Rising house prices good – if you’re selling, that is
Kilbirnie resident Elizabeth Steer looks to be sitting on a winner after buying her home on Yule St for $288,000 in 2003.
Fifteen years later, Steer’s threebedroom home has an estimated value of $735,000 – more than 21⁄2 times what she bought it for.
‘‘It’s quite a lot of money for what is a worker’s cottage, essentially,’’ Steer said.
The house was originally built in 1907 and was ‘‘quite narrow’’, with a floor area of 100 square metres and land area of 253sqm.
But for all its rise in value, Steer said that only mattered if you were looking to sell. ‘‘I’m obviously happy if I was looking to move out of the market I’m in. But if I wanted to buy on the same street, that’s impossible now.’’
On top of that, Steer’s rates had about doubled over the past 15 years, and the amenities those rates paid for were ‘‘not that much different’’.
The area was not considered trendy when Steer bought the property but she liked its all-day sun, and connection to bus routes and shops. The area had become much more popular in recent years.