ozzy2000

As we all know now the Federal ALP under PM KEVIN RUDD relaxed foreign investment rules in property in April 2008 and lots of wealthy overseas investors bought heavily into Melbourne Housing stock. Particularly the Nouveau wealthy of mainland China. this caused such a housing boom that the median house price rose 20% in Melbourne Metropolitan area and some suburbs were really seeing a housing boom specifically Glen Waverley. Whilst Box Hill and the South-Eastern suburbs saw many investors buy property the Wealthy Chinese bought mostly in Glen Waverley. The only conclusion one can draw from these market moves was when the foreign investment rules were again tightened just before Rudd was sacked suburbs like Glen Waverley were seen as really over priced and now that interest rates are moving towards a rise ten market is depressed and this is no longer a good investment area. Most of the Housing stock in Glen Waverley is dated and overpriced and whilst this applies to the South East in general because its a Chinese enclave only makes it attractive if you seek that atmosphere and have excess wealth to purchase here. .

The restaurants are not as high quality as some may think and I would much prefer China town, Box Hill or even Clayton Road, Clayton. The Novotel has a tabaret and Pokies and a small Village Cinema which is very dated. The bowling alley is a very good family attraction as is the Sunday market. Once you have experienced those and the coffee shops it becomes a very boring and bland shopping centre.

Whilst Melbourne is one of the most liveable cities in the world it would be unfair to single out Glen Waverley as the only bland suburb as most of Australia is pretty mediocre despite our flashy tourism ads. Having Chinese grocery shops is a great advantage as they offer much healthier food than most supermarkets. You will find Asian grocery shops in Forest Hills and most better suburbs.

In summary if you want a nice house in Glen Waverley be prepared to spend 700,000 to buy a run down dated property and then spend another $400,000 building something luxurious and you will almost break even in value ( if the block is minimum 600 square metres).

Buying a dated property at the better end will cost you on average $850,000 to $950,000 for something halfway decent.

Mount Waverley properties are old and dated and way overpriced. Many are on hills with unfavourable sloping. Like Glen Waverley the overpricing here was due to the influx of foreign investment rules rather than any real appreciation. This widespread phenomenon of the housing boom fuelled by offshore investment have turned these poor investments into very poor investments. Those who buy at the current prices expecting huge returns over the next decade are fooling them selves as their money will be eaten away by rising interest rates and heavy maintenance and renovation costs. I have seen recent auctions with no bids except huge vendors' bids to keep up the illusion of a housing boom that does not exist.
Those who are prepared to take on huge mortgages on $700,000 properties would be wiser to look to new estates with newly built featured properties. The huge transmission lines give off huge GAUSS magnetic fields despite theories and ,measurements to the contrary. They are ugly and a risk.

Having lived and worked in Port Melbourne on Bay Street many years ago I know its development in detail. It still has a Human Services Public Housing estate within it which brings in a heavy criminal element and atmosphere of despair and poverty ensconced within a ring of superficial "twenty cent" millionaires.

As for the notion that many rich socialites and celebrities live there well that's the "biggest crock of of you know what". For a start Australia let alone Melbourne does not have many celebrities you would want as neighbours. Furthermore if they were your neighbours along with "rich socialites" they probably wouldn't want to know you and it certainly wouldn't mean they were quality people worth knowing. I have been in the International Film and Music business for two decades and Most of the Australians in the business are not worth knowing let alone being your neighbours. This suburb is full of insular and superficial people.
I still own property there but I bought and renovated when it was really cheap and leased to professionals.

It use to be nicer place to live in before it became a trendy place with a few bars but that has attracted the usual violence and dumb superficial drug culture that inhabits the the city of Melbourne. Its closeness to SouthBank and therefore Crown casino might be fun for a year or so and then you will become weary and tired of avoiding the same boring and mediocre trendiness Melbourne is so notorious for.

Its expensive real estate and suited for trendy high earning professionals or young people with big inheritances and low self esteem. Young families who want their children to grow up in High Air pollution this would an ideal environment and as their children grow to be teenagers the drug culture will so much more accessible.

You will find much clearer, romantic and peaceful sunsets further along the Bayside suburbs than here.



In terms of property its mostly tiny little old boxes like Albert Park and South Melbourne. The beaches are filthy and have high E-COLI bacteria readings so do not walk bare foot along the waters edge. During peak hour the area reeks of Car exhaust and the usual pollutants.

