2015, a year in review…

What a year it has been, from refugee crises to blue moons and a new prime minister…Here’s a brief look at some of the top Sydney real estate stories in 2015.

Overall house prices up 13.2% to $950,000, apartment prices up 11.1% to $675,000 but the fact remains, real estate markets are cyclical. At some point in a growth cycle, every market will reach a peak and plateau. When markets begin to cool, it’s inevitable that we’ll see small drops in prices month-to-month and that’s what happened in Sydney in November.

The median house price fell -1.5% and apartments -0.7%. “There’s no need to be too concerned as this was expected.” says real estate expert and Director at Ray White Double Bay Elliott Placks. “This is normal at the end of a boom. We need to distinguish between the end of a boom and the end of a growth cycle. It’s the end of the boom, not the growth cycle.”

It has also been a record breaking year in terms of Sydney house prices seeing Packers Palace La Mer, Wentworth Road, Vaucluse NSW topping the list with a sale price of $70 million to Australian-Chinese billionaire businessman Chau Chak Wing.

Then there was the $39.9 million sale of Mandalay, Wolseley Road, Point Piper; NSW. This was the non-waterfront trophy residence of former tobacco executive Bill Webb and his wife Marijke sold within three months to road construction and eco-resort developer Phillip Dong Fang Lee and his wife Zhi Xiaobei. Tying in second was Villa del Mare, Wolseley Road, Point Piper, and NSW, which sold for the exact same price as Mandalay.

Here’s to another brilliant year, bring on 2016!