Sydney is arguably Australia’s most iconic city. The picturesque harbour city is blessed with natural beauty, it is an international business hub and a hotspot for both locals and immigrants. Sydney continues to lead the country in real estate price growth, a statistic many locals would prefer to live without. This is hardly surprising: the lopsided inflow of migrants combined with a range of economic drivers have led to the average person not being able to afford to buy a house in Sydney’s prized inner city suburbs.
Sydney will never rival the likes of Hong Kong, Manhattan or Mumbai for astronomical real estate price rises, but the city is subject to supply shortages, which inevitably drive prices up. This spring in Sydney, with 20% fewer houses cleared at auction than the same time last year, prices reached at auction have spiked dramatically due to increased competition among buyers.
What Brings People to Sydney
In recent decades, Australia has been a particularly attractive south pacific nation for new immigrants due to a booming economy, one that resisted the GFC, a huge resources sector and a lifestyle that is the envy of many countries around the world.
For the first time since 2006 immigration accounted for a greater slice of national population growth than childbirth. Overseas migration counted for 54% of Australia’s growth in 2015 and the population is expected to reach 25 million in 2018. For new migrants, Sydney is a natural choice thanks to the size of its economy. The suburban sprawl has really taken effect in the region, but this has equally pushed up the demand for prime location living within commuting proximity of the city centre.
Predicting housing bubbles, and their demise, is as reliable as forecasting US presidential victors or UK referendum results. The truth is, no one actually knows what will happen, but right now high prices are squeezing first-time buyers further out of the city, as Sydney’s housing boom looks set to continue.
I’m grew up in Sydney and I absolutely love Sydney! I have been to most western countries around the world and Sydney would be in my top 5 most beautiful cities list (I’m not being bias, I really think it is a beautiful city). However, with the rising housing and expensive living costs in Sydney, it didn’t make sense to stay there if we wanted to get in the housing market – I guess we could spend close to $850k on our first home but it just wasn’t realistic for a couple who enjoys travelling, eating out and enjoying live music – so we moved to Melbourne. It’s such a different city to Sydney – not even sure why there’s a “rivaly” between the two cities when both cities has different positive and negatives. It’s just a matter of preference I guess 🙂
Sydney is a beautiful place. I have always wanted to travel there. I hear it’s one of the most stunning cities to visit. The rise of prices makes it hard for me to visit and difficult for the citizens who live there. One day I will definitely make it a point to get there !
Oh my I do love Sydney. I love everything about AU. Thanks to this post of yours as it reminds me of my dream travel to this beautiful country. I also love to visit AU because I have lots of friends and relatives who chose to live in there.
Opera in Sidney is one of my favorite place. You have to go to see this amazing opera. Sydney is a beautiful place for trip or vacation. Prices are little high but you have to skip this if you really want to go there.
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