With its strong fundamentals and riding off the back of a bullish Sydney property market, Surry Hills hit the $2-million median house price mark during the 12-month period ending September 2021.
Highlights
- The median house price of Surry Hills grew by 8.41 per cent between October 2020 to September 2021.
- The unit market also grew by 3.13 per cent, with 440 units sold during this period.
- With its strong fundamentals, the Surry Hills property market is projected to keep rising as Sydney eases off its lockdowns.
House Price Growth
Over the past year, the Sydney property market has seen a distinct upward trajectory in median house prices, increasing by just under a thousand dollars a day, as homeowners take a second look at the lifestyle their property provides. Buyers, unable to travel, have been spending their cash on upgrading their home or choosing a new one.
Surry Hills has already been a strong performer, managing a rise even during the 2018 doldrums when the median house price fell a hefty -9.9% Sydney-wide. With its strong fundamentals, Surry Hills showed a median uptick of 8.41 per cent between October 2020 to September 2021. This growth has pulled the median house price to just above the $2-million mark at $2,005,000 from $1,850,000 in the previous year, per figures from Property Market Updates.
There were 130 properties sold during this period, listed within an average of 46 days on the market. Buyers preferred three-bedroom houses the most (44 sold), although two-bedroom homes were snapped up faster, at a brisk 31 days.
The sale of a renovated luxury terrace on Riley Street, which closed for over $5 million, highlighted the substantial value of acquiring a Surry Hill property. This four-bedroom home, with a mix of preserved original details and high-end features, was priced at just under $2.5 million when it last sold in 2016.
Unit Price Growth
Not to be left behind, the unit market in Surry Hills also logged a growth of 3.13 per cent. Although that may seem modest. the median unit price is now just a shade shy of the seven-digit mark, at $990,000. There were 440 units sold within an average of 42 days on market.
Industry experts believe that Surry Hills will continue to pick up post-COVID as Sydney eases off from the lockdowns and life settles into the new normal. Currently, buying trends show a distinct preference for more space, with a lot of buyers opting for a sea-change or tree-change from inner-city living, due to large amounts of time spent indoors during lockdown periods.
Within this period, hospitality businesses also temporarily closed, students were barred from moving in, and culture or lifestyle events were cancelled — the very facets that defined what living in Surry Hills is all about.
Despite this, investors, first home buyers, and young professionals have been driving up the Surry Hills property market, seizing the moment to capitalise on the changes. With its high liveability, exceptional convenience, and proximity to business and cultural hubs, Surry Hills and similar choice neighbourhoods in the inner city that enjoy strong fundamentals have historically been insulated from city-wide softening of prices.
About Surry Hills
Surry Hills is Sydney inner city’s food and culture mecca with hundreds of small businesses lined up on its leafy streets, back alleys, and laneways. This suburb has an interesting, eclectic mix of residents from high-earners and professionals working in the CBD five minutes away to the long-term locals who have witnessed the gentrification of the suburb, to the migrants who have been bringing their culture to enrich the community.
Just as interesting are its wide ranges of dwelling options — from terrace houses to converted warehouse lofts, to large apartment blocks in old or refurbished buildings or brand new builds.
Several residents get around by biking or walking to work or school, shops, venues, and community hubs. However, there are also plenty of transport options like buses, trains, and the tram that make Surry Hills such an accessible area.
Surry Hills is home to an award-winning city library across the beautiful Shannon Reserve Park on Crown Street. Residents enjoy the benefits of quality childcare and education from facilities like the Sydney Boys and Sydney Girls High Schools and the Australian Institute of Music.
“Surry Hills has been gentrified but for the most part hasn’t lost its uniqueness. It’s home to people from all walks of life. I moved back to Surry Hills 3 years ago and have been pleasantly surprised by the level of neighbourliness.”
Good Life
“I lived for 3 years in Surry Hills and it was great. You can walk to Central station and get to literally everywhere in Sydney. Just a short stroll to the CBD so you can walk or cycle to work every day. Vibrant, very active streets full of cafes, restaurants, pubs and shops so it’s definitely a place for young people. Super diverse, inclusive, great demographic mix and multicultural. Located in the heart of Sydney it’s rather dense yet there are no horrible tall buildings as in the CBD.”
UD