$1m house Lotto: 40+ suburbs crack NSW millionaires club

More than 90 per cent of Sydney homes have increased in value over the past 12 months with over 40 suburbs passing the $1 million mark in terms of median values.

What goes up must come down. Except in the Sydney property market which proved to be the comeback capital in 2023 as home values defied predictions and rose steadily – in some areas by as much as $1.5 million.

Greater Sydney’s average dwelling price climbed 7.72 per cent last year to $1.062m with more than 90 per cent of suburbs increasing in value.

PropTrack’s December quarter data, provided exclusively to The Saturday Telegraph, delivers good news for homeowners and mortgagees who were dealt consecutive interest rate rises.

RELATED: Showers hot, but tubs get a cold bath in 2024

However it comes as a blow for prospective home buyers and renters who see the first rung on the property ladder get further out of reach while they also faced increasing cost of living pressures.

PropTrack senior economist Paul Ryan said Sydney’s rebound was unexpected after the downturn of 2022.

“Sydney was the most surprising market. In late 2022, Sydney was leading price falls which were down 6 to 7 per cent,” he said. “In 2023 the market turned around enormously quickly.”

Sydney’s waterfront suburb of Vaucluse topped the list, with houses jumping in value as much as $1.5m.

More than 40 suburbs surpassed the $1m mark in terms of median values, while 26 suburbs leapt into the $2m bracket, 12 entered the $3m zone and four crept across $4m.

This time last year, roughly two thirds of the market fell in value with the biggest drops in suburbs across the east, northern beaches and inner west. The latest data shows a complete turnaround with those markets topping the list of rising values.

“The rebound in luxury markets shows just how well and quickly Sydney’s housing market recovered,” Mr Ryan said.

Vaucluse holds the most expensive title with an average median value of $9.68m, a huge year on year increase of $1.5m, or about 19 per cent.

Suburbs across the Inner West, West and South West have had the largest increase in value of 14-36 per cent for the year.

Units in Stanhope Gardens recorded the highest growth in the city of almost 40 per cent.

Experts say prices will continue to rise but at a slower rate than what was seen in the previous year.

A North Parramatta home sold in late 2023 for $2.5m, over $200,000 more than it sold for the year before.

Suburbs that had the biggest price drops were on The Central Coast, Baulkham Hills and Hawkesbury regions – areas that saw significant growth during the Covid lockdowns.

“A lot of the parts of the outer city saw big growth in the pandemic, now they are experiencing some realignment,” Mr Ryan said.

MORE: Inside NSW’s 50 most breathtaking homes

Across regional NSW, the median average dwelling price increased 1.9% over the year to December 2023, with the median home price now $711,000.

Noemi and Darryl Yakas have purchased a block of land in Cobbitty in Sydney’s South West, where Mirvac are building their latest master planned community which includes 900 new homes.

Darryl and Noemi Yakas bought land in Cobbity to build their dream home with Mirvac.

After searching and attending auctions in their previous Inner West locale, growing prices made the Yakas family reconsider.

“The prices were increasing and at that time we were having to compromise on what we wanted,” Ms Yakas said.

Deciding to move to Sydney’s South West, they “fell in love with the area” where they are building their dream property for themselves, two daughters Georgia (12) and Michaela (13) fitted with a granny flat for Noemi’s two elderly parents.

With a budget of around $1.8m, Ms Yakas said the properties they were looking at were all “very old and needed renovating”.

“Those auction prices really cemented our decision,” she said.

After purchasing the block in April, the value has already increased by approximately $60,000, according to Ms Yakas.

With proximity to town centres like Camden and Campbelltown, the South West areas are expected to continue to grow with Sydney’s Metro and Western Sydney airport.

A home in Camden crossed the $1m mark in 2023, selling for $1.007m.

“What really drew that decision was the growth in the value of our land in the first few months that we were looking, as well as the new airport was a big driver too,” Ms Yakas said.

LJ Hooker Group’s head of research Mathew Tiller said recent inflation and employment

data indicated that the RBA had now finished, or is very close to finishing, its rate-hiking cycle.

“While recent events, particularly comments from the US Federal Reserve, have seen the

market now pencil in rate cuts earlier in 2024 than expected, the most likely outcome is for a

long period of rates on hold, with rate cuts closer to the end of 2024,” Mr Tiller said.

Suburbs in Waverley surged in 2023. This unit sold for $1.905m in October 2023, almost $300,000 more than the late 2020 sale.

“More homeowners will look to capitalise on the recent strong price growth and take the

equity to upgrade their homes or downsize into retirement.

“Additionally, more mortgage holders who are struggling with repayments will also look to sell, now more confident that they can sell with some equity in place.”

MORE: Sydney’s Barbie dream house with slide and pink kitchen for sale

10 innovative tips to make home buying achievable in 2024

Originally published as $1m house Lotto: 40+ suburbs crack NSW millionaires club