5 great tools when house hunting
The Home Search Series
Realestate.com.au and domain.com.au SOLD section
The two leading online platforms for listings. Always recommend researching both. Not all properties will appear on both portals. When researching the type of home you can buy in any given area, head straight to the SOLD section of these websites and type in your criteria, including budget, location and type of home. Part of the search asks you for a specific time frame, and depending on the market volatility, generally, 3 months would be a good indicator although you may not get a bid enough selection in which case, open it up to sic months. This is a great sense check for what you can buy within your budget in any given area and may (or may not) require you to reset parameters and expectations.
microburbs.com.au
Great free tool offering an abundance of information on any given area/suburb. You tube has a few videos dedicated to how to make the best use of this tool. for data fans (like us) you can certainly go down a rabbit hole of information including public housing, crime rates and demographic data.,
NOKK.com.au or Listingsloop.com.au
NOKK claims to be the number one off-market portal. It allows users to use its extensive database to ‘NOKK (virtually knock)’ on the door of home owners who may be interested in selling their property. It offers you the ability to invite them to a conversation about selling their home. An interesting proposition with varied degrees of success. The tighter the brief, the better the outcome,.
Listing Loop claims much the same, that it’s a listing portal for off market properties.
Local council websites
A wealth of information is available form planning permits, to zoning regulations, flood maps, fire zones, planning schemes, and commercial activation plans. Or simply call them, and ask for their urban planning or building department with the address of the home you’re interested in and they’re generally very helpful with any information about zoning changes in the area to be aware of, any infrastructure plans, overlays to be aware of and on occasion, easements on a property.
Walkscore.com
A fun website. Type in the address of the property you’re interested in and it will give you a score out of 100 for walkability to transport, amenities etc. Play around on the website for more detailed information.