Rushcutters rising

Rushcutters Bay has emerged out of the economic downturn as one of the strongest performers in the property market.

During an economic downturn, suburbs closer to the city generally perform worst in rental rates of return. Rushcutters Bay has been an exception to the rule, recording the highest residential rental yield in Australia, according to a report by RP Data.

McGrath Real Estate agent Justin Hayson, who manages properties in the CBD and eastern suburbs, has seen a steady upward trend in the prestigious suburb. “I have seen a dramatic rise in prices and demand on the apartments that I have sold in the area, compared to just over a 10-year period,” Mr Hayson said.

“Even during the downturn, in the last couple of years I’ve seen Potts Point (and Rushcutters Bay) have a lot of growth.”

With almost no large-scale building application approvals, demand for properties is expected to continue to skyrocket. “There’s such a high demand now for new stock but there’s hardly any new building approvals. If you look at that area, there’s hardly any new that are coming up at the moment – nothing on a massive scale,” he said.

The major drawcard for Rushcutters Bay is its central location and lifestyle. “Rushcutters is very close to Bondi and with the traffic issues at the moment it’s only a five- to ten-minute drive on a good day. And also you have the local parks in the area,” said Mr Hayson.

“Rushcutters Bay area code is just becoming a lot more trendy – people like to live there – as opposed to Kings Cross, which still needs a lot of cleaning up.”

RP Data also reported an increase in Sydney home values of 6.6 per cent over the first seven months of 2009 – the third-strongest performance of any mainland capital. House values rose by 7.2 per cent over this period compared with unit values rising 5.4 per cent.

by Ehssan Veiszadeh