Top 10 most expensive Sydney properties sold in the 2022/23 financial year

Luxury homes and mansions across Sydney’s most prestigious suburbs continue to sell for sky-high prices even as Australia’s property market moves into the next phase of the cycle – the recovery phase.

While there are fewer transactions occurring at the top end of the market, it doesn’t seem to have stopped some of Australia’s wealthiest from splashing out on new trophy homes throughout the 2022/23 financial year.

In fact, 2022 alone was one of the biggest years on record for luxury property sales.

And it wasn’t just houses either, two multi-million apartment sales made the list for the 12-month period.

Realestate.com.au data reveals that a huge 26 mansion sales surpassed the $30 million mark over the 12 months to June 30 this year, setting an all-time record.

The top 15 residential property sales alone accounted for $1 billion, as many of the city’s most expensive homes sold for sums even exceeding their sale prices achieved just a few years ago.

Most of the top sales for the financial year are located in the usual eastern suburbs areas such as Bellevue Hill and Point Piper, but there was also a $35m-plus sale on Sydney’s north shore for the first time this year.

In the first place, as Sydney’s most expensive property sold in the 2022/23 financial year, was on 29 Wentworth Street in Point Piper – also known as UIG Lodge.

The waterfront mansion sold for an astonishing $130 million in December last year in what was the biggest record-smashing sale since 2018.

The property has increased in price multiple times over, last selling for $9.2 million in 1996.

In second and third place are two $70 million properties – 24 Victoria Road in Bellevue Hill which sold in June and a sub-penthouse bought off the plan at One Circular Quay (the official price is undisclosed) in December.

Close behind in fourth place is 49 Wunulla Road which sold for $69 million in April.

The Spanish-style Point Piper renovated waterfront property has Sydney harbour views, a pool, a private beach, moorings, 5 bedrooms, and 5 bathrooms.

It was last sold for $10.5 million in 2004.

70 Kambala Road in Bellevue Hill rounds out the top five properties selling for $61.5 million in June – the 1,338 sqm home last sold for $9.05 million in 2014.

The remaining 5 spots on the top 10 list for Sydney in the 2022/23 financial year were spread across Bellevue Hill, Point Piper, Vaucluse, and Tamarama, with McMahons Point on Sydney’s north shore entering the list for the first time.

Idlemere, a heritage-listed building on 11 Bay View Street, sold for $42.2 million in February 2023.

It was last sold in 2001 for $7.25 million.

Top 10 most expensive Sydney properties sold in 2022-23

What is driving record prices in Sydney’s high-end property market?

Sydney’s high-end property market benefited from strong demand over the year to June 30, making it the biggest year for the city’s luxury property market to date, and giving rise to some of the highest sale prices recorded.

And while demand has certainly decreased from the heady days of pandemic-induced property boom, A-grade properties will always be sought after by buyers.

In fact, many selling agents reported that their buyers were still content to pay premiums for properties in the high-end luxury market because of the scarcity of homes on waterfront or other premium positions.

After all, the wealthy rarely need to sell so the market is thinly traded.

Ray White senior economist Nerida Conisbee agrees that the outlook for luxury property Australia-wide remains positive despite the general slowdown in the market.

And despite inflation woes, there are still a lot of wealthy people who will be looking to buy beautiful properties.

Domain data shows 694 Sydney properties sold for $10 million or more in 2022 – this compares to 61 Melbourne properties, 14 in Brisbane, and 11 in Perth.

As we travel further in 2023 the bumper price trend looks to continue, with many of the biggest sales of the financial year occurring early on in the year.

An important note

While these top 10 highest property sales make interesting reading, they aren’t necessarily the suburbs I would recommend investing in.

At Metropole, we always advise on the importance of investment-grade properties and locations, rather than chasing a hotspot or growth area.

That’s areas and properties which hold their value over the long term, rather than benefit from an uptick in demand.

But even before looking for the right location, make sure you have a Strategic Property Plan to steer you through the upcoming challenging times our property markets will encounter.

Because aside from remembering that you should focus your efforts on investment-grade properties and locations, you also need to remember that property investing is a process, not an event.

That means that things have to be done in the right order – and selecting the location and the right property in that location comes right at the end of the process.

And that’s because what makes a great investment property for me, is not likely to be the same as what would suit your investment needs.