Latest news with #historicproperties
News.com.au
6 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Buyers to unlock value in historic Newtown property
Builders are set to unlock the value in a complex of historic Newtown residences sold after the property took a $1m haircut having been on the market for more than two years. Roslyn is a converted 1850s Italianate mansion and an adjoining Art Deco block of apartments built in the 1920s occupying a prime 1885sq m corner site at 272 Latrobe Tce, Newtown. The property, which was initially listed for sale with $3.4m to $3.7m price hopes in March, 2023, sold last week in a $2.55m deal with a Surf Coast party. Maxwell Collins Geelong agent Duncan Skene said improving conditions for builders and developers combined with a lower asking price to raise the profile of the inner city landmark with potential buyers. Mr Skene said he received three offers on the property opposite Matthew Flinders Girls Secondary College once the price guide was reset at $2.5m to $2.75m. It's the second landmark property to sell on the strip between Roebuck and Aberdeen streets, after a historic villa house converted to an office at 256 Latrobe Tce was snapped up for $1.62m in April. 'There's a little bit more positivity out there and people are starting to look for projects again,' Mr Skene said. 'It's just been since Covid that everyone has put things on hold and were getting slammed. 'They got all their work done and now they're looking for some projects again and this will meet their needs.' Mr Skene said he expects the buyers to reposition the property, which is presently divided into nine units, including seven with one bedroom, one two-bedder and the main four-bedroom residence. 'My understanding is they're going to renovate, just with all the heritage guidelines and everything, and bring it back to its former glory,' Mr Skene said. 'They'll probably subdivide it off, rather than just have the one house. I'm pretty positive they're not going to make it into a residence again.' Mr Skene said the three offers came from local players, underlining the local knowledge in the potential for the area. The two residential buildings are set at the front of the property, leaving a substantial portion for garaging and driveway. The original Italianate mansion was built in 1855 for John Guthrie, who was a sub-division magistrate and immigration agent at Geelong. Subsequent owners included Geelong merchant George Hitchcock, of Bright and Hitchcocks, before it was home to the Presbyterian Girls College from 1919 to 1930, which went on to become Morongo at Bell Post Hill, the present site of Kardinia International College.
ABC News
10-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Police station, school and fun park become homes amid rural housing shortage
From the street, the cream stone building with its eyelash verandah is quintessentially mid-north South Australia. Around the back, however, would-be buyers get a glimpse into the building's fascinating history. Formerly the small town of Laura's police station, the property retains two original stone jail cells that are still fitted with benches and fastening loops for prisoners' chains. Built in 1878, the home and its outbuilding were the town's police station until 1968, when they were decommissioned and later became a private dwelling. Real estate agent Angus Barnden, who is selling the property, said former police stations were rare in the real estate market, but their historical features were often why people bought them. "It's the quirkiness and the character," he said. At the other end of the state, 20 kilometres outside Mount Gambier, a former primary school that closed in 2011 when enrolments dropped to 11 students has been transformed into a family home by current owners Peter Hoare and Mandy Daly. "It caught our eye — we were looking for something a bit different that we could renovate," Mr Hoare said. "We had looked at the old Blyth hospital and were keen to buy that and turn it into a bed and breakfast, then we looked at the old Tantanool School. "But when this one came up at Tarpeena, we just fell in love with it. The shape, the angles, the big arch window." Mr Hoare said the site also offered a large land parcel. "It was being sold for land value only, so we couldn't resist," he said. After spending a year renovating, the pair is now selling the site. Mr Hoare said it was garnering a lot of interest from potential buyers. "I think there's a big opportunity here for a B&B, a caravan park, you name it … there's so much potential," he said. Real estate agent Paul Segneri said interest in quirky, unusual and alternative real estate was on the rise, due in part to the nation's housing crisis. The Mount Gambier agent, who is selling the renovated Tarpeena primary school, said he had received a "noticeable increase" in enquiries from buyers looking for multi-generational dwellings in recent years. "The cost of aged-care and retirement living is prohibitive for some families. "More families are looking at ways to innovate, save money and often sites like decommissioned public spaces provide exactly that opportunity." The changing social fabric of country communities has also seen the consolidation of traditional spaces, such as schools, country halls and churches. Mr Segneri said buyers were capitalising on the unique market opportunities. "We've sold decommissioned churches, old halls, you name it — [for] people who want something different, who want a bit of space, don't mind a project. "These types of properties allow so many different options. Across the road in the same town, a former fairytale family fun park sold last year as private housing. The new owners share their backyard with more than a dozen colourful sculptures and displays of Humpty Dumpty, Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel. "Can you imagine being a kid growing up in that place?" Mr Segneri said.
