By NOEL MURPHY
PROPERTY owners thinking about selling to developers as Geelong bulges at the edges need independent advice to avoid being exploited, a property insider has told the Independent.
Prices offered to farmers and other land-owners could be as little as a third of their actual worth, former real estate agent Tony McManus said.
“The risk is that if property owner has a bit of dirt that’s in a growth corridor the value may not be apparent up front,” he said.
“The risk is they’ll be seduced by a price offered by a developer but get screwed on the terms and conditions.”
Mr McManus said previous perceptions of where the city’s boundaries were, such as the ring road, were outdated amid Geelong’s fast growth.
“The ring road actually opens a lot of opportunity on the other side and there are pockets all over Geelong where land-owners might be approached by developers,” the former Lara real estate agent said.
Mr McManus cautioned owners considering selling to developers to beware of what might “look like a good price up front” if they failed to understand terms and conditions attached to the sale.
“Today’s prices might be dragged out over a three or four-year contract that might be subject to rezoning or feasibility studies – conditions where the developer is taking the risk out of the deal.
“The worst one is probably just dragging it out over a period of time, like maybe subject to settlement when the rezoning comes through, which, if the rezoning’s say four years out, means what looks like a reasonable price today can eventually look really cheap.
“I’ve seen a bit of that happen over the years.”
Mr McManus urged prospective vendors to obtain independent advice about their land’s value, “probably by a sworn valuer”.
“The bottom line is a developer won’t go up to a landholder and offer them a premium for the land. They’re more likely going to be offering a discount, so it’s really important for an independent third party to do an assessment on behalf of the land owner.”
