locals wont admit it .... northern beachs

cut and paste... ;-)

Thirty years ago the northern beaches of Sydney, an area known to locals as The Peninsula, was not a notably affluent area. Perhaps with the exception of a few grand waterfront dwellings at Palm Beach. But today the once working class population has been elbowed out as new money has chased the dream of living wedged between Pittwater and the ocean. Property prices have soared as a new class of aspiring Australians have gobbled up every available address, bringing with them mortgages their parents would never have been wide-eyed enough to contemplate. And at the very peak of The Peninsula, those who have made a killing in recent years in property or on the stock market, have stretched the budget just enough to acquire a certain pinnacle of status - the holiday house.


To service the nouveaux there have sprung up fancy eateries and beauty parlours, replacing the milk bars and bait shops of yesteryear. Peninsula people like to eat out and sport their latest dos. There are a plethora of real estate agents on hand to welcome along the next northern beach aspirant.


Or at least there was.


It was reported yesterday in the local rag - the Manly Daily - that at least two estate agencies have been forced to close altogether in the area. Six estate agents have been forced to sell their own houses. How different life has suddenly become from 2007 to 2008.


Restaurateurs are reporting an increasing incidence of "quiet" nights and an increasing prevalence for patrons to share meals. Hairdressers are noting that what once might have been six weeks between touch-ups is now eight. One Avalon beauty parlour owner noted that locals have turned to looking after only their needs, at the expense of "luxurious pampering".


There is a growing incidence of mortgagee sales, and a growing incidence of sales intended to beat foreclosure. Locals won't admit it, but it is suspected house prices on the Peninsula are now lower than they were six months ago.


This might be Sydney's northern beaches, but it could be a lot more places in Australia at present.