Good morning, my name is Greville Pabst and I'm sitting in Bridge Road, Richmond at the Richmond Larder Café, on the popular Bridge Road retail strip — one of Melbourne's premier fashion and café strips.
Richmond is located approximately 4 kilometres east of the CBD. Richmond is a former industrial, inner city suburb that has been gentrified over the years, and it is now a very popular place to live.
Many of the traditional workers cottages and terraces have been modernised and renovated, and it is a very desirable place to live. That's really because of a number of key points. Firstly, the suburb's relationship to some key streets such as Bridge Road, Swan Street and Church Street, and of course the sporting precinct that surrounds it. It is within walking distance to the MCG, the Tennis Centre, the Westpac Centre and AAMI Stadium, and of course the Yarra River and the parklands that surround it.
Lifestyle
Where I'm enjoying a coffee right now on Bridge Road is one of Melbourne's finest retail strip shopping centres. It is really popular for fashion and factory outlets, as is Swan Street, Richmond, which is where the original site of the Dimmy's department store is. And of course you've got Victoria Street to the north, which is known as 'Little Saigon', very popular for the Asian groceries and Vietnamese restaurants.
Housing in Richmond
Richmond has diverse housing styles, from your traditional single-fronted Victorian era cottages to your boom style Victorian terraces up on Richmond Hill. There's a good array of 1950s to 1970s one and two bedroom investment flats, and of course south of Swan Street in Cremorne there are many examples of warehouse conversion to residential.
Streetscape
We're in Rowena Parade in Richmond, right at the top of the hill. In front of me we have St Ignatius Church, and behind me we have the CBD, we have the MCG and we have the Rowena Parade Corner Store.
It is a fantastic street with a good array of investment quality properties, from your 1960s/1970s flats to a mix of single and two storey Victorian era terraces.
So your price points for investment quality property in the Richmond Hill area: your one-bedroom, typical 1960s/1970s flats really range from $400,000 to $500,000. Your two-bedroom investment quality flats in Richmond Hill generally range from $500,000 to $650,000. Houses in Richmond, your typical single-fronted Victorian residences, really start at about $750,000 up to $1 million.
A closer look...
We're driving up Rowena Parade, Richmond, and to the right here we have the Rowena Parade Corner Store. You can see some of the types of property that are prevalent in Richmond. There is quite a mix of single-front Victorian, double-fronted, there are some double-front Victorian boom terraces, and on the left here are some one-bedroom examples, some Art Deco one-bedroom flats.
There's quite a mix of housing styles, and of course you can walk to the MCG, you can walk to that sporting precinct, and you can walk to Bridge Road with all the cafes and restaurants.
We're now crossing Lennox Street in Richmond and we go up now to The Vaucluse, which is another great street in Richmond. The continuity of housing styles — you can see on the right here these single-fronted Victorian terraces, and you have a mix of 1960s really low density flats, great for investment.
The Vaucluse is a great street. As we drive up to the top of The Vaucluse here you can see the St Ignatius Church on the right, and of course Church Street up ahead, and tram and great public transport.
We're now turning into Goodwood Street in Richmond, and you can see some of the investment quality properties that are in this street. You have 1970s apartment blocks here on the right, and you have a mix of some bungalows and even some earlier 1930s/1940s real estate. But have a look at that view of the Melbourne CBD — a great view, a great vista, and of course you can walk there.
Investment tips
When WBP Property Advisers are looking for real estate in Richmond, we like to be bounded by Punt Road, Swan Street to the south, Bridge Road to the north and the river to the east. Some of the key streets are The Vaucluse in Richmond Hill, Richmond Terrace, Mary Street and Lord Street — some of the best performing streets in Richmond.
Richmond has many compromises. You need to be really careful when buying real estate in Richmond south of Swan Street, in that Cremorne precinct. The compromises in that area are that there are still a lot of commercial and industrial properties in that location, and you have to be really careful of freeway noise and the effect that it has on the enjoyment of your property.
Another area in Richmond where you really must do your homework is north of Bridge Road. As you get further north towards Victoria Street, many properties are compromised by the noise and the car parking issues that are associated with all of the restaurants along Victoria Street, and a lot of the streets are quite narrow when you go north of Bridge Road.
What does attract a premium in some of these areas is having a car park on title. It really does add premium value to your property.
Richmond is a great suburb for investment, but selecting the suburb is not the panacea for success when investing in property. There are many other aspects that can affect a property's performance, and of course not all property performs the same.
When investing in property, don't risk a guess. Seek professional advice.
