Do the races affect Flemington real estate?

With such high proximity to Australia’s premier racecourse, Flemington residents are in a pretty unique position during the Spring Racing Carnival. The suburb explodes with activity and people living there find themselves rubbing shoulders with as many as 120,000 extra people over the course of a few days.

Like the AFL Grand Final, these sorts of sporting events have a huge impact on the property market and will have flow-on effects for anyone looking at real estate in Melbourne. We spoke to Jayson Watts, Partner and Auctioneer at the Flemington Nelson Alexander office about how the market reacts.

Building around the events – not on them

While events like the Spring Racing Carnival bring a lot of activity to the local area, it isn’t necessarily good for house hunters.

“Any one of the carnival events can bring between 70,000 and 120,000 people to the area, which makes places like Ascot Vale Road and Epsom Road a nightmare,” Jayson said.

“It means buyers can’t get in, so we don’t manage campaigns or start them during this time.”

This goes to show just how big an impact certain events in the Melbourne calendar can have on the property market. It’s also handy to know if you’ve been eyeing up Flemington as one of the best suburbs to buy across Melbourne!

Opportunity still exists

However, just because an event like the Spring Racing Carnival and Melbourne Cup can congest and dominate a region, it doesn’t mean there’s no property around. This is something Jayson noted regarding the recent AFL Grand Final long weekend.

“Not everyone’s interested in the Grand Final,” he said. “On the Sunday we saw a lot of genuine buyers coming out with consistent numbers. Of course the Saturday was quieter but we still kept a lot of homes open.

You’ve also got to remember the Grand Final weekend is one where people gather and watch the match at home, or around the city and MCG – Flemington emerges relatively unscathed in terms of traffic and congestion.

Do these events impact other weekends?

While there can be big changes to listings due to big sports events in Melbourne, the market always bounces back. Jayson says the weekends of November 14th, 21st and 28th will be very busy for auctions, as people look to wrap up a sale before Christmas.

“At that time, there’s some urgency among buyers to get a house. If they don’t get one by Derby weekend or early December then they won’t be able to secure a home until late January or early February,” Jayson says.

With auctions as late as December 19, there’s plenty of opportunity for people to buy great real estate in Flemington. That being said, it’s important to be on your toes and aware of the big events that will impact listings. Strike when the activity is buzzing, and do it with our expert help for a great result!