The ultimate beach home for under $600,000? It may seem like a pipe dream, but look carefully enough across Victoria and bargain hunters can find a fixer-upper, holiday home, investment or sea-change pad for less.
Everywhere from the Mornington Peninsula to the Great Ocean Road or Gippsland, property buyers can find a home close to the ocean for a decent deal.
Hastings, on the sought-after Mornington Peninsula, has a three-bedroom fixer-upper on the market with a price guide of $499,000 to $525,000.
The house at 43 Church Street is just blocks from the Hastings foreshore, and includes a large backyard.
The vendors have owned the property for eight years as an investment, Baywest Real Estate selling agent Sean Crimmins said.
While it needs work, the home offers opportunity for buyers, especially as homes priced below $600,000 so close to the ocean rarely come up for sale.
“It’s definitely rare to have a house like this for sale so close to the foreshore,” Crimmins said.
Hastings’ median house price is $710,000 on Domain data.
Close to the Great Ocean Road in Warrnambool a two-bedroom home is in offer for $560,000 to $600,000.
The house at 234 Moore Street is not only close to the beach, it also has a horse stable.
Harris & Wood Real Estate’s Josh Bermingham said the vendor was a horse trainer selling to move permanently to Melbourne.
“What’s really appealing about the property is the size of the block. It’s over 1000 square metres, so it has the ability to be subdivided subject to council approval,” Bermingham said.
The home, he said, was perfect for a young professional couple, downsizer, investor, or first home buyer wanting to be near the beach. The property is a short drive to the local foreshore.
Further west, Portland offers spectacular views of the ocean. It also offers bargain buys for those searching for a beachside home.
In Portland, a three-bedroom Victorian style home at 44 Tyers Street is on the market with a $495,000 asking price.
The period home is blocks from the Portland foreshore, set on a corner block and also features a second bathroom.
Less than 20 kilometres east of Portland, a two-bedroom home a stone’s throw from the Surrey River and Portland Bay, is up for sale for $479,000.
The home at 9 Clarke Street, Narrawong is on a large 1143 square metres of land, with a shed big enough to fit a caravan.
On the other side of Melbourne, in Gippsland, a three-bedroom home close to the Paynesville foreshore at 32 Cumming Street is asking $465,000.
The house is on a quarter-acre block of 941 square metres, offering the buyers a chance to either put a big shed on the land or subdivide it, OBrien Real Estate’s Shaun Harvey said.
Built in the 1960s, the property has had some updates over the years.
“True to the whole beach shack sort of thing, there is a shower in the laundry, so you can just walk in there after you visit the beach and wash all the sand off,” Harvey said.
Holiday home hunters were looking to buy in the area, along with first-time buyers, he said.
About two-and-a-half hours southeast of Melbourne, in Venus Bay, another three-bedroom home is listed for $590,000.
The property at 12 Atherton Drive offers not only a fresh, new style inside, but also a place to lock up any beach lover’s jet skis.
Ray White Inverloch principal agent Fiona McMahon-Hughes said properties in the area were still selling well, despite the 10 straight rises in interest rates since May last year.
“There are a lot of people that try to get into the market here for their first holiday home because it’s cheaper,” McMahon-Hughes said.
Properties in nearby Inverloch, also close to the water, can sell for millions of dollars, she said.
“In Venus Bay there’s a lot more choice for buyers at the moment,” McMahon-Hughes said. Prices had not fallen as far as they had in Melbourne, given interest rate rises, as a lower price had kept it protected from steeper falls. We haven’t taken the same hit.”