Armadale a property hot spot

The greater Armadale area will become a hot spot for first home buyers and investors during the next financial year as it offers the most affordable real estate in the Perth metropolitan area according to David Hobbs, CEO of Professionals Real Estate Group.
Mr Hobbs said that the latest REIWA figures for the March 2011 quarter show that the median price of a home in the Armadale/Serpentine area was just $367,500.
“The median price of a home in this area of Perth is now more than $100,000 lower than the median price of a home for the overall Perth metropolitan area.”
“Astute property buyers can now buy established homes on large blocks of land in this area of Perth for prices under $300,000. For example, in the suburb of Camillo which is located in the area, the median price of a home during the March 2011 quarter was just $289,500. This is despite the fact that this area of Perth has relatively easy access to our city centre via the Perth to Armadale rail line. In addition, there have been major new infrastructure improvements to the area such as the Champion Lakes Regatta Centre, upgrading of the Kelmscott railway station and the redevelopment of the Armadale town centre.”
“Property prices in the area are now at rock bottom even though over the long term, the area offers some of the best long term rates of capital growth in Perth. While the median price of a home in Armadale/Serpentine rose by just 2.5% over the last year, property prices in the region have increased on an annual basis by around 14.6% over the last decade. Professionals predict that a growing number of investors will target the area over the coming financial year due to very competitive house prices and rising rents. The median weekly rent in the area is now $340 and rising. In local suburbs such as Camillo, houses can still be purchased for under $270,000 and deliver weekly rents of $300.00 which gives the opportunity for positive gearing.”
“The growing opportunity for investors in the area is underlined by the fact that our offices in the area are now receiving an increasing number of enquiries from Eastern states property investors interested in buying homes in the area. These Eastern states investors were very active in this area of Perth until 2006 when property prices began to rise sharply in Perth. For first home buyers, the area offers excellent long term opportunities for capital growth due to the fact that houses in the area are located on large blocks of land – in many cases around 700sqm. As demand for building land in Perth increases due to our rising population, the underlying value of these properties will rise strongly due to their high land content and as a proportion of their overall purchase price,” he said.
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