Sydney suburbs where units still reeling from pandemic

News.com.au

25-07-2025

Call it suburban 'long Covid' –– many of Sydney's most popular suburbs before the pandemic are suffering from a chronic, post-pandemic slump in housing values that's refused to go away.
These pockets are still feeling the economic shocks of Covid and the 13 interest rate hikes from 2022-23 which have seen property values going backwards, flatlining or barely budging.
Price declines have been especially pronounced in high-density areas that were once magnets for investors — particularly those catering to international students and short-term renters.
Data from PropTrack reveals that units in the inner city, the lower North Shore and beyond are cheaper now than they were in 2020.
PropTrack economist Angus Moore said Sydney's unit growth since then has been sluggish in comparison to other capital markets.
'Since the pandemic began, unit prices in Sydney are up 22 per cent; far slower than over 80 per cent in Adelaide, or nearly 95 per cent in Brisbane,' he said.
'This is partly due to people moving to the smaller capitals during Covid and partly due to their relative affordability.
'Though that is not as true today as it was five years ago, given how far prices in the smaller capitals have risen.'
Mr Moore said Sydney's apartment struggles reflected a change in buyer preferences that began during Covid.
'People wanted more space to be able to work from home and were less concerned about commuting,' he said.
'This favoured larger detached houses over apartments.'
The cost and duration of building units has been a factor in the restrained overall growth of units.
'The cost of building increased rapidly during Covid, the time it takes to build homes has increased, and labour has been a constraint,' Mr Moore said.
According to ABS data, prices received by building construction businesses have increased 31.1 per cent from the September quarter of 2020 to the June quarter of 2024.
The suburb with the biggest decline in unit prices since Covid — with at least 50 properties sold in the last 12 months –– was Eastwood, with a drop of 18.4 per cent.
Units in the nearby suburbs of Epping and Gordon have also felt the post-Covid drop.
Raine & Horne Lower North Shore sales agent Andrew Bowden said the price of units in the area were 'still fluctuating'.
'Premium, highly sought-after properties are achieving the highest price levels they have seen, whereas others are still sitting at pricing levels seen around the market peak of 2021.'
Mr Bowden said the struggle of some lower North Shore units was also in part due to their presentation.
'Well-presented apartments in premium Lower North Shore pockets are performing well, whereas buyers are showing more patience with less desirable options, choosing to hold out for properties to meet more of their requirements,' he said.
Further into the city, units in Haymarket, Darlinghurst, Ultimo and Sydney all experienced five-year price declines.
A unit at 88 Hay Street, Haymarket sold for $875,000 in April 2025, despite previously selling for $878,000 in April 2020.
Village Property sales executive Jack Williams said the Covid period was 'definitely challenging' for the area, as people dealt with transitioning to a new way of living and working.
Mr Williams said a key factor of the long-Covid effects on the market were new developments being opened in the early 2020s.
'When a new development goes up it does provide more choice which generally does plateau prices for a period,' he said.
'We're seeing now there's very limited new developments because construction costs have gone up so much.'
He added that it wasn't all doom and gloom, with the long-term potential for units in these areas improving as more people returned towards high density living.
'Rental demand is strong, yields are strong — I think it's got some solid long-term prospects,' he said.
Mr Moore said the effects of Covid on Sydney's high-density suburbs were 'starting to ease'.
'In particular, we're not seeing rapid escalation in the cost of building,' he said.
'However, building costs haven't come down and therefore remain a lot more expensive than pre-pandemic.'
SYDNEY SUBURBS BY MEDIAN PRICE DECLINE (Units; Min 50 property sales in 12 months to June 2025)
Suburb Median unit price (June 2025) Median unit price (June 2020) Price decline since 2020 Per cent change
Eastwood $751,000 $920,000 $169,000 -18.4
Darlinghurst $895,000 $1,045,000 $150,000 -14.4
Sydney $1,050,000 $1,200,000 $150,000 -12.5
Ultimo $684,000 $760,000 $76,000 -10
Haymarket $970,000 $1,055,000 $85,000 -8.1
Kirribilli $1,525,000 $1,650,000 $125,000 -7.6
Roseville $957,500 $1,010,000 $52,500 -5.2
Belmore $612,750 $645,000 $32,250 -5
Auburn $559,000 $585,000 $26,000 -4.4
Gordon $888,888 $928,000 $39,112 -4.2