Latest farms to hit the market in Victoria
A cropping property in Henty is one of the latest farms to be listed for sale along with a lifestyle gem in Mansfield. See the most recent farms to hit the market and their asking prices.
THE rural property market is just weeks away from the autumn selling season and stand out properties are already being listed for sale.
This includes the cropping and grazing property Iowa at Henty which has been owned by the Campbell family since 1966. It has an asking price of more than $12,300 per hectare.
At Mansfield, Burnt Creek Lodge has hit the market for $1.25 million.
The property features a main house which has four guest rooms and two dormitories that can sleep 22 people, a large entertainment deck with a built-in BBQ and an island bar, an outdoor dining and fire pit area and a large hot tub.
It comes as a livestock farm in southwest Victoria has sold for nearly $6 million – equating to a whopping $17,529 per hectare.
The 340ha property, Gwinganna at Terang, sold under the hammer last week.
Gwinganna is located just 5km from the township of Terang and features a homestead built in 1980, set among a mature-treed parklike garden.
See the full profiles of the latest properties to be listed for sale below.
HENTY
IOWA
PROPERTY: cropping/grazing
SIZE: 315ha
SALE: auction March 23
PRICE: more than $12,300/ha
AGENT: Nutrien Harcourts
CONTACT: Brian Liston, 0428 931 894
HENTY might be known as the home of one of the biggest machinery field days in the nation, but the district has also produced quality pastures for sheep for the Campbell family.
The Campbells, most recently Ian and Claire, have run a true mixed farming operation on their Henty-district property Iowa since 1966 when the family bought the land.
Ian said the sheep had fitted well with the cropping, with the enterprise split one-third cropping and two-thirds livestock.
“We have learned to be flexible and have grown grazing wheats and more recently grazing canola,” Ian said.
And while the cropping has generated cash flow and allowed pastures to be improved, it has been sheep which have been the mainstay of the Campbells operation.
They run a flock of dual-purpose Merinos, with the adult sheep testing 19 micron and the young sheep 18 micron.
“The sheep have fitted in well with the cropping, grazing the winter wheats and then the stubbles,” he said.
The Campbells have worked hard on their soils since they arrived, applying superphosphate over the years and working on addressing soil acidity. Soil tests and paddock histories are available to potential buyers and the property is 94 per cent arable.
It means that when they do grow a crop, it excels with “pretty terrific yields last year”, Ian said.
The house on Iowa was built before the Campbells took ownership but has been changed over the years to keep it modern.
There are three bedrooms and open plan living which opens onto an alfresco deck area which overlooks the landscaped gardens.
Farm improvements include two machinery sheds, a hay shed, silos, two overhead fuel tanks and a virtually new shearing shed.
Ian said when a windstorm destroyed their shed a couple of years ago, their only regret was it hadn’t happened earlier.
“The old shed needed replacing and the new one has plenty of space, new overhead gear and has a much better atmosphere,” he said.
The sheds also act as catchment for rainwater as well as the homestead. There are two, 45,000-litre tanks at the house, a concrete 32,000 litre tank on one machinery shed, a fireproof plastic 22,500-tank on the shearing shed while garden water is supplied by a concrete 91,000 litre tank.
Iowa has eight dams for stock water.
MANSFIELD
BURNT CREEK LODGE
PROPERTY: lifestyle
SIZE: 3.25ha
SALE: for private sale
PRICE: $1.25 million
AGENT: Nutrien Harcourts
CONTACT: Kerryn Rishworth, 0412 346 169
WHEN guests visit Burnt Creek Lodge, they run out of superlatives to describe it.
And while owner Greg Cooper might be the recipient of the feedback, he is quick to give credit to the local team of craftsmen who converted a house into something special.
“I had lived in Queensland for 20 years and I basically just picked Mansfield off the map,” Greg said.
There was always the vision to create an accommodation haven where groups could come and stay together.
“We deliberately created something which was not ultra-top end, and it has hit the mark,” Greg said.
“It took three years to build, and we proudly employed locals who were creative and worked with what was already there and made it even better.”
The proximity to Lake Eildon was key to Greg buying the property, to attract people who had boats. What Greg hadn’t banked on was the huge demand in the winter from groups who travelled to Mount Buller to ski.
There is the main house which has four guest rooms and two dormitories that can sleep 22 people, a large entertainment deck with a built-in BBQ and an island bar, an outdoor dining and fire pit area and a large hot tub. There is even a driving range.
As well as the main house there is a man cave and the bunk house which has a separate living room and courtyard.
The property also comes with sheds.
Greg said he was happy to help new owners to take over the business and would pass on the website, forward bookings and business and domain name, with the furniture and machinery if someone chose to take it on as a going concern.
But he said it could also be a country retreat for a family who loved to have friends to stay.
So happy has he been with the way things have worked out that he aims to recreate a similar set up when he moves to the United States.
“We think that we could build another version of this near the Rocky Mountains as it has been so well received in the market,” Greg said.
Burnt Creek Lodge is a few minutes from Mansfield and less than two-and-a-half-hours from Melbourne.
BRIAGOLONG
140 BRIAGOLONG-STOCKDALE ROAD
PROPERTY: lifestyle
SIZE: 10.5ha
SALE: for private sale
PRICE: more than $800,000
AGENT: Gippsland Real Estate
CONTACT: Brett Lanigan, 0427 517 577
THE owners of a Briagolong lifestyle property think the area is a well-kept secret.
Born and bred in the district, Matt Orchard has always loved Briagolong and bought a small property to live with his family about 15 months ago.
And while their tenure in the lifestyle property has been relatively short, Matt said there was much he liked about it.
“We have kids and there is space for them to run around and ride motorbikes,” he said.
“You have the space to be as loud as you want.”
Since moving to the property, Matt said they had fenced the area into smaller paddocks, “basically so I didn’t have to spend as much time mowing!”.
They have also planted trees, adding to the existing stands of natives.
“Thanks to the trees, this area is really sheltered, and we don’t feel the winds,” he said.
They’ve used the land to run a mix of cattle and sheep, and it’s currently stocked with five steers and about 15 sheep, but Matt said there was plenty of feed to support more in good seasons.
The key feature of the lifestyle property is its relatively new house, which has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and open plan living area with a high ceiling, a second lounge/sitting room and a light-filled kitchen with walk in pantry. Wood heaters have been fitted in the house by Matt.
The entertaining area of the house is extended with an outdoor timber deck with a bistro blind and a wood heater.
Water is provided by three tanks, a bore and a large dam which supply stock water but also established fruit trees.
Matt and his family don’t plan to move far and will stay in the Briagolong district because they love it.
“You are only 15 minutes from Maffra, 25 minutes from Sale and it’s one of the larger size lifestyle properties in the area,” he said.
“We just wanted to move onto even more land.”
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