Let’s be real – it’s hard to find houses in inner-city Melbourne for under a million dollars. Even derelict abodes are fetching staggering prices come auction day.

This includes 83 Westgarth Street in Northcote, which is currently listed for $1.5-$1.6million.

Frank Valentic, buyer’s advocate and director at Advantage Property, shows us exactly why homes like this sell for such a pretty price. Just a hint – it’s not the floral carpet adding the dollar signs.

“One of the reasons this house is worth $1.5-$1.6 million is the size of the land. It’s sitting on 658 square metres of prime blue-chip land in the heart of Northcote,” Valentic says.

This is the first time in 46 years that the north-facing house has been on the market. It’s made up of three bedrooms and one bathroom, not to mention a massive backyard and is begging for a new lease on life – or a knock down.

The second – and perhaps most important – factor is the location.

“83 Westgarth is just a few steps to a bus stop, 100m from the train station and only moments away from Westgarth shopping district,” says Valentic.

Property in Northcote is always in demand – located just 15 minutes from Melbourne’s CBD and near good restaurants, schools and public transport, it will continue to attract buyers’ attention. It’s predominantly a seller’s market with demand being more than four times the state median of 2,158 property views per listing.

The median house price is the area is $1.35 million, which means 83 Westgarth is just a bit over that.

So, despite its condition, when the home does go to auction on Saturday 13 October, you can bet there will be some high bids in the mix – because really what matters with this property is not the condition, but the prime position and development potential.