Sydney’s falling property market has a surprising twist – unit prices in several key suburbs have crossed the $1m median mark for the first time, despite values falling across most of the market, new data shows.
Surging demand for more affordable homes, driven by interest rate hikes and the federal government’s First Home Guarantee scheme, has pushed more buyers into the lower-priced end of the market, lifting unit medians in many areas.
While prices are declining across 75 per cent of the market, the cheapest 25 per cent is proving more resilient.
Analysis by Reventon and Hotspotting found 365 markets were added to the national list of suburbs with million-dollar medians over the past year.
Reventon CEO Chris Christofi said NSW topped the list with 717 suburbs with million-dollar medians (103 of those were unit markets).
“These figures show that far from slowing down, the number of million-dollar markets continues to rise, with an additional 365 markets added to the list in the past 12 months,” Mr Christofi said.
52/2-4 Purser Avenue, Castle Hill recently sold for $1.11m
28/67 Cowper Wharf Road, Woolloomooloo recently sold for $1.125m
The million-dollar median for units became the norm across many Sydney suburbs over the past year including Woolloomooloo ($1.25m), Heathcote ($1.21m), Revesby ($1.15m), Dee Why ($1.09) and Castle Hill ($1.08m).
Hotspotting founder Terry Ryder said there were still plenty of opportunities for investors to find markets that were set to tip over into million-dollar markets.
“They are the markets where price growth has been steady in recent years and where demand remains strong,” he said.
“With that trajectory set to continue, these markets will soon breach the million- dollar barrier.
“They are also strong markets for investors, where rents have been rising, yields are solid and vacancy rates are low.”
Brighton –Le-Sands was spotlighted as a hotspot set to tip into the million dollar territory, with a median unit price of $925,000.
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15/13 Princess Street, Brighton-Le-Sands recently sold for $1.135m
The report pointed to the region meeting growing demand for affordable apartments in near-city locations, with significantly more apartments approved for construction than freestanding houses over the past 20 years.
“Momentum is building in the Bayside LGA, particularly the popular suburbs of Botany and Brighton-Le-Sands,” Mr Reventon said.
“The median unit price rose 16.2% in the past 12 months and if that pace of growth continues, it will surpass the million-dollar median mark within the next 12 months.”
Another suburb below the unit million dollar median is Wentworth Point, at $745,000.
Sydneysider Lily Orminsby and her partner Gerhard Merrick recently purchased an apartment in Wentworth Point towards the start of the year for $925,000, just below the million dollar median.
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Gerhard Merrick and Lily Ormsby. Picture Thomas Lisson
“It was a little bit more than we wanted to pay but the market was really competitive still at the time we bought,” Ms Orminsby said.
Previously renting in the area and later moving closer to the city, Ms Orminsby has now returned to the suburb with her partner.
“It’s really nice to walk around by the water and all of the parklands and I just found it really convenient, so I suggested it to my partner when we were looking to buy,” she said.
Mr Merrick said the properties were a higher quality than those of the same price in the Inner West, where they had been searching prior.
“For what you could spend to buy a house, the apartments are much more appealing,” he said.
“Especially for first home buyers,” Ms Orminsby added.
“All the houses are in a multimillion range, it’s a bit easier to get into the apartment market first and then move towards a house in the future”
Mr Merrick and Ms Ormsby said affordability was one of the driving factors for their purchase in the suburb. Picture Thomas Lisson
McGrath Strathfield Agent Ania Aquino said Wentworth Point’s appeal factors its convenient location close to Parramatta, the West Connex and the Macquarie Park district.
“We’re seeing that a lot of buyers are enjoying that central position,” she said.
“There’s a mix in Wentworth Point of high rise and low density, but ultimately the buyers are coming here for the lifestyle aspect.”
She added the highest demographic buying into the suburb, according to the last census, were those between 35 to 45 years of age.
“Young urban professionals, say a young couple will come here like Lily and her partner, they fall in love with the area, they establish a network, then they upsize.”
