Sound advice on choosing the right housing estate for you

The popularity of new housing estates continues unabated in most Australian capital cities.

For many young couples, families and first homebuyers, a house in an estate is one of the only affordable avenues into the housing market, if they want a substantially sized home on a decent block of land.

But not all housing estates are created equal, and choosing the right one for you can be a real challenge.

Here are some of the things you need to consider.

Amenity, amenity, amenity

Of course, the number one factor that will determine an estate’s suitability for you and your family is the amenity both within and near the estate.

Independent estate agent Craig Currie, who markets properties in Melbourne’s south-east, says many potential residents are no longer prepared to wait for the area surrounding their new estate to ‘catch up’ in terms of amenity – they expect those features now.

"A significant one, which probably isn’t a big surprise, is shops, cafes and schools. They’re all things that people are chasing, as well as open space, which is what a lot of the good developers are putting in place. They’ve got really modern parks, really good outdoor basketball courts and things like that," he says.

"One of the biggest things that’s changed in the last 10 years or so would be the massive attraction to wetlands or lakes in estates. Particularly if they’ve got walking tracks around them, there’s no question that buyers of all demographics and ages are highly attracted to those features."

Cost vs features

Currie says often the discussion for buyers is whether they want a greater range of community features within their estate, or are prepared to sacrifice some of those things in order to achieve a cheaper price.

"If you took the same home and the same block size from one estate (with a multitude of surrounding amenity) and then put it in another development that is just houses and really no infrastructure, it might be in the same town and may only be 1km away, but it would be nothing to see a 10-20% difference in price," Currie says. "It’s very significant."

"It’s harder to get into a community or an estate development that has all that infrastructure and all of these things up and running, in comparison to something that hasn’t."

But Currie also says homes in many of cheaper estates are actually larger and have better appointments, which is an attraction for some buyers.

"They attract someone that would prefer to see better value in the property -maybe get a bigger home or a more highly appointed home that’s not in one of the (prime) locations – rather than sacrifice on those points."

A sense of community

Creating a sense of community in a location where every house and resident is new is an extraordinary challenge.

But Currie says some estates do it much better than others.

He says it’s important to investigate whether there are active residents’ groups in the estates you’re considering, as it’s a good indicator as to whether your new neighbourhood will be an inviting place to live.

"Resident groups put on different events and community gatherings. Big events happen every second month in one of our developments. There wouldn’t be a month go by when there isn’t a significant community event put on.

"For instance, in February there’s ‘Movies in the Park’, with outdoor screenings and food trucks."

Research the developer

Choosing the right developer can be as important as choosing the right suburb when it comes to new housing estates.

It’s a common complaint from residents that their developer made sweeping promises about upcoming infrastructure improvements like public transport, only for those promises to remain unfulfilled years later.

Currie says it pays to do your own research.

"Be mindful of who the developer is. If you’re dealing with some of the bigger brands or bigger operators, they tend to follow through and don’t tend to quote something that’s not going to happen, as opposed to the ones that come in to do an estate and then fly out again. They tend to be far more liberal in what they say will happen versus what ends up happening," he says.

Knock on doors

There’s arguably no better reference for what life inside an estate is really like than to ask the people who actually live in it.

Currie suggests taking a weekend drive and asking residents for their opinions.

"Don’t be afraid to knock on doors yourself and ask homeowners in an area you’re looking at what they do like and what they dislike about where they live. They’re the best and purest examples that you’re going to get an honest answer from, versus an agent who’s trying to sell you something."