Anton

Hi everyone.

I just moved to Clarkson and I absolutely love it, but first of all, let’s go back a few years. Let’s start from Kenwick 10 years ago.

You will ask, what does Kenwick have to do with Clarkson? Well, it has to do with the opinions of other people.

When I bought my first house, I was looking around and found a 2,000-square-meter block in Kenwick with a classic red brick house built in the 70s. I was absolutely in love with this house and placed an offer for $315,000. I went there and was super happy.

When I went back to work in Applecross, I told my friends I bought the house. Everybody said the same thing: Kenwick has plenty of criminals and plenty of people that can rob you and do bad things to you.

So, I withdrew my offer and lost my deposit, which was probably only $1,000.

Then I bought in another suburb north of the river, a small strata block for $400,000, which to be honest I was very happy with.

Now that house is worth $850,000 or maybe $900,000. However, I looked a few days ago and the block in Kenwick is now worth $1.5 million.

Just to let you know, yes, it’s true you might want to listen to people, but you really should go to the suburb and have a walk.

Yes, it’s true for Clarkson as well.

Here is what I like and what I don't like.

What I like
• The neighbours: I read a bad review from another guy about bad neighbours, but bad neighbours can be anywhere.

Let me give you an example. In my old house north of the river, I had a family of Kiwis nearby. By the way, they were the only ones that brought me a cake when I moved there with my family and they said, "Welcome to the neighbourhood." It was absolutely amazing. The block was very big, probably 900 meters or something like this. What happened is they subdivided it into two houses for two new owners.

I cannot talk about one because he was not there, but the one that was close to me was extremely arrogant. He was always screaming with his wife and the police were involved. So it’s really not the suburb, but who you have nearby.

• The neighbourhood: I bought my house near Hester Avenue. It is an established place where pretty much all the people in the area are 50+ and have been living there for 10, 20, or 30 years. I feel perfectly safe and nobody bothers me.

• Block size: my area is over 800sqm, it is a bit wider compared to new areas where the houses are a bit more packed.

The upside is you really have a big block, which you cannot really find anymore in a place like Morley for under a million. I love gardening and I am very happy.

• House over investment: I paid quite a lot of money for the house because I focused on a larger block with an older house compared to a very small block with a brand-new house. As you know, houses depreciate over time, but land always appreciates.

I’m not really thinking of selling or doing anything; I just wanted a house. I think people are too focused on investing. Even if this house goes to $1 if the market crashes, I don't care because I still always need a place to live.

• Facilities and nature: Another beautiful thing for sure is the area has plenty of parks, the beach is very close, and I personally love to walk. You also have the Ocean Keys Shopping Centre nearby.

• Local services: There are plenty of facilities. Even now in 2026, if you don't have a car, you can look around for people that can take you to the airport at any time for $70, or $80.

What I don't like
• Going to the city: If you have to go to the city, it takes forever. However, I moved to Perth 20 years ago and I've been to the city probably six times just for job interviews. So, I don't really go to the city.

• Train station access: If you want to take the train, you can just take the train. But my house for example is on the other side of the train station, which means you have to walk a bit. Realistically, you just have to take a taxi or something to get there.

• The noise: The only thing I am not happy about is the noise. The street is pretty busy, a bit like Walter Road West or Benara Road.

You might hear a couple of guys with modified engines and things like that, so that’s the downside.

Conclusion
Break-ins can happen anywhere, so you just put cameras or roller shutters if that’s your concern.

It’s very easy to rent a house north of the river (like Eden Hill or Bassendean) or even south of the river (like Victoria Park or Belmont) and maybe in Clarkson you will have less people looking for a room if you want to rent some space in the future.

Again, you really have to consider what you want. If you want something more quiet and less crowded, I really like the area.

I was also looking at Bullsbrook and Lower Chittering, but those areas are further compared to Clarkson. Also, in some of those areas with a lot of trees, the Shire will not allow you to cut them down.

You really have to consider safety and a lot of other things.

If Clarkson is what you like, just go there, have a walk, rent an airb&b maybe for a week and make up your mind.

Happy buying and ciao 🇮🇹