By Alex Stuart | 5 Dec 2019

Urbis’ Sydney Apartment Essentials recorded steady sales in the September 2019 quarter, after a significant boost in the previous June quarter. 

There were 144 sales recorded within the sample. According to Mr Alex Stuart, Associate Director of Property Economics at Urbis, 57% of the sales that were recorded were in recently built stock, highlighting the strong interest from owner-occupiers who prefer buying tangible product that they can move into quickly.

“When the market was booming, buyers had to get in early and purchase their apartments in the pre-sales stage,” Mr Stuart said. “Now we are seeing a bit more competition, and the availability of built product means buyers can try before they buy.”

The North West Middle Ring of Sydney was the most active precinct in the quarter, accounting for 35% of surveyed sales. Once again, 73% of these sales were in recently built developments. The North West Middle Ring’s weighted average sale price was $140,000 below the Sydney average in the quarter, further encouraging sales based on affordability.

Urbis are monitoring a further 251 projects in Development Approval and 122 projects in Development Application stage across the Sydney precincts. Of the apartments in Development Approval stage, the majority are in the Hills precincts (30% of total) in the middle/outer ring of Sydney and in the Parramatta (23% of total). The Inner South and Inner West precincts still have a pipeline of supply (10% and 8% of total applications respectively), despite the constraint on land.

“Apartment completions in Sydney are anticipated to fall around 30% in 2021 as a result of construction commencements slowing in 2019. This slowdown could result in an undersupply re-emerging in Sydney in the foreseeable future,” Mr Stuart said.

  • Weighted average sale price recorded: $930,035

  • 6 projects totalling 1,325 apartments launched in the quarter

  • Two-bedroom, two-bathroom most popular product type with 51% of total sales

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