Melbourne suburbs smashing house price records after rate cuts

A deliberate plan to sell just after a possible rate cut helped Emily and Dean to record home price in Albion. Picture: Mark Stewart.

More than 10 Melbourne house price records have fallen since the Reserve Bank cut interest rates in February.

And with mega results north of $30m the sales are proving it’s not just the city’s mortgage belt that have been holding out for a rate cut.

Cashed up neighbours have swooped on at least two local landmarks, with title documents recently confirming the sale of a Brighton waterfront mansion understood to have topped the suburb’s $31.6m record in the past month.

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Meanwhile, in one of Melbourne’s most affordable suburbs, Frankston North‘s most expensive home is now a $900,500 four-bedroom house after Sydney-based investors pushed a local buyer to the unprecedented sum at an auction in April.

Renovations have also been a key factor driving home sales to new heights.

In the west, the couple behind an Albion home’s extension that smashed the local record by $150,000 are hunting for another project with half an eye to besting the benchmark for neighbouring Deer Park or Ardeer.

Owners Emily and Dean sold their 33 Adelaide St, Albion, reno for $1.42m in late May, about 10 days after the year’s second rate cut.

33 Adelaide St, Albion - for herald sun real estate

The 33 Adelaide St, Albion, home that smashed the suburb’s price record not long after the last interest rate cut.

Insside the home where a renovation spurred buyers to stretch their budgets.

Emily said with expectations of another cut this week boosting borrowing capacity, and likely to lower mortgage costs, she would expect more records to tumble as home renos picked up — especially in Melbourne’s west.

“And the west is a great, growing space and it has a lot of potential and has reached the cusp of change, with a lot of families wanting to live in this area,” she said.

The renovator added that resistance to paying record sums would also likely drop, especially for homes with exhaustive extensions and updates, as they were the most likely to tick enough boxes that buyers would see value in them — even at unprecedented prices.

“If it’s a cheaper property for a cheaper price, that’s great — but long-term, how much money will you tip into it to make it what you want? To buy something that’s already finished will almost always be better value than doing it yourself — especially with building materials and trades and everything going up,” she said.

37 Newstead St, Maribyrnong - for herald sun real estate

37 Newstead St, Maribyrnong, smashed the local record by almost $3m.

10-11 Timbertop Court, Frankston North - for herald sun real estate

Records are evne tumbling in affordable areas like Frankston North, where 10-11 Timbertop Court sold for $950,000 earlier this year.

Real Estate Institute of Victoria interim chief executive Jacob Caine said a flurry of record breaking sales was “surprising”, as Melbourne was still waiting for a “wholesale” surge off the back of rate cuts.

“However, there’s always an opportunity for standout properties to attract incredible interest and record prices,” Mr Caine said.

“And I absolutely expect that we will start to see more and more suburb records tumble as anticipated rate cuts take effect.”

He added those hoping to get a record sale for their home might want to consider renovations, as there was still “significant trepidation” around undertaking them in light of building industry difficulties that had made the few homes going the extra mile more appealing.