Holiday House Rentals Looking Up

The Age

Wednesday January 4, 1995

Christopher de Fraga

Sliding real estate prices have not been reflected in holiday house rents, writes Christopher de Fraga.

Some agents have reported a five per cent price rise this year on top of a five per cent increase last year. These figures only apply to special properties, however, and most are not fetching any more on the rental market.

As in anything to do with real estate, holiday house rents have everything to do with position, particularly in beach side suburbs and resorts where a water view commands a healthy premium.

What matters is not the pokey Basil Fawlty view, either - ``There is the sea, Mrs. Richards, the bit between the sky and the land" - but a really sweeping view, in many cases a sweep of more than 180 degrees from a bayside or ocean clifftop.

A recent survey on Australia's east coast put Palm Beach and Whale Beach with spectacular Pacific Ocean views from 100 metre cliffs on Sydney's northern coastal suburbs top of the list with Victorian resort, Portsea, third. It depends on the houses chosen but on average, agents here agreed with the results.

From a high of $6000 a week at Palm Beach and $4000 a week at Whale Beach, the tariff falls to $3000 to $3500 a week at Porsea - or at Noosa on Queensland's Sunshine coast.

``A clifftop house at Portsea between Christmas and the end of January would rent for about $3000 a week," said Warwick Anderson of R.T.

Edgar Real Estate oppposite the Portsea hotel in the heart of Portsea.

``A really big house on the cliff top with acres around it - a big house like Ilyuka on Point King might command about $10,000 a week," he said.

A family home, Ilyuka has 18 bedrooms - in five self contained living areas including the main house - is to be sold later this month for more than $5 million and has its own heliport, pier, beach-and- boathouse.

Back from the water, prices naturally drop -- but not much at Portsea.

``A house back from the cliff but with the whole shooting match, court, pool, the lot, would rent for about $2500 a week. This is about the same as the survey showed for renting a house at Surfers Paradise during the peak Christmas New Year period.

Without the court at Portsea, perhaps $2000 a week would find you a house.

``There is not much at all at Porsea for less than $1000 a week," said Mr. Anderson adding that Sorrento and Blairgowrie had houses back from the water which rented for $600 to $700 a week.

``The interesting thing this year is there are more people wanting houses -- but they want them for a shorter period. The Australia Day weekend was once the cutoff point.

``School summer holidays being shorter, however, and the removal of the Australia Day holiday has meant more people are renting only until the third week in January," he said.

Many families with premier houses in Portsea this year have deserted their Portsea homes for the Christmas New Year period, preferring to holiday overseas and allow the houses to attract rent. This rent can turn them from an expensive family indulgence into a tax deductible income opportunity.

This can blunt the blow of annual outgoings including taxes which for many of the best houses have soared past $20,000.

Across the bay at Torquay, holiday rents remain about the same as last year and so do the number of people seeking holiday houses according to local agents.

A three bedroom house in Torquay without a water view would rent this week for about $500 said Jody Ward of Hayden Real Estate in Torquay.

``More people may be looking for holiday houses but they are wanting them for a shorter period. Most just want them for a week or so," she said.

Water views at Torquay will add another $500 a week to the holiday house's rental bill.

At Mornington, the holiday house market has been subsumed by the demand for year round housing. Improved freeway access to the Mornington peninsula has brought former country towns such as Mornington within easy commuting distance of Melbourne.

``We have become more gentrified, more of a dormintory suburb unfortunately," said Allan Caton of Bruce Davis Real Estate Pty. Ltd.

at Mornington.

Most holiday makers heading for Mornington are seeking a two week holiday and paying about the same as they did last year for their holiday rents - ``$300 to $500 for a small house in the bush.

``Bigger houses with a clifftop sea view are renting for up to $2000 a week," said Mr. Caton.

``Some have pools but most rely on the big one at the end of the street which does not have to be maintained by the holidaymaker. Some of the houses have their own beach boxes, too," he added.

``Holidaymakers at Mornington like to get the Christmas week so they can invite their friends down and then they like to take the week after including New Year," he said.

In far eastern Victoria at Lakes Entrance, holiday house rents and numbers are ``about the same as last year", said Garry Henry of King and Heath Real Estate.

Houses with three bedrooms rented for holidays are bringing about $600 a week with waterfront properties renting for $1000 a week during the high Christmas-New Year season.

A little further from Melbourne at Mount Martha, houses back from the beach can be rented for about $200 a week for January - but beach views will always add to weekly costs.

At Lorne, agents noted the improving weather and its resultant lift in demand for holiday accommodation and lifted rents by seven per cent said Ian Stewart of Lorne Real Estate which manages 120 holiday properties.

``You can bet when we have good weather, the phones light up," he said adding that this year's good holiday weather had helped the bookings through January and into February.

For a small holiday flat under a house, the rental being charged in the Lorne area now was about $350 a week.

A new block of four four-bedroom luxury apartments between the main hotel and the pier called the Pier View were renting for the peak Lorne rate of $1350 a week, he said.

``Demand is strong this year and we have only two or three vacant out of the 120 in mid-January," he said.

© 1995 The Age

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