Sydney property: 10 suburbs set to skyrocket this spring

This spring selling season is set to be a big one for sellers in these 10 suburbs, as Sydney prices continue to boom. Find out where here.

Spring will awaken Sydney’s next auction superstar suburbs, with new research uncovering the 10 postcodes primed to boom between now and Christmas. They are the suburbs where more homes are going to auction to meet huge increases in buyer demand. And they’re not the usual suspects.

REA Group’s ‘Hot Under the Hammer’ report, looked at postcodes where auction markets are building momentum through increased views per online listing (VPL) and auction numbers, when comparing the first six months of 2021 with the second half of last year.

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Middleton Grange, just west of Liverpool, was a clear number one on the list, with a 157 per cent VPL increase and a 150 per cent increase in properties taken to auction.

“This suburb wasn’t one you would have typically associated with auctions,” Cameron Kusher, REA Group director of economic research, said. “But when prices are strong, more people will go to auction to get the best possible result.

Melinda and Michael Strier pictured with kids Joshua (18mths) and Tobias (4mths) at their Randwick property which is currently up for sale. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“With so many views per listing, agents can show them that there are a lot of buyers out there, so it’s worth their while.”

Other Western Sydney suburbs to make the top 10 were North Kellyville Kings Langley, Belfield and Stanhope Gardens.

Mr Kusher said stock shortages, exacerbated by Covid restrictions, have seen strong buyer competition and enough big results to encourage vendors to take the plunge.

“There are still a lot of people out there that need to transact on property,” he said. “They are getting used to virtual auctions, which are performing well, so they’re giving it a go.”

Menai in the Sutherland Shire was the second placed suburb with a 78 per cent increase in VPL, while nearby Gymea Bay was third with 68 per cent.

Turramurra on the north shore (64 per cent) and North Kellyville (63 per cent) made up the top five, followed by Picnic Point (60 per cent), Kings Langley (57 per cent), Gordon (54 per cent), Belfield (54 per cent) and Stanhope Gardens (52 per cent).

The research also looked at the ‘Opportunity’ suburbs, where VPLs were down and deals more likely to be found by buyers.

Lewisham in the inner west saw VPLs fall by 13 per cent from the previous six months, while Bossley Park (-11 per cent), Fairfield (-9 per cent) and Toongabbie (-4 per cent) were the only other Sydney suburbs to experience a decrease in online interest.

Other opportunity suburbs were Prestons (0 per cent), Kogarah (1 per cent), Merrylands (2 per cent), Punchbowl (3 per cent), Quakers Hill (4 per cent) and West Hoxton (4 per cent).

A number of opportunity suburbs were closer to the city and had higher density living, while the top-performing suburbs were a long way from the CBD.

LJ Hooker’s head of research Mathew Tiller said Covid had seen more buyers moving away from the city for more space and lifestyle opportunities.

“Suburbs with better accessibility to open space, such as beach, national parks or extensive parklands, will perform better, as buyers look at how and where they can travel locally to get their daily dose of exercise during lockdowns in the short term and when working from home in the longer term,” Mr Tiller said.

There are plenty of big crowds at auction – just in the virtual world.

Mr Tiller also said he expected property sellers to wait until later in the year to list, when Covid restrictions began to ease. In the meantime, individual suburb performances would be affected by those restrictions.

“Those suburbs where you need a ‘permit’ to enter will see lower levels of new listings come onto the market during the ‘permit’ period but will rebound once this restriction ends,” he said.

He also believed the adaptability of the real estate industry had helped keep Sydney in a strong position.

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“The innovative ways in which the real estate industry has adapted to market uncertainty – brought about by ever-changing restrictions, lockdowns and health orders – has ensured that buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords have all been able to safely and securely view, lease, buy and sell real estate.

“These measures, combined with an improving economy, have assisted real estate markets right across the country to perform strongly over the past 12-months.”

One market that is consistently strong for auctions is the east. But Ray White Eastern Suburbs agent Nicholas Wise said it was likely to be a late spring with many homeowners holding off until the end of the lockdown.

“There will be a lot of transactions done late spring into early December,” he said.

“If there are still restrictions on travelling interstate and overseas, this will only fuel demand for property around Christmas time.”

The real estate world has had to adapt over the past 18 months. (Pictures Julian Andrews).

Mr Wise said while stock levels remained tight, there was a trickle of new homes already coming to market despite lockdown.

“As confidence grows in the market from sellers, we are seeing a trickle of new homes come up for sale at the moment,” he said.

“It is still well below what we would generally see at the start of spring.”

Mr Wise encouraged homeowners who are ready to sell their house to go earlier in spring than later with the easing of lockdown likely to spread the buyer pool.

“Right now, we are seeing strong prices because supply is low,” he said.

“It is a great time to be on the market right now as you have a lot of buyers and not many properties for them to look at.”

The Ray White agent is currently selling the four-bedroom Randwick semi of Melinda and Michael Strier. Their Copper St property is due to go under the hammer on September 18 with a $3.6 million guide.

Mrs Strier said while the family, who are planning to move further out from the city to somewhere with a larger backyard, were nervous about selling at the start of spring during lockdown, they felt like the opportunity was too good to pass up on

“With little stock out there at the moment, it feels like the timing is right for us as there seems to be the interest in similar properties in the area has been high and competitive,” she said.

Ruth Leong and Derek Chan are selling their Wentworth Point apartment. Picture: Toby Zerna

McGrath Inner West agent Ania Aquino said sellers thinking of selling were encouraged to put their properties to market sooner than later, because there were many homeowners waiting until lockdown ends.

“There will be a whole heap of new properties coming to market when lockdown ends,” she said.

“Listings are down at the moment, but that will change once lockdown ends.”

Ms Aquino going to market in September benefited many vendors because there was a huge under supply of properties on the market now.

“Put your property on the market in September and give yourself a month’s jump on everyone else who will list in October,” she said.

Ms Aquino is selling the two-storey Wentworth apartment with water views of Ru and Derick Leong.

The Leongs are selling their top floor residence to upgrade to a house in the Hills. Mrs Leong said they were not planning to sell during the lockdown but decided not to wait due to the extension of stay-at-home orders and the current market.

“It seems that sellers are having big advantages during the lockdown by gathering very serious buyers,” she said.

“Selling now will also allow us to get into the market of finding our next house sooner.”