How buyers are turning Geelong ex-public housing into quick cash
How enterprising buyers are making quick cash from snapping up old public housing properties being sold off by Homes Victoria in Geelong.
Property flippers are making quick cash from ex-public housing properties in Geelong’s biggest housing commission suburbs.
After Homes Victoria sold 11 properties across Corio, Norlane and North Geelong across the past two weekends for a combined $4.07m, another dozen hit the market in Norlane and could realise more than $4.6m.
One Agency listing agent Mark Mitchell said there’s always strong interest when public housing properties are up for sale, given they usually have big blocks.
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The latest collection includes houses and vacant land, including a 1231sq m property in Iona St, behind Labuan Square.
“We’ve had half a dozen groups follow me around to all the properties last Saturday and I dare say, as I’ve had lots of inquiries in the past couple of days, there’ll probably be a few more now that the others have been sold,” Mr Mitchell said.
“They’ve got low reserves because (Homes Victoria) wants to push them,” he said.
“Some will sell for more than others depending if it’s a concrete house or weatherboard, or two or three bedrooms.”
Investors and property flippers are usually the buyers, Mr Mitchell said, but first-home buyers have been on the lookout too.
Regardless of condition, buyers typically keep the houses to renovate and put them up for rent, or re-sell them, and turn a tidy profit.
“I had one three years ago that we sold in Sparks Rd and I thought it was the worst home I’ve had out of them all,” Mr Mitchell said.
“I really thought they would have knocked that one over, but he’s renovated it. It didn’t cost him too much to get it rented – they don’t put high-end stuff in there any way – and he’s got a good tenant.”
Some properties have sad stories, such as a Corio house where several children died in a deadly backyard shed fire.
“That was an uncomfortable one but we had seven people trying to buy that one and it got knocked down for about $342,000,” Mr Mitchell said.
That property resold last week, fully renovated, for $525,000.
Area Specialist Geelong City agent Ali Banderi said after renovating the home over eight months, the Geelong owner put the property back on the market with a secure tenant in place, who was paying about $460 a week in rent.
“They renovated the whole property – new windows, new kitchen, new bathroom, new flooring, everything you see, they’ve renovated,” he said.
“They were planning to keep it but they decide because they had another project to do so they had to sell it.”
Hayden, Geelong agent Glenn Hardman said there were multiple bidders on the properties auctioned in Corio and North Geelong last weekend, with investors snapping up most, but at least one purchaser was considering a multi-unit development.
Homes Victoria had previously told the Addy the houses being sold were built around 70 years ago, were in a poor condition and weren’t accessible nor met the needs of renters.
The sales were part of an ongoing program to refresh and renew the social housing portfolio to ensure it continues to meet the needs of renters and community.
“Every dollar that comes from this sale will be reinvested into improving and renewing social housing,” a Homes Victoria spokesman said.
Homes Victoria has invested more than $480m to build 807 homes in Geelong, completing 436 homes so far.
Originally published as How buyers are turning Geelong ex-public housing into quick cash