The Sydney and regional NSW properties that are selling well above their reserve

Although indices like CoreLogic’s monthly home value index may indicate a decline in property prices over the past few months, it is certainly not the case for all regions. Over the past few months, agents across different areas of Sydney and regional NSW reported a boom in market activity. For some, even record-breaking. 

Over the past few months, agents across different areas of Sydney and regional NSW reported a boom in market activity. For some, even record-breaking. 

When we look at the details into why, it’s all about supply and demand. As advertised stock levels continue to remain lower than usual, in some suburbs, the shortage of properties on the market has increased competition amongst buyers, resulting in sales well above asking price. 

We spoke to a handful of top agents to find out what it was about these properties and their approach that delivered such stellar results.  

Two bedroom Rozelle property smashes price guide

Adrian Oddi, Sales Agent and Director of BresicWhitney Balmain sold a unique two bedroom sandstone property at 5 Mackenzie Street last week for $1,610,000, some $160,000 above the vendor’s expectations. 

Mr Oddi said that this charming heritage listed house garnered enormous interest from buyers.

“We had just under 50 groups attend our first inspection and within a matter of hours of that inspection, we received our first verbal offer.” 

“Fast forward to Tuesday afternoon, we had received 5 separate offers all above $1,500,000 and the property sold for $1,610,000.” 

Mr Oddi believes that despite the property being a two bedroom, one bathroom property, the major renovations that the owners had taken out five years ago was the key factor in its success. 

“When you consider the last string of two bedroom sales in the area, they all sold between $1,300,000 to $1,500,000. 

“We had just under 50 groups attend our first inspection and within a matter of hours of that inspection, we received our first verbal offer.” 

“Ordinarily, to push into the price point that it did, you would normally have a two bedroom and two bathroom property.” 

“I think that the buyers just responded well to the thoughtfulness of the renovation, even though it was two bedrooms and one bathroom.” 

A proactive approach and utilising the agency’s buyer database was another factor that contributed to the impressive price point. 

“Rather than waiting for the property to appear online, in the lead up, we must have made well over 100 phone calls to our buyer database.  

“Everything we did was proactive and on the front foot, so we just had amazing momentum, even before it went online.” 

Other notable sales by Mr Oddi include a five bedroom family home in Rozelle at 2 Hartley Street which attracted five bidders and sold for $4,500,000.

Beautifully renovated Hawkesbury property sells for top price 

A little further from the CBD, the Hawkesbury region has experienced renewed demand from buyers in the city wanting more space. 

Activity has been so high that Cindy Cash from Ray White North Richmond has had a record month based on value in the five years she has been in sales. 

“Covid has had a very interesting impact on the property market which has particularly benefited the lifestyle market.

“It’s kind of counteracted what everyone thought would happen because people realised that being stuck in four walls is much nicer when you’re in the country as opposed to the city and knowing they can actually work from home has made it a lot more attractive,” she said. 

Ms Cash recently sold a renovated three acre property at 145 Mitchell Drive in Glossodia for $1,535,000, one of the highest sale prices for a property of that size in the suburb. 

Having originally listed it for $1,500,000, which was a fairly high price point for the area, Ms Cash tapped into her buyer database and had quite a lot of interest and groups going through the property before it went on the market. 

Once listed, results were achieved very quickly.

“We put it on the market and after one open home I had three offers on it, and it ended up selling at $1,535,000 which was $35,000 more than the guide.” 

According to Ms Cash, one of the unique selling points of the property was the fact that it was a modern, newly renovated property on an acreage, which is hard to come by in the Hawkesbury. 

The vendor being a builder, undertook renovations himself, completing major renovations and structural work to the property resulting in a well-built, beautifully-finished property with quality inclusions. 

“He did pretty major building work; he modified the structure a bit to make it more practical. He put in a media room and took out a funny internal garden that was there before because it was an 80s built house.

“The property had a beautiful white kitchen with shaker doors and a very open plan kitchen and living space.” 

For those considering selling, Ms Cash says that the current imbalance of demand and supply is favourable to sellers. 

“We put it on the market and after one open home I had three offers on it, and it ended up selling at $1,535,000 which was $35,000 more than the guide.” 

“I think if you’re considering selling, it’s a really good time to sell because in any type of a situation when there is a shortage of property and high demand, you’re going to get a better price.” 

For those uncertain about market performance in their area, Ms Cash suggests doing research and focusing on the data. 

“Many people think prices are dropping and that no one is buying and I just say to them look at the data and see how many properties I've sold and the prices we’re getting. 

“That should give you confidence around the fact that the market is good and you should sell if you want to sell.” 

“If you broke it down suburb by suburb, there are probably suburbs in Sydney that have dropped but you can never say the whole of Sydney is the same because the Hawkesbury lags behind The Hills area, which lags behind the City - so we’re not on the same trajectory as they are.” 

Record prices achieved in the Hunter Region

Moving further inland to regional NSW, property prices continue to outperform their capital city counterparts with the Corelogic home value index revealing that over the past three months to August, median dwelling values for regional NSW actually increased 1.2 per cent while Sydney declined by 2.1 per cent. 

Nick Clarke from PRD Hunter Valley echoes this sentiment, and says that although prices in the Hunter Region were initially impacted from Covid-19, property prices have since recovered and continue on a strong upward trajectory. 

“When Covid hit, prices did drop by about 5% for about three weeks, and now they’re definitely getting better. Since then, it’s been on the increase. 

“We just had a record month in our whole 15 years of being here; last month I exchanged around 32 houses."

“Property value is definitely higher than this time last year,” he said. 

According to Mr Clarke, last month was record-breaking in terms of sales. 

“We just had a record month in our whole 15 years of being here; last month I exchanged around 32 houses.

“Last month was the biggest month that I or our entire office has ever had. We smashed our record by a lot.” 

Although first home buyers have been primarily driving the market due to government grants and stamp duty concessions, Mr Clarke also points out that the number of homes selling in the luxury property market this year has been extremely high. 

One example is an 100 acre property on 451 Tocal Road, sold three months ago for the highest price that they’ve seen locally at $4,800,000.

The environmentally designed, state of the art property had an initial expectation closer to $4,000,000 but the huge amount of interest and subsequent bidding war boosted the price to record heights. 

Other recently sold record-breaking properties include 12 Centrefield St at $800,000 a record price for the suburb of Rutherford and 12 Woodrow Way, East Maitland, a five bedroom property which sold for $1,365,000. 

According to Mr Clarke, the driver of these sales is attributed to the fact that the Hunter Region is not a business or tourist-based economy like Sydney. Instead, it is driven by industries such as construction, mining and health which has not been as affected by the pandemic.

While most buyers hitting these record sales are Hunter region locals, interested buyers hailing from Sydney and Newcastle have also been on the rise as many look to regional areas for more space and investment opportunities. 

A recently sold property by Mr Clarke at 46 Station Street in Branxton had two Sydney buyers in a bidding war for the 3388sqm property. 

With initial offers ranging from $500,000, the Sydney buyers drove the final price up to $902,000, which was $202,000 over the reserve. 

“I think with Covid a lot of people have realised they want more space. Apartment living is great... but it’s not great if you’re spending 18 hours at home a day.

“I think those who work in a lot of those industries where you can work from home will look to relocate. For affordability, but also for comfort because you’re getting a lot more for your money,” he said.