What makes Coburg so popular?

Coburg has been a popular choice for investors and owner-occupiers alike for some time now, but since our floorplan preferences were altered by COVID-19, Coburg’s appeal has been stimulated even more so.

Coburg is just 9km north of our CBD and is home to over 26,000 inhabitants. Postcode 3058 is is often pictured on bustling Sydney Road, but there is so much more to this suburb than traffic congestion, dinging trams and an old bluestone jail.

Our last census recorded Coburg’s next most common countries of birth as follows: Italy 5.7%, Greece 2.8%, Lebanon 2.4%, England 2.2% and Nepal 1.8%. 58.3% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Italian 9.1%, Greek 6.3%, Arabic 5.7%, Mandarin 2.0% and Nepali 1.9%, (source: Wikipedia). This illustrates a wonderful diversity in our inner-north community.

It is little wonder that the cuisine options in Coburg are so exciting.

Coburg offers more “double fronted” houses than it’s southern counterparts, and this is an important insight into the recent capital growth of the suburb. The inner-northern suburbs within closer proximity to our CBD do offer family-sized homes, but not in the same abundance as Coburg does.

Brunswick and Fitzroy feature a lot more 2BR “single fronted” houses and cottages as a proportion of total house blocks, and as a direct reflection of the scarcity of such a product, (and the higher relative land values) the prices are substantially higher for a 3 or 4BR family home in these locations.

Coburg’s offering of 3BR single and double fronted, family homes has bought this eclectic suburb to the fore in recent years and the rising popularity of additional bedrooms/studies since COVID has thrust this suburb onto the wish-list for many couples and families alike.

Coburg’s history is relatively easy to pick despite the prevalence of 1960’s brick homes that replaced period Victorian housing back in the day. Pentridge Prison was built long before the turn of the twentieth century and the city experienced rapid growth and subdivision activity around the time of Federation. From Victorian era to Californian bungalows and post war architecture, beautiful streetscapes and superb houses can be spotted in so many of Coburg’s leafy suburban streets.

This beautiful brick Edwardian below was an exciting auction to bid at. Competition was tough and we had to fight hard for the keys. Standing proud in a street with a beautiful, and diverse range of period houses spanning some fifty years characterises this happy streetscape as so-very-Coburg.

Competition is tough, bidding activity is hefty and emotions are high when it comes to nailing a purchase in Coburg. This four bedroom gem below was a happy off-market acquisition for a family who had experienced some auction disappointment in the finale of 2020.

Being prepped with pre-approval and a preparedness to bid is just one advantage a buyer can have.

But being ready for an auction to be ‘bought forward’ is an important tip.

With uncertainty around our third COVID-19 lockdown (and subsequent lockdowns, border closures and work from home directives), we believe that Coburg will remain a popular choice for many buyers through 2021 and beyond.

We often hear the term “south of Bell”, but that request is fading fast as buyers discover the beautiful streetscapes on offer in the northern stretches of Coburg too.