Just because its a trendy area with lots of restaurants does not mean high quality cuisine and the same applies in the Docklands and South Yarra. Great restaurants with great food rather than atmosphere are difficult to find in Melbourne.

As Caulfield is a mainly Jewish Enclave the demand for property and will assure that prices will will continue to rise here.Like Malvern , Brighton and Toorak it will remain one of the most expensive sought after suburbs in Victoria. If you are Jewish then its its the best in Australia. It has a huge luxurious Racecourse which is the highlight of Australia's Spring Carnival. It has a Monash University complex and major Hospital facilities in the area. The night life is non-existant but its close enough to St.Kilda and the City to make up for that.

After the floods this month I must update this review!!
Deepwater Avenue in Waterways , which is part of the reclaimed swamplands of Keysborough, suffered heavy flooding!! For a new estate the flooding was a huge indictment on poor planning and infrastructure. Further South at Bangholme E-COLI readings have been so high that residents are moving out and this was TV tonight ( 25th Feb 2011).
This whole area of real Estate is way overpriced considering that all the houses have piers on slabs which will not prevent slab cracking after a decade or so.
Keysborough is one of the most overrated new Estates in the South East. Despite demographics on APM it is predominately a Vietnamese enclave with multiple Indian family dwellings on the rise as well. The design for parking is ridiculous with tiny spaces and high curbs . The house prices are ridiculous and the land size lots are most under 500 square metres. The new Somerfield and Waterways are horrid little states with little facilities and surrounded by the Industrial estates of Greens Road on one side, Boundary Road on another and "Slummy" Springvale on the other. Most of the inhabitants are the lowest end of the Victorian Vietnamese Community and will find most of them at Crown casino on most nights.

During peak hour traffic the suburb becomes isolated by Traffic "Grid-Lock" and there is little public transport its only buses. There is no night life of any description.

There is an highly active crime element in neighbouring Springvale and therefore is actively targeted.

It does have some exclusive Private Grammar schools on Springvale Road but few of the locals have children attending there.

Lynbrook offers the the best value for money properties in the state of Victoria. A small Suburb with quick access to the MI freeway, WesternPort Highway, Eastlink, The Princes Highway and above all the South Gippsland Highway (recently upgraded) all the way to Phillip Island in 30-40 minutes. You can even get to the beach around Paterson lakes down Thompson road. It has a diverse spectrum of people mostly third generational Australians and sprinkled with a great mix of cultures and lots of young families. An active Cricket community as well. The new LYNBROOK rail station is now being constructed.

The new $14 million Lynbrook Hotel is one of the best equipped massive new "State of the Art" Hotels in Melbourne with restaurants, Motel, TAB pokies and huge conference facilities. The New Lynbrook shopping centre is expanding rapidly and a Post Office has just opened. It has 24 hour ,seven day a week security guard patrols.

Lynbrook Shopping Centre also has one the best 24 hour seven days a week bulk Billing Medical centre in Victoria. It has new Primary Schools and two Child Centres with heaps of vacancies. It also has a security Patrol operating at all hours. There are new and established Secondary Colleges in the Area. There is a new Shopping Plaza being built at Northey Road Lynbrook and another shopping centre in its own medium density gated community on Evans road as well a New Aged Care facility.

Also Lynbrook is serviced by Public transport Buses and a New Railway station currently in construction.
There are many reserves and a parks and a small lake. It is near several Golf Courses and a ten minute drive to both Fountain Gate and Dandenong shopping Malls. Southland, Knox and Chadstone are a 15 minute drive even during Peak traffic times. There is also a new Shopping Centre planned for Hampton Park only a minutes drive. It was unaffected by the recent floods.

Although only a few Kilometres further from Melbourne than Keysborough it does not have the traffic Blockages that surround Keysborough. The land and properties are well over $100,000 cheaper than Keysborough but rapidly rising but still relatively affordable. There are plenty of 24 hour Petrol Stations and even a 24/7 McDonalds and even a new Seven Eleven in the Suburb.

With housing stock and vacant land rare this close to Melbourne it will not last long and prices will rise sharply over the next three years. With Dandenong Plaza upgraded its the most desirable gateway to Gippsland and peninsula in Victoria. There is even new medium density housing lots up for sale at present.