A house that sold for a record amount in a once less than desirable suburb is proof of just how out of reach for many Australians owning a home is.
When 30 Fuller Street, Mount Druittin western Sydney, sold at auction on Saturday for a staggering $2.3 million, even the estate agent was surprised.
A-Class Estate Agents owner Amir Jahan said the couple who had beaten the other four active bidders had fallen in love with the six-bedroom, four-bathroom property.
Mount Druitt is widely considered a more affordable area with the median home price currently at $965,000.
The mansion’s staggering price has all but negated that prospect, surpassing even the median price in Sydney, which stands at $1,627,625.
Jahan said that when the split-level house on a 1,020 square meter block with a swimming pool first came on the market, he was bombarded with snide comments.
“Traditionally the area is considered to be a bit rugged,” he said.
‘No one believed this house was there.
A house that sold for a record amount in a once less than desirable suburb is proof of just how out of reach for many Australians to own a home
A couple in their thirties (pictured, third and fourth from left) fell in love with the house, raising the auction price to $2.3 million, which surprised agent Amir Jahan (third from right ).
“People were making comments like, ‘Can I still buy drugs at the train station there?’ and ‘I don’t have a dirt bike, can I look at it?'”
“One person said, ‘I’m not a rapper, can I still buy it?'”
Mount Druitt has earned a dark reputation and the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics revealed in January that it was the suburb with the highest crime rate in Sydney.
The area recorded 3,021 serious crimes in one year and had the highest number of domestic assaults in the city, with 743 crimes, and the highest overall number of home invasion incidents with 257.
“Mount Druitt is growing,” Mr Jahan said.
‘Compared to three or four years ago, when you said Mount Druitt, people said, “I’m afraid to go there.” “Now it’s a totally different place,” he said.
‘It is a nice and decent area. A lot of people are moving there and to St Marys.
Jahan said you can still get a home for between $1 million and $1.1 million in Mount Druitt.
He admitted that while it is still high for many Australians, it is now “standard” for Sydney.
‘All I can say is that the Sydney market is becoming incredible. And it is growing every day,” said Mr Jahan.
The real estate agent said first-time homebuyers will be deflated by the sale because Mount Druitt is the last hope of getting on the property ladder for many.
“A lot of buyers are trying to get into the Mount Druitt area because they think they can get a cheaper property compared to all the other suburbs in Sydney,” Mr Jahan said.
The mansion has a contemporary design that distinguishes it from the rest of the houses on the street.
“And now this property has reached $2.3 million. So where else can they go now to buy a property?”
He said that although the house is “beautiful” and spacious, people were still expecting a bargain just because of its address.
“All the offers that came in were for $1.2 or $1.3 million,” he said.
‘I call them bargain shoppers. I get them for every property I list.
“People were trying to use the suburb to negotiate.
But a lovely couple in their thirties with three children loved it. At first they wanted to buy it in another suburb, but they fell in love with the house.’
The massive mansion is so impressive that if it had been just one or two suburbs away, the asking price would have been $5 to $6 million and $7 to $8 million for further suburbs.
Although Sydney’s new airport is expected to drive up prices in areas such as Mount Druitt, the agent said buyers should go where they can.
“With the real estate market you can’t lose,” he said.
An open kitchen is one of the many perks offered at Mount Druitt Mansion.
Jahan’s record price for the Fuller Street property comes after September’s PropTrack Housing Affordability Report showed just how unaffordable home ownership is for Australians.
A household earning the Australian median income of $112,000 can only afford just 14 per cent of the homes for sale across Australia.
This figure dropped to just ten per cent for New South Wales households.
Of Greater Sydney’s 658 suburbs, 448 now have a median price exceeding $1 million, according to Corelogic data released in late September.