4 Balgonie Place, Northcote VIC 3070

It’s not without sadness I say good-bye to this property that for over the last 12 years has been both a great home and a successful investment. At the time I bought the house, High St was an emerging area with cafes and restaurants popping up. I would wander down the road and get coffee in Westgarth most mornings and at night could head to the Wesley Anne or Northcote Social club for a gig or grab some pizza at cafe Meine Liebe. The location was extremely convenient and walkable from doing my groceries at the plaza or taking my dog for a walk at All Nations Park or a longer run down along Merri Creek.

I quickly learned this was a great neighbourhood and consider myself lucky to have bought in this area. An enduring and unmeasurable quality of the area is that you will always be greeted with a friendly hello by a neighbour. Balgonie Place is a great little community and with recent new home owners moving in and renovating, the street is going from strength to strength.

While loving this Northcote style of living, my work took me to Sydney where the house then became an incredible investment property. The house has always been continuously occupied with tenants, brought in a great rental return and the capital growth continues to be very strong. My first tenants were a mother and her son who lived in the property for 5 years. The second tenants, a young couple in their late 20s made the house their home for over 4 years. They took to everything Northcote had to offer and remain in the neighbourhood only moving out after I returned to move back to the property after 10 years in Sydney.

Returning to 4 Balgonie Place, I still can’t believe how many cool cafés, bars and restaurants are within reach. It is not just the quantity of the places but also the diversity and quality that surprises me. Estelle bistro restaurant, Tinker, Red Door, All Are Welcome Café, Joe’s Shoe Store and Buck Mulligan’s bar are establishments as good as you’ll find anywhere in Melbourne.

Since I returned to the property, I have enjoyed updating the house with modern updates while still holding its character and charm. The bedrooms are spacious and the kitchen dining area allows you to cook and chat to your guests at the same time. The living space is cosy, and a great room to watch some TV with a glass of red wine in winter.

So it’s with mixed emotions the time has come to hand over the keys to a lucky couple or astute investor. I trust whoever is the next owner of 4 Balgonie Place will love the home as much as I have.

Points of interest:

• Stays cool in summer even without turning on the air conditioner.
• Heating in the front and back of the house keeps the place warm and toasty in winter.
• Amazing coffee at the Espresso Alley cafe on the corner of Balgonie just around the corner.
• The shower has strong water flow that you won’t find in newer houses.
• The courtyard has a calming water feature with pump that flows water into a little fish pond below.
• When travelling interstate or overseas, the courtyard has been a great place to leave my car
• A friendly and safe neighbourhood with many great people in the street who will even put my bin out when I am away.