Smithfield, SA 5114Home loan and property guide

Smithfield location and character

Smithfield lies on the northern outskirts of Adelaide within the City of Playford. Main North Road forms its eastern boundary, where service stations, the historic Smithfield Hotel and several other businesses and private residences are located. Anderson Walk marks the southern boundary of the original township village, which was subdivided by John Smith and arranged in a grid with Augusta Square at its centre.

That grid distinguishes Smithfield from the surrounding suburbs, which were laid out either by the Housing Trust in the 1950s and 1960s or by private developers from the 1990s onward. The original village survives as a recognisable pattern of streets, and the Smithfield Hotel remains a landmark on Main North Road.

West of the older residential area is an industrial zone along the railway line, and there are further residential areas south and west of the station. An Army Reserve depot sits west of the shopping centre and is home to the 3rd/9th Light Horse, the South Australian Mounted Rifles, and 49 ACU Army Cadets. Munno Para Shopping City lies on the south side of Smith Creek.

Transport and amenity in Smithfield

Smithfield railway station is on the Gawler line, on the south side of Anderson Walk. The line has 27 stations and first opened to Gawler in 1857 and to Gawler Central in 1911. It was closed on 24 December 2020 for electrification and reopened on 12 June 2022, with a federal grant of $220 million funding the second stage of the works, which had begun in November 2019.

Most services are now operated by 4000 class electric trains, the last of which was delivered in December 2023, replacing the diesel railcars that previously served Adelaide's north. Having a station within the suburb distinguishes Smithfield from several of its neighbours in the northern growth corridor.

Munno Para Shopping City, immediately south across Smith Creek, is the principal retail centre for the district. Main North Road carries traffic north and south, and the Northern Expressway to the west provides a faster route to and from the city. Schools operate in the suburb and its neighbours, and this guide does not describe school zones, which the Department for Education can confirm.

Housing stock in Smithfield

Housing spans the suburb's long history. The original township grid retains older cottages and houses, while the areas south and west of the station include Housing Trust era detached homes and semi-detached dwellings from the mid twentieth century, together with later infill townhouses and a small number of units.

At the 2021 Census, 728 of the 906 occupied private dwellings were separate houses, 173 were semi-detached or townhouse dwellings and 10 were flats or apartments, so houses made up 80.4 per cent of occupied homes against 72.3 per cent nationally, while attached dwellings accounted for 19.1 per cent against 12.6 per cent. Three-bedroom homes dominated at 640.

Inspections in stock of this age commonly consider footings on reactive clay soils, roof and gutter condition, original wiring and plumbing, and asbestos-containing materials in dwellings built before the 1980s. Properties near the industrial zone along the railway may also raise questions about past land use, which a conveyancer can pursue.

Who lives and buys in Smithfield

The 2021 Census counted 2,482 residents in Smithfield, with a median age of 35 against 38 for Australia and an average household size of 2.5 people, matching the national figure. The largest age groups were children aged 5 to 14 at 354, adults aged 25 to 34 at 347, 45 to 54 at 291 and 35 to 44 at 289, a fairly even spread.

Renting accounts for half of households. The Census recorded 443 rented dwellings, 286 owned with a mortgage and 142 owned outright, so 50.0 per cent of households with a stated tenure rented, 32.3 per cent had a mortgage and 16.0 per cent owned outright, against 30.6 per cent renting nationally. Median weekly household income was $1,049 against $1,746, median weekly rent was $260 against $375, and median monthly mortgage repayments were $1,100 against $1,863.

For a buyer, this is an affordable market where the presence of a station within the suburb is unusual at this price level. First home buyers and investors are the main purchasers. At 906 occupied dwellings the suburb is small, so listings in any given period are comparatively few, which can limit choice and comparable sales evidence.

Planning and local factors in Smithfield

Zoning and overlays come from the state-wide Planning and Design Code, which replaced council development plans in March 2021, and can be viewed for any address through the South Australian Property and Planning Atlas. Because the suburb combines an historic township grid, a Housing Trust era area and an industrial zone, the applicable zone varies considerably from street to street.

The industrial zone along the railway line west of the older residential area is the most significant local land use. Properties close to it may be affected by noise and traffic, and valuers sometimes note the difference between a street facing the industrial area and one within the residential grid.

Smith Creek runs on the southern side of the suburb towards Munno Para Shopping City, so stormwater and flood behaviour is a local consideration and mapped overlays may apply in parts of that corridor. Buyers may wish to check the mapped position of a specific address.

Buying in Smithfield under South Australian contract law

A South Australian vendor must serve a Form 1 vendor's statement. The Law Handbook published by the Legal Services Commission describes it as disclosing mortgages and encumbrances, planning zone and overlay information and recent transfers, and as explaining cooling-off rights, while cautioning that many matters affecting enjoyment of a home need not be disclosed.

The purchaser generally has two clear business days from service of the Form 1 to cool off by written notice, and no cooling-off applies at auction. Contracts are often made subject to finance, and the clause should specify when approval is due. A conveyancer normally manages settlement, stamp duty is payable on the transfer, and first home buyer duty relief in South Australia applies to new homes only.

Home loan considerations for Smithfield property

Detached houses and townhouses on standard titles are accepted security. Because the suburb is small and its housing varied, comparable sales evidence can be thinner than in the larger estate suburbs nearby, so valuations are somewhat less predictable and a valuer may look to adjoining suburbs for evidence.

Two matters can affect lending. Where a property adjoins or faces the industrial zone, a valuer may note the effect on value and some lenders take a more conservative view of security close to industrial land. As in the other former Housing Trust areas of the district, some lenders apply a lower maximum loan-to-value ratio, so buyers borrowing a high share of the price may wish to confirm the position before making an offer.

Lending considerations for Smithfield

• The suburb is small, with 906 occupied dwellings at the 2021 Census, so comparable sales evidence can be thin.
• An industrial zone runs along the railway line, and lenders and valuers may take a more conservative view of security nearby.
• Some lenders apply a lower maximum loan-to-value ratio in areas with a high concentration of former public housing.
• Renting accounted for half of households with a stated tenure, so many purchases are investment lending.
• Stormwater and flood overlays may apply in parts of the Smith Creek corridor on the southern side.

Lender policy differs between institutions and changes over time. The guide to Australian lenders explains how credit policy varies, and the home loan guide sets out the main loan structures.