February was a good month for property. Nationally, prices rose 2.1% in the month – the fastest month-on-month rise in nearly two decades. The Northern Beaches property market in particular is enjoying the boom, with Sydney house prices rising above the national average at 2.5%. If you’re thinking of selling, the good news is this trend looks set to continue for 2021. Let’s take a closer look.
Property prices increasing
Record low interest rates are driving property price rises across the country, spurred on by improving economic conditions, government incentives and low advertised supply levels. And all the signs are the boom is here to stay. Sydney clearance rates are sitting way above 80%, indicating extremely tight conditions. The Reserve Bank of Australia has tipped that interest rates will stay low until 2024. And according to the Commonwealth Bank, house prices are predicted to skyrocket an impressive 16% over the next two years.
The rise in $3m suburbs
With prices on the rise, we’re seeing some big numbers. Economists predict the number of $3 million suburbs will double – again. The number of suburbs with $3 million median house prices nationally doubled to 30 suburbs during the pandemic, and with much stronger conditions expected for the residential market in 2021, they’re expected to double again to 60.
The majority of these suburbs are in Sydney. In the Northern Beaches property market, suburbs like Clareville and Curl Curl are expected to be added to the list, hitting $3-million median prices if their growth trajectory continues. And that, of course, is also likely to mean good things for the surrounding area.
A growing opportunity
We’ve witnessed the Northern Beaches property growth firsthand.
Our recent listing of 2 bedroom beachfront apartment 4/405 Barrenjoey Road, Newport, started with an initial guide of $1,550,000. After market feedback we increased it to $1,650,000–$1,750,000. With significant interest in the property, we brought the auction forward by a week and sold it under the hammer for $2,100,000 in the first week of March.
Prior to that, in the last week of February, we sold two bedroom waterfront apartment 4/43 East Esplanade, Manly, prior to auction. With an initial price guide of $1,700,000, the owners accepted an offer of $1,980,000.
Demand in the Northern Beaches property market is strong and looks like it will stay that way for some time to come. So we expect to see these impressive results continue, with properties selling comfortably above their asking price.
