The Australian home sector outperforming the rest
Pandemic fuelled renovations have only strengthened prices at this end of the market
3 min
Luxury houses have experienced a far stronger rate of capital growth than the rest of the market over the past 10 years, according to a historical analysis by Australia’s largest agency network, Ray White. Family houses at the median price point have increased by 78 percent in value over the past decade, while prestige houses priced within the top five percent of homes have doubled in value.
Ray White chief economist Nerida Conisbee said land was a large component of prestige homes’ value and this created stronger rates of capital growth.
“There are only so many properties you can build in our most expensive suburbs, which tend to be located close to beaches, bays and rivers,” Ms Conisbee said. “Anything with even more unique characteristics that are hard to replicate, such as a view or close proximity to the water, are likely to have increased even further.”
Strong renovation activity during and after the pandemic accelerated capital growth.
“Luxury homes have become even more expensive over time as more investment has taken place,” Ms Conisbee said. “And while it is not possible to measure, it is likely a higher proportion of well-located luxury homes have been renovated than the rest of the market and almost certainly true that more has been spent on them.”
Luxury apartments have also grown in value at a much higher rate than average units. Ms Conisbee said this indicated the rising popularity of apartment living among wealthy Australians. Developers are increasingly catering to this trend by producing high-quality lifestyle apartments with large floorplans, many luxurious inclusions and access to world-class amenities and services.
Ms Conisbee said prestige home values also had a higher rate of appreciation because Australia’s rich were getting richer.
“A recent report from Oxfam has found that the wealth of Australia’s richest people has increased at a rate of $1.5 million per hour since 2020,” she said. “A lot of this wealth has been invested in luxury homes around Australia.”
The most expensive homes in Australia
CoreLogic data shows the most expensive suburb in Australia for houses is Bellevue Hill in Sydney, with a median value of $9.73 million. Nearby Point Piper is the most expensive suburb for apartments with a median of $3.32 million. In 2023, Australia’s top five sales occurred in Bellevue Hill, nearby Vaucluse and Hawthorn in Melbourne, ranging from $39 million to $76 million.
In regional Australia, the most expensive suburbs are Sunshine Beach in Queensland with a median house price of $2.38 million, Gerroa in NSW ($2.34 million), Surfers Paradise in Queensland ($2.27 million), Burradoo in NSW ($2.25 million) and Noosa Heads in Queensland ($2.24 million).
During the pandemic, the highest capital growth was seen in the most desirable and expensive regional markets, as wealthy city dwellers bought large lifestyle homes and holiday residences in prime seachange and treechange areas. Last year, this trend reversed, with the greatest capital gains seen in more affordable regional coastal towns, according to a new CoreLogic report released today.
The report shows that 35% of Australia’s regional coastal markets had record-high median values at the end of 2023, despite rising interest rates and cost of living pressures. The study analysed 368 coastal markets located at least 50km from the nearest capital city to reveal the top 20 gainers. All of these suburbs had a median value well below $1 million and Western Australia dominated the list.
CoreLogic Research Director Tim Lawless said: “The performance of those with the largest gains and the highest growth rates are not the glamorous hot spots that rose to prominence during COVID. The past 12 months has seen markets that offer a combination of value and lifestyle attributes, such as commuting distance to a major city, great beaches, and quality housing at a more affordable price point, outperform more well-known areas.
“Suburbs in areas such as Western Australia and more northern regions of Queensland where it’s still possible to make a seachange for less than $1 million were the strongest performers last year. Although home values in these regions are mostly at record highs, they remain relatively affordable for seachangers selling out of more expensive metro markets.”
Highest annual capital gains in 2023 – regional coastal towns
Source: CoreLogic
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After half a century in the same hands, The Palladium blends Art Deco heritage, cinematic history and beachfront living in one extraordinary offering.
3 min
In Sydney’s Northern Beaches, there are plenty of homes with a multimillion-dollar view and an enviable position close to the sand.
This unique listing has all that, but it has also earned its page in the local history books.
After 50 years in the same hands, The Palladium in Palm Beach—once a famed dance hall, then a restaurant, a private residence, and an artists’ studio—is now back on the market with a price hopes of $13.5 million through BJ Edwards and David Edwards of LJ Hooker Palm Beach.
Positioned in a rare corner spot where Ocean Rd meets Palm Beach Rd, The Palladium has been front and centre observing the famous sandy stretch for almost a century.
Built in the early 1930s, the Art Deco building was originally conceived as a vibrant community dance hall; the “it” place to be for young folk during Sydney’s thriving interwar period.
Often the dances were held to raise money for the Palm Beach Surf Life Saving Club, and newspaper reports of the time told of rowdy parties lasting until the early hours, bootleg liquor arrests, and where shorts and sandals—or even pyjamas—were scandalously worn by “both sexes”.
Over the decades, The Palladium has worn many hats.
By 1943, the original owner, Joseph Henry Graham, had defaulted on his loan, and a mortgagee sale reportedly sold the building for £1550, which translates to about $137,000 today. It later became a dining space and a general store run by the Milton family. In the 1960s and early 1970s, the property was also home to the Blue Pacific Restaurant.
The current owners acquired the keys in 1976 when it began its next chapter as a creative hub. One of today’s vendors, filmmaker David Elfick, who has been a filmmaker and producer on such films as Newsfront and Rabbit-Proof Fence, has told stories of a free-spirited creative hub that has been used for film sets, to store numerous movie props, as editing rooms, to hold countless parties and has even hosted visiting members of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
From its famed beachside soirees to its grassroots film club nights, the venue has become woven into the cultural fabric of Palm Beach.
Today, that rich history has been reimagined into a coastal home that honours its past while embracing contemporary beachside living.
Built in a unique architectural style known as streamline moderne, the aeroplane hangar-like building reflects the era’s fascination with air travel, mass transport, and modernity. The facade is defined by a sweeping curved roofline and subtle nautical cues.
The main residence features a vast central living space framed by a number of bedrooms and sunrooms, as well as a front dining room and kitchen. In total, there are four to five bedrooms, three bathrooms and a powder room adjoining an upstairs loft space.
Big, broad windows draw in loads of natural light and provide iconic views, plus the sounds of the beach just across the road.
Many of the original elements remain, most fittingly the polished floors of the former dance hall. In the additional building at the back of the block, there is a separate, self-contained studio with its own bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and laundry. From its elevated deck, the outlook stretches across the full sweep of Palm Beach.
Outside, the expansive 1151sq m land parcel also features established gardens with veggie patches and standalone decks for quiet contemplation.
Sitting just across the road from the beach, the property is also within walking distance of local cafes and the surf club. Palm Beach Rock Pool is at one end of the beach, with the Palm Beach Golf Club and the water airport at the other end of the peninsula.
The Palladium and Palm Beach Studio at 16 Ocean Rd, Palm Beach are listed with BJ Edwards and David Edwards of LJ Hooker Palm Beach via a private treaty campaign with a price guide of $13.5 million.
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