Exile

A bit disingenuous.

You know very well that the issue is not about getting a beach house or not.

It's more a case of people aspiring to a house that's not a semi-derelict dump in a far-flung, barren, bogan-infested suburb with rubbish schools.

But it's okay, you win again. I can't compete with all your stats and photos and other convincing evidence.

You have convinced me that Australian property is fairly priced and the only problem is the kids of today expect too much and want to have it all straight away.

ABCDiamond

But a lot of it is

That is a massive exaggeration on your part, from my own experiences of Australian property.
Sure there are areas like that, in both Australia and the UK, and if you compare those two area types together, you may get similar prices.

But when you say far-flung.... how far exactly are you talking about, and how far does that distance compare to a UK property at the same distance out ?

I like to do comparisons with actuals not far fetched imagined figures with no real substance.

Exile

Yes, I exaggerate to make a point. But it's essentially true.

I never said Australian prices were high relative to the UK. House prices in the UK are still completely insane in most decent areas, too, so you're comparing the mad with the mad.

All of the attempted UK-Australian property comparison stuff you keep trotting out is completely bogus, in my view.

"Comparison with actuals" Did you quantify the level of bogan infestedness?

bcworld

Well below average I suspect. Given that it's the only 3 bed detached house for sale in this suburb listed at under $300k on realestate.com. The next nearest is another $30k.

So what is wrong with this one? Very small land size? 334sqm - seems fairly tiny for a single storey house in the far western reaches of Sydney.

Whereas for your comparitive UK property there seems to be a lot of options listed around the asking price...and below.

obiwan

well said...on the real estate analysis which is spot on... and thanks for pointing me to better news sites such Guardian....there is way too much crap on news.com.au (which I shall now delete from my favourites toolbar....)..

one thing I am learning about aussies is they do whinge and blame everyone else for problems....you also see in sport when they lose....remember in the last winter olympics, it was the chinese's fault that oz didnt win more of the events....tsk tsk

fish.01

Whereas hanging around here you would notice Brits whinge a whole lot less

ABCDiamond

$60,000 below, as I said before.

334sqm is larger than the terraced house I was living in back in Kent.

I was about to say you were wrong, but this one is 4 bedrooms, not 3...
There does seem to be a growing shortage of the lower priced property in the area. That might explain why the agents have been asking us to put ours back on the market.. It seems that prices are rising again.

3 recent Property Sales in the area, so people can see what they really sell for:

55a Explorers Wy, House 3 bed 1 bath $325,000
35 Horseshoe Cct, House 6 bed 3 bath $440,000
9 Chad Pl, House 4 bed 2 bath $465,000

ABCDiamond

But how many are detached houses ?

If they built a load of terraced houses in St Clair, I am sure the prices would be much more competitive. But how many people really want to live in anything other than a detached house in areas like that ?

The fact that out of 6,112 properties, 6,064 of them are Detached Houses seems to give something to think about.

lapin_windstar

Heh!

Lord_Farquar

Why do housing threads end up as an Aus v UK comparison?

It has nothing to do with the thread topic.

I don't really care how expensive houses in London are. I have never lived there, nor do I have any plans to live there.

coolshadows

The choice for me is:-

1. Continue paying $260 / week rent (market rate)

2. Buy a similar house to the one I'm living in and pay $500 / week on repayments (+ council tax, building insurance, etc...)

pomtastic

True. You have to look at your salary and outgoings and see if you think you are getting 'value' or 'ripped off'.

I don't know St Clair but according to other posters it's not that desirable. That's OK, a young family has to start somewhere and I appreciate that.

So lets have a look at the numbers. A $400K mortgage (with a $50K deposit)would buy you a very nice 4x2 in St Clair according to the photos. You'd need to pay $650 a week mortgage @7% over 25 years. $650 a week!!!! That's a lot of money for what other posters say is a questionable area over 1hour's commute from Sydney. If rates go up another 1.5% (possible?) then your mortgage payments would be $740 a week!! For a young family 'starting out' in a dodgy suburb this is a disgrace!! Bear in mind the average take home salary is $800 a week after tax, even with 2 average full time salaried jobs you wouldn't exactly be flush at the end of the day. It would be worth going into this kind of debt for something nice in central Sydney but in a bogan suburb way out.

I would not pay $650 a week, especially when you could rent a house in the same area for $350 and save the balance until prices come down to a reasonable level. If prices don't, then you are being ripped off even more.

iamthecreaturefromuranus

When was the last time houses, in any Western economy, came down to a 'reasonable level'?

pomtastic

Any time pre 1992 in Australia before banks started lending higher multiples of income and a home has become an asset not a basic dwelling. Most western countries will have similar charts to one below and many westren countries are now deleveraging, Aus is ramping up the personal debt.

We look at the US and think how stupid they are for getting into the financial mess they are in. Remember, they got into deep shit because people took on too much debt that was unsustainable. But of course, it's different in Aus.

iamthecreaturefromuranus

I bought my first home in the UK a long time before 1992 and I don't remember thinking at the time "shit, what a bargain'. Houses seem to have been a struggle to buy for as long as I have known.