Sydney’s Inner-City Star Performers
Some of Sydney’s top performers in the apartment category have been those in the mid-range, situated in the lower North Shore and the city-east areas. Various inner-city locales have yielded great capital growth, which bodes very well for investors looking for inner-city investment property.
North Shore
Sydney’s North Shore is the primary residential area of northern metropolitan Sydney. Some of its suburbs, such as McMahons Point, Waverton, Hunters Hill, and North Sydney, have show excellent growth for mid-range properties below the $600,000 price mark.
Growth has been estimated to have been as much as 10 per cent in the past year for the area. Given their excellent rental returns, one-bedroom and studio units and apartments have proven to be the most popular, particularly for property investment.
Quick facts:
- The suburbs of Lindfield and Wahroonga have been the the top performers on the North Shore. These suburbs are on the direct train line to the CBD.
- The upper North Shore saw capital growth of nearly 5 per cent in the year to July 30.
City-East Areas
The inner-east areas close to the city also experienced excellent capital growth and made rental yield gains.
- Some of the best performing suburbs included Edgecliff, North Bondi, Potts Point, Paddington, Surry Hills, and Centennial Park.
- Growth in the more affordable eastern suburbs (such as Eastlakes and Hillsdale) has been driven by a flood of investors and first-home buyers. Property prices in these suburbs may be up to $130,000 cheaper than other city-east areas such as Maroubra.
Other factors have also contributed to the growth in the city-east area:
- A lack of new developments
- Empty-nesters choosing to downgrade close to the city
- New investors in the area sustaining high demand
Inner West-West
Waterfront properties in the inner west-west area of Sydney have performed very well in the year to July 30, particularly suburbs by the Parramatta River. Suburbs such as Glebe, Leichhardt, and Concord have led the way in the inner west-west, with demand soaring for well-maintained one- and two-bedroom apartments with balconies.
Renters are also keen on apartments with ‘personality; or unique design features. Further out in the inner west-west, the suburb of Toongabbie recorded more than 10 per cent growth for apartments.
South-South-West
Access to good infrastructure has served the Canterbury-Bankstown area well, with the Hume Highway, M5 and M5 East easily accessed from the area and two railway lines running 30 minute services into the CBD. Combined with the affordability of its apartments, it’s no wonder that rental demand has soared in the past year.
- Top suburbs include Greenacre, Roselands, Lakemba, Wiley Park, Punchbowl, and Campsie. Each of these suburbs has seen average capital growth of at least 8.5 per cent in its apartments.
- Canley Vale, Carramar, and Cabramatta have also performed very well. A two-bedroom apartment currently costs around $250,000 and yields around $320 per week in Carramar. Cheaper apartments in Carlton, Engadine, and Riverwood gained more than 8 per cent.
- Further south, Cronulla and South Hurstville have also done very well for apartments priced over $450,000.