did an early-days style reccie northside last weekend. Plot in Nudgee which looks good, and easily big enough for a pool! Lovely views front and especially back, not overlooked. Gonna view the builder's display(s) maybe next weekend. Being a bit pressed into putting a deposit on the land before it gets snapped up, but nope, not unless we're sure! Also checked out an area in Carseldine, where a house is for sale at a good price but we're not that interested as it needs too much doing. But it did show us that the area is lovely, it's an older part with loads of cool larger houses/plots, and there are always a few on sale round there at any time. May go look at a mcmansion in McDowall that's open tomorrow, but time might be better spent elsewhere, ie. at the pub with our mates!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 There's a good beer place around nudgee way these days Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 All In Brewing! Yep! It would be right the opposite end of the suburb, but worth a wobbly 20 min walk!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlegreenman Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 (edited) We were in exactly the same situation about a year ago. We had been renting in Wooloowin for two years and it was time to get our own. We wanted to stay in the area and liked Wooloowin, Lutwyche, Windsor, Albion, Clayfield, Ascott, Kedron, Kalinga, Wavell Heights and Nudgee. We were close to putting in an offer for a house in Wooloowin after viewing it on a Saturday. It was the first offer we were making after looking at about 60 other houses. We're glad we started looking early and at so many because by the time we were ready to make an offer we had "seen it all" and knew what we wanted. Looking back I'm so happy we spent many Saturdays doing that. Anyhow, we were about to put in an offer when wifey pulled up the iPad and asked me how I liked a house which was in The Gap. At the time I'd never been in The Gap and didn't like the idea of moving away from the inner North. The house was beautiful though and ticked all the boxes. We drove there immediately (despite having missed the opening house since it was now late arvo) to get a feel for the neighbourhood. We managed to reach the realtor on Sunday, got a private viewing on Monday mid-morning and after a lot of haggling over the price we accepted the second counteroffer by Thursday. We've been living here for a year in May and never looked back. Our backyard borders Enoggera creek and we look out at heaps of trees and wildlife. The cats go bonkers when they see the bush turkeys along the creek. Bottom line: +1 for The Gap. Don't be shy to negotiate hard. Don't think if you lose a property you'll never get another one and make sure you've seen HEAPS first (at least 50) to know what you want. Good luck! Edited March 18, 2016 by littlegreenman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted March 18, 2016 Author Share Posted March 18, 2016 Thanks littlegreenman!! I would not rule out The Gap, two of my colleagues live there and really rate it! Though one of them's kitten died after being bitten by a snake. There are drawbacks to near-bush living!! But prices seem not crazy. For us the main drawback would be being a bit far from friends, we miss them after moving south from Chermside. We like to consume alcohol at eachothers houses so driving is not good! Heh. It really is early days, I know we'll view quite a few before buying hence getting practice in now! But we know what we want and may have a budget for small renos depending on the purchase price. Oh, and I just downloaded the Commbank property app. It's fab! Tells you 1 year and 5 year price growth %s by suburb, affordability once you plug a few saved figures in, only drawback is its searches are through Domain which I find inferor to Realestate esp. with regard to land size info. But can cross ref the two. Gonna check out The Gap again now, like travel distance to friends! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlegreenman Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 Oh, and I just downloaded the Commbank property app. It's fab! Tells you 1 year and 5 year price growth %s by suburb, affordability once you plug a few saved figures in, only drawback is its searches are through Domain which I find inferor to Realestate esp. with regard to land size info. But can cross ref the two. Gonna check out The Gap again now, like travel distance to friends! If you're seriously considering making an offer for a place then go to RPData and get a valuation along with the property history (sold when and for how much going back to the first transaction), that'll also give you all transacted properties in close proximity in the last half year. It costs about $12 if I remember correctly but it'll come in handy when negotiating. Regarding travel from The Gap: it takes me 30 mins door to door during rush hour to my office on Ann Street. Visiting friends in Aspley is about half an hours drive on a weekend going through Keperra or Ashgrove. Not too bad a drive but if you want to have frequent boozy nights at each other's place then that is a bit of a show stopper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted April 9, 2016 Author Share Posted April 9, 2016 Think we found our house! Went to two home opens today, one in Carseldine and one in Aspley. First house need wayyyy too much doing to bring up to scratch. Second is spot on, ticks every box easily, and should be within budget. There is already one offer conditional on the purchaser selling their house. We have nothing to sell and have finances sorted, so kinda have the edge. The agent has emailed me a form for making an offer. Mostly it's straightforward, but a couple of things have me puzzled. First, balance deposit $15,000 - due within 2 days of finance or building/pest inspection. What is this? I knew about the $1,000 or so, but thought we just paid the full 20% ahead of settlement? Related, there is a box re. finance - when? Nil/7 days/14 days. Same again for building /pest inspection. Is this the expected time after having an offer accepted that you expect to have these things approved or carried out? Many cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patphillips47 Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 In SA ,states often have different selling terms ,my son put in his bid offer was accepted and then after 48 hours they signed a formal contract and put $20'000 deposit down The terms on the contract were that finance had to be approved by a set date then completed by a set date He didn't do a building survey but I think that's normally done within the 48 hour cooling off period so that you can cool off if anything drastic shows up The bank did send a valuer out shortly after the 48 hours cooling off period Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peachy Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 Think we found our house! Went to two home opens today, one in Carseldine and one in Aspley. First house need wayyyy too much doing to bring up to scratch. Second is spot on, ticks every box easily, and should be within budget. There is already one offer conditional on the purchaser selling their house. We have nothing to sell and have finances sorted, so kinda have the edge. The agent has emailed me a form for making an offer. Mostly it's straightforward, but a couple of things have me puzzled. First, balance deposit $15,000 - due within 2 days of finance or building/pest inspection. What is this? I knew about the $1,000 or so, but thought we just paid the full 20% ahead of settlement? Related, there is a box re. finance - when? Nil/7 days/14 days. Same again for building /pest inspection. Is this the expected time after having an offer accepted that you expect to have these things approved or carried out? Many cheers! Hiya Great news. The deposit that you pay is open to discussion with the agent. Basically it represents the agent's fees so they want that asap. We amended our form to $1,000 deposit and then everything else on settlement. However, if you are competing with another buyer you may want to think about this. Other standard clauses : 14 days to get your finance sorted (and you can pull out without penalty if you can't get a mortgage) Once past the 14 days it goes unconditional. 14 days to get your buildings and pest inspection done. Same as above re conditional/ unconditional. Some vendors push for 7 days on each. You need to call up your inspector/s to see whether they can get it done in 7 days - if not go with 14. In Brisbane things move v quickly. I managed to get our pest and buildings done within 2 days of offer and reports came through the same day. If there is a pool make sure you get someone to check that out too - it is worth the money as you can negotiate your agreed price down. You also need to think about asbestos report - houses in Australia are often full of the stuff unless it is a new build or queenslander. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisleylass Posted April 9, 2016 Author Share Posted April 9, 2016 Wow thanks folks, fantastic info! I'm happy with 7 days for finance and inspections, just have to get off my arse and sort it all if accepted! There is a pool, it's in really good nick and I even inspected the pump/filter/chlorinator being a pool geek heh! But prob worth a look over. I forgot my test strips lol! Asbestos shouldn't be an issue, house built 1998. So not new, but it's been fabulously well maintained, clearly owner occupied since built. There is even a cat flap for our furry friend! Our rental contract is until 1 October, but we can move out slowly and hopefully it will be re-let for the last couple of months of the lease. Not really too worried, at least we'll finally be ploughing cash into our own home. Wow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.