A Touch of Magic at this Beautiful Period Cottage
Just 55 minutes from Sydney, make this your creative getaway located in the majestic Hawkesbury region.
2 min
Sometimes in life, beauty can be found in the most obscure places. In the case of 35 North Street, Windsor, well, everything about this beautifully restored leafy cottage is enticing… and enchanting. Located in the heart of Windsor, NSW—an original Australian settlement town—this three-level weatherboard and split-slab cottage and barn is, more or less, straight out of a fairytale movie.
Built in the 1860s and carefully restored, this period home is the epitome of charm and character with subtle nuances that not only hark back to its rich history, but will present as an attractive oasis for the modern day home owner.
Once owned by Australian artist, Greg Hansell, you can see its ties to creativity – a space where, as the current owner did, one can immerse themselves in the bubble of creativity afforded by the “peace of house, barn and garden.” Surrounded by colonial-era buildings including one that should present familiar if you were a fan of A Country Practice series, you’ll feel a world away from the hustle and bustle of Sydney’s CBD. Yet, you’re only 55 minutes away.
The home is set on a large 638 sqm block, and features scalloped timber fretwork and handmade timber shutters throughout, original hardwood floors, including tongue-and-groove boards, as well as hand-crafted interior and exterior detailings. Head up the dainty wooden stairs to discover a sun-filled loft-style living room and library with vaulted timber ceiling – an ideal setting to “indulge in creative pursuits” or simply relax and unwind as you look out to views over the luscious north-facing cottage garden and barn. The cottage features two light-filled bedrooms and one bathroom, with potential to expand or further renovate.
“It’s most beautiful in the autumn and winter seasons,” says its current owner. “I think there’s something very magical about this property. And really, it’s about not being too big but not being too small, so it’s perfect for entertaining and hosting guests all-year round.”
The rustic kitchen, with its handmade bricks, hardwood beams and working fireplace that heats the whole home, is a beautiful communal space to entertain family and guests alike. This is a great opportunity for a family home or as a second residence for a true escape to the country.
The property will be auctioned on April 13 and has a price guide of $1.6million.
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Address: 35 North Street, Windsor NSW
Price guide: Contact agent
Auction: April 13, 2024
Agent: Kon Stathopoulos, 0400 124 518 & Alastair Kivell, 0411 207 468, at McGrath Hawkesbury
This stylish family home combines a classic palette and finishes with a flexible floorplan
Just 55 minutes from Sydney, make this your creative getaway located in the majestic Hawkesbury region.
This may be contributing to continually rising weekly rents
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There has been a substantial increase in the number of Australians earning high incomes who are renting their homes instead of owning them, and this may be another element contributing to higher market demand and continually rising rents, according to new research.
The portion of households with an annual income of $140,000 per year (in 2021 dollars), went from 8 percent of the private rental market in 1996 to 24 percent in 2021, according to research by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI). The AHURI study highlights that longer-term declines in the rate of home ownership in Australia are likely the cause of this trend.
The biggest challenge this creates is the flow-on effect on lower-income households because they may face stronger competition for a limited supply of rental stock, and they also have less capacity to cope with rising rents that look likely to keep going up due to the entrenched undersupply.
The 2024 ANZ CoreLogic Housing Affordability Report notes that weekly rents have been rising strongly since the pandemic and are currently re-accelerating. “Nationally, annual rent growth has lifted from a recent low of 8.1 percent year-on-year in October 2023, to 8.6 percent year-on-year in March 2024,” according to the report. “The re-acceleration was particularly evident in house rents, where annual growth bottomed out at 6.8 percent in the year to September, and rose to 8.4 percent in the year to March 2024.”
Rents are also rising in markets that have experienced recent declines. “In Hobart, rent values saw a downturn of -6 percent between March and October 2023. Since bottoming out in October, rents have now moved 5 percent higher to the end of March, and are just 1 percent off the record highs in March 2023. The Canberra rental market was the only other capital city to see a decline in rents in recent years, where rent values fell -3.8 percent between June 2022 and September 2023. Since then, Canberra rents have risen 3.5 percent, and are 1 percent from the record high.”
The Productivity Commission’s review of the National Housing and Homelessness Agreement points out that high-income earners also have more capacity to relocate to cheaper markets when rents rise, which creates more competition for lower-income households competing for homes in those same areas.
ANZ CoreLogic notes that rents in lower-cost markets have risen the most in recent years, so much so that the portion of earnings that lower-income households have to dedicate to rent has reached a record high 54.3 percent. For middle-income households, it’s 32.2 percent and for high-income households, it’s just 22.9 percent. ‘Housing stress’ has long been defined as requiring more than 30 percent of income to put a roof over your head.
While some high-income households may aspire to own their own homes, rising property values have made that a difficult and long process given the years it takes to save a deposit. ANZ CoreLogic data shows it now takes a median 10.1 years in the capital cities and 9.9 years in regional areas to save a 20 percent deposit to buy a property.
It also takes 48.3 percent of income in the cities and 47.1 percent in the regions to cover mortgage repayments at today’s home loan interest rates, which is far greater than the portion of income required to service rents at a median 30.4 percent in cities and 33.3 percent in the regions.
Consumers are going to gravitate toward applications powered by the buzzy new technology, analyst Michael Wolf predicts
Just 55 minutes from Sydney, make this your creative getaway located in the majestic Hawkesbury region.
