HEAD FOR HEIGHTS
LAND KEY IN MOST POPULAR FAMILY SUBURB
WANDANA Heights has been identified as Geelong’s most popular family suburb.
The small and exclusive suburb topped the list with 56.9 per cent of households recognised as containing families with kids, according to an Aussie Home Loans and CoreLogic report.
Bannockburn, Waurn Ponds, Curlewis and Lara round out the top five most popular family suburbs in Geelong.
Local agent Tony Moorfoot, of Buxton, Highton, was surprised Wandana Heights was at the top of the list.
“I thought Highton would have had more as it is closer to schools, but you get really good-sized blocks in Wandana Heights and it is a bit of an exclusive area,” Mr Moorfoot said.
“It is close to parks and reserves and close to schools, with Highton being the neighbouring suburb.”
He said families were attracted to the area because of the land size and the ability to have a big house with a good yard for the kids.
Barry Plant, Highton agent Kieron Hunter agreed and said Wandana Heights was seen as upper Highton after it was subdivided.
“People went up there with a bit more money and built big houses on big blocks with views, so the quality of stock is quite good,” Mr Hunter said.
He said the accessibility to the Geelong Ring Road was also attracting a lot of Melbourne buyers to the area.
The report states the median house value in Wandana Heights is $682,105 and has an average land area of 955sq m, however only 29 properties sold in the past year.
This is because the size of the suburb is much smaller than those surrounding it, therefore there are not t as many properties on n the market.
There is only one house for sale in Wandana Heights at the moment, according to realestate.com.au.
Large blocks are also a big attraction in Bannockburn for families.
The average land size in Bannockburn is 1192sq m, while the median house value is $453,278 and 56.2 per cent of households are recognised as families with kids, according to the report.
Landmark Harcourts, Bannockburn agent Rene Pompe said the lifestyle and affordability in Bannockburn were attracting people to the area.
“The secondary school is opening this year, the Country Plaza is being expanded, there is a lot of positive infrastructure,” Mr Pompe said.
He said first-home buyers were taking advantage of the first-home buyer’s grant and snapping up land in new estates around the Bannockburn area.
“I think Bannockburn has been a bit of a secret but it has been unearthed in the past 12-18 months,” he said.
“It is going to become the hub of this little area.” See the full list of Geelong’s favourite family suburbs on geelongadvertiser.com.au % family households with children 56.9% 56.2% 56.0% 51.4% 51.1% 49.0% 48.6% 46.2% 46.1% 45.6% Median house value $682,105 $453,278 $569,031 $407,981 $451,706 $862,179 $795,108 $993,758 $315,147 $490,278 immediately interested.
“The trigger was the size of the backyard,” Mr Hawker said.
“Our kids are outdoor kids, so there is plenty of space for them to play.”
And since moving in a week ago, they have discovered the neighbours’ children are the same age.
The spacious property has a four-bedroom house on it with formal and casual living areas, while a covered entertainment area leads to the sprawling and established backyard.
Buxton, Highton agent Tony Moorfoot sold the property for $677,500.
TESSA HAYWARD