I know of a guy who purchased a block of land along a highway, planning to build a petrol station/restaurant – based on a backroom handshake with council – regarding future development of the area. With $$$ in his eyes he purchased the land dirt cheap from a farmer, then waited. When development plans for the area were released, the off ramp from the future required new bridge, would rejoin the highway AFTER his block – thus reducing expected customers to a fraction of original expectations.

I’d want the subdivision signed off on before doing anything else. Who knows what council might change their mind about tomorrow.

Just read your price limit again… Have you considered the Central Coast, Port Stephens (I’m mainly thinking of Raymond Terrace), or possibly even Port Macquarie if you can get a bargain. Also Old Bar.

For example, Raymond Terrace has two Woolworths 3 minutes walk apart. A BigW, Aldi, RTA, ten pin bowling, public pool, new police station, Dan Murphy’s, Dominos, Eagle Boys, three (I think) high schools… There is an unhealthy dose of Housing Commission again, but you just avoid those pockets. i.e. Avoid all streets that run off Philip Road and Watt Street, also Clyde Circuit which is kind of off on it’s own. Also avoid Brown Street and the few streets that run off the end of it like Anne St – and avoid anything around the separate area of Wahroongha Street – there’s a bunch of new public housing built at the back of that circular area…

Lakeside just east of Raymond Terrace is mostly all modern brick homes too. There’s a couple of 2bd units in Lakeside that have been on the market for ages around $150-170k. I don’t know why they haven’t sold – there’s far worse areas to buy IMHO and virtually no maintenance. (Unless they just SEEM to be the same ones for sale.) It’s near the pool/tenpin/sport centre.

The area south of Charlestown (Windale) has a large proportion of government housing tenants. The NSW Gov. has been selling them off for several years, but the area will take decades (if ever) to improve. i.e. If your neighbour is a drug-using, wife-slugging, foul mouth with a dog that never shuts up, children that always have swinging full nappies, that never wash their car, themselves, or mow their lawn… then even private owners/renters begin to to think, “What’s the point in taking care of the property I own/rent!?”

I read an article online a few years ago, that said something like Windale was the highest crime/drug/low income area – or a combination of all three… I forget exactly now. But just stand outside Windale shops any day of the week and note the number of druggies, no-hopers and people with mental problems that pass by.

The main difficulty I see in buying there is, you’d mainly get tenants who have been ousted out of their NSW Housing property. They can’t afford higher rent, and most of their “friends” live in that area. Most other folks avoid living there if they can. So it kind of perpetuates the quality of renter, and of course that stagnates rents, capital gain, etc. I certainly wouldn’t be counting on land banking in that area… but someone has to raise the bar some day I guess. May as well be you?

Gateshead is better. Probably a little more so too, since they split the two suburbs with the bypass. Keep in mind though, it’s just up the road from Windale, and many homes are built in the same 50s/60s style. (Although more do have weatherboards, rather than the typical government slum two-sheet asbestos cladding.) I’d be concerned that most Windale addicts know the people in their own suburb are home 24/7 on welfare – so they’ll go “shopping” to support their habit just outside of their own suburb. I do know a guy that lives in Gateshead though, and he reckons neighbours watch out for each other and everyone knows everyone.

When I was in school in the 80s, Gateshead High had one of the worst reputations of any school in Newcastle. (Yes, I’m biased. I’ve lived in the area forever.)

Adamstown/Charlestown… Property older stock again like Gateshead/Windale. (No new land that can be released, unlike Rutherford.) High (ridiculous in MHO) prices, but mostly employed city workers looking to live there.

Rutherford… Not impressed with how they’re destroyin… er… developing – farming land in the area. But there’s no comparison with Windale/Gateshead. Mostly new homes on the eastern side of the highway. So yes, plenty of opportunity for depreciation. No, not near the beach, but lots of industrial and residential development in the area. Just be sure not to buy at the lowest point. i.e. Take a drive past Maitland hospital (so it’s on your left) and bear left over the old bridge. That huge valley beneath the bridge was flooded nearly to the top a couple of years ago, and wasn’t all that far from reaching the bridge. It subsides quickly once the rain ceases though.