St George and Oatley residential market strength continues to grow: HTW

St George and Oatley residential market strength continues to grow: HTW
Staff reporterDecember 7, 2020

Sydney's St George area is continuing in its strong growth, according to a recent Herron Todd White (HTW) report.

The property valuation firm says that the St George area is continuing its strong growth period with the hottest price points for houses generally being $1 million to $2 million and $660,000 to $700,000 for units.

For houses, the suburb of Oatley has been a very strong performer, having a 2016 median house price of $1.602 million, up 14.5% from 2015, according to PriceFinder.

"This strong growth in Oatley is mainly driven by locality, with its village-like feel and well positioned homes on comparatively large blocks of land, many with good water views," the report stated.

"An example of a typical Oatley sale within this strong price point is 3 Gungah Bay Road (above) which sold on 04 January 2017 for $1.7 million.

"This property comprised a dated but well maintained, two storey, 5-bedroom, 4-bathroom residence with double garage on 765 square metres of land."

Oatley is also within close proximity of Hurstville which provides a high level of amenities and good public transport infrastructure.

The main buyer profiles within the suburb are owner-occupiers, predominantly families, with minimal investor demand.

“With Oatley being relatively affordable compared to some surrounding suburbs and strong owner-occupier demand, we expect to see sustained and continued growth in this market," the report said.

"In generalising the St George area, we recognize that there is still strong demand for the fixer upper, however there is a growing trend towards completed contemporary dwellings.

"Buyers are currently prepared to pay a premium for the privilege of being the first to occupy a residence and will part with their hard earned when they know they are getting the very latest inclusions and high quality finishes."

Generally these houses will provide good levels of accommodation (four to six bedrooms), home automation, high quality finishes and appliances and multi vehicle garaging (four to six cars).

The strongest results for this style of property are being found in the $2.5 million to $5 million range.

This is mainly being driven by overseas buyers, expats and locally based professionals.

"There could be a softening in this end of the market depending on interest rates, lending policies and exchange rates and overseas market conditions," the report advised.

"However this is seen as unlikely in the short to medium term.

"When analysing the unit market, Brighton Le Sands gets a notable mention as a strong performer with a 2016 median unit price of $680,500, up 4.7% from 2015.

"In a running theme, location has been the main driver of this market being within close proximity of the beach, an increasingly popular restaurant and café scene and good bus services.

"With many 1970s, walk-up style unit complexes within the suburb, it attracts investors and owner-occupiers alike."

A recent sale of a typical unit was 10/32-34 Queens Road (above) which sold in February 2017 for $675,000.

This was a mainly original 1970s unit with two bedrooms, one bathroom and one car garage, located on the top floor.

"Potential for new transport links and hubs within the vicinity of Brighton Le Sands is expected to drive strong growth in the short to medium term," the report advised.

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