Million-dollar windfalls: 30 suburbs where homeowners have hit the property jackpot

Property values have soared in these suburbs in the past three years, with owners still sitting on seven-figure gains despite last year’s downturn.

Most of the 30 suburbs are in Sydney’s eastern and northern suburbs — some of the priciest real estate markets in Australia — and all have a median sale price of more than $2.5 million over the past 12 months.

The majority are beachside or waterfront suburbs, while many others are just a stone’s throw away from the harbour or the ocean.

PropTrack senior economist Angus Moore said homes in more expensive areas tend to see more price volatility.

"They’ll grow by more when prices are going up, but on the flipside, they'll also fall by more when prices are falling," Mr Moore said.

"We saw that last year, the more expensive areas saw larger price falls, but we’re seeing that this year, more expensive areas are leading the recovery."

Where prices have risen by more than $1 million in three years:

House prices rose the most in Vaucluse, where the median sale price increased by more than $3 million over the past three years, rising from $5.5m to $8.6m.

This 1100sqm Vaucluse property with water views sold for more than $16m last year – about double the suburb's median price. Picture:realestate.com.au/sold

---

Vaucluse was one of several pricey suburbs in Sydney’s east where values surged, with the nearby suburbs of Dover Heights, Bellevue Hill and Rose Bay also posting huge gains

While that median represents the middle value of all sales, some properties sold for much more, with dozens of sales above $10 million in the past year.

The exclusive pocket of Sydney attracted wealthy buyers seeking luxury properties with harbour views and proximity to well-regarded private schools, said real estate agent Graham Berman of Ray White Double Bay.

"In areas like Rose Bay, which is very much a highly sought-after suburb, now it's been driven by a lot of foreign clients buying into the area," he said. "That goes for Dover Heights and Vaucluse as well."

Even at the top end of the market, low supply and high demand had supported price growth, Mr Berman said.

This striking modern mansion in Toorak sold for $5.92m, a little higher than the suburb's median price. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold

---

Toorak, the most expensive suburb in Victoria, was the only Melbourne suburb where the median house price rose by more than $1 million.

While Victoria is home to many multi-million dollar suburbs, price growth in Melbourne has lagged behind Sydney, Mr Moore said.

"We just haven't seen as strong price growth in Melbourne across the past few years as we have seen in many other parts of the country," he said.

"In that environment where price growth has been slower, we wouldn't expect to see as many strong performing suburbs."

This five-bedroom Tuscan style Cottesloe home only metres from the beach recently sold for $3.4m, a little higher than the suburb median. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold

---

Cottesloe, the second-most expensive suburb in Western Australia, was the only other suburb outside NSW with $1 million-plus price growth over the past three years.

Only one regional suburb, Burradoo in the NSW southern highlands, achieved more than $1 million of price growth.

Even though Burradoo's median price rose more than $1 million over the past three years, buyers still get a lot land for their money. This four-bedroom home on almost an acre of land recently sold for $2.9m. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold

---

Most of these suburbs already had a high price tag three years ago, and while values in some suburbs grew roughly in line with the wider market, others outperformed.

House prices rose 66% in Putney, 62% in Glenhaven and 61% in Woollahra. These growth rates are among some of the most rapid price increases of all Australian suburbs over the same period.

Putney's median house price over the past 12 months was $3.42m, but this five-bedroom home just a short stroll from the water recently sold for $4.92m. Picture: realestate.com.au/buy

---

But the standout performer was Sylvania Waters, a waterfront suburb in Sydney’s south, where the median house price almost doubled from $1.6m to $3.15m in three years.

Sylvania Waters real estate agent Dave Watkins of DJW Property said the market was normally dominated by local buyers, but more people were drawn to the area during the pandemic.

Built on reclaimed land, many homes in Sylvania Waters feature deep waterfront mooring facilities, like this four-bedroom home that recently sold for $4.6m. Picture: realestate.com.au/buy

---

"Covid did have a major effect on our market," he said. "We found a lot of people were coming down from city suburbs. That really spurred the low to mid range of the market."

"It is a very tightly held market. There's never more than three to five waterfronts on offer at any one given time."

"The absolute knockdowns in the canals are selling in the mid $3 millions, and you can’t even live in them."

Buyers looking for high-end waterfront properties tended to be less at the mercy of rising interest rates, Mr Watkins said.

"Generally, buyers that come through, they're cashed up or not borrowing so much from the bank, so it’s not really affecting the waterfront market as much," he said.

Mr Moore said this was likely the case for a lot of buyers in pricey suburbs.

"For some of those ultra-premium suburbs, buyers spending $6 or $7 million on a home are going to look a bit different from buyers in a more typical suburb," he said. 

"Most of those buyers are going to be coming at that property with significant wealth."

Suburbs with a small number of sales in the past year were excluded because too few sales can cause significant volatility in the median price.

Originally published at: https://www.realestate.com.au/news/million-dollar-windfalls-30-suburbs-where-homeowners-have-hit-the-property-jackpot/