Ep. 54 | Turnkey, Renovate or Build: Which Strategy Actually Works in 2025?

Melbourne’s property market has split into three distinct worlds. Turnkey homes are selling fast with buyers paying premiums for certainty. Unrenovated properties are sitting longer with buyers demanding heavy discounts. Build sites are only attracting committed buyers with deep pockets. With construction costs volatile, renovation budgets blowing out, and banks tightening lending, buyers are paying a premium for one thing: certainty.In this episode of Buying Melbourne, Tristan Larkin and James Rankin break down why Melbourne isn’t one market anymore—it’s three. They explore why turnkey properties command premiums while unrenovated homes struggle, and why building from scratch has become a strategy for buyers with strong cash buffers and high risk tolerance. With clearance rates declining seven straight weeks to 48.4% and the premium market underperforming at 42.42%, the differences in buyer behavior across these three markets have never been clearer.Tristan and James discuss why renovation maths no longer stacks up, how finance constraints are reshaping buyer affordability, and why “potential” doesn’t sell properties anymore. They also cover December market dynamics where buyers face less competition.What You’ll Learn:How Melbourne’s market has split into three segments—turnkey homes, unrenovated properties, and build sites—each with different buyer behaviorWhy turnkey homes see strong competition and premiums while unrenovated homes face longer campaigns and heavy negotiationWhy renovation maths no longer works: labour shortages, material inflation, builder insolvencies, and holding costsHow informed buyers are padding renovation budgets by hundreds of thousands and walking away if discounts don’t compensate for riskWhy building from scratch only works for buyers with long time horizons, strong cash buffers, and high risk toleranceWhy presentation matters more than ever for sellers, with buyers being ruthless and “potential” no longer enoughHow clearance rates dropped seven consecutive weeks from 61.1% to 48.4%, with premium market underperforming at 42.42%If you’re deciding whether to buy turnkey, renovate, or build in 2025, this episode breaks down the real costs, risks, and market dynamics of each strategy.