A private oasis in the heart of the city: why Elizabeth Bay is beloved by wealthy buyers

Bound by Sydney Harbour to the north and east, the buzz of MacLeay Street to the west and the leafy environs of Rushcutters Bay to the south, Elizabeth Bay is like a private sanctuary on the doorstep to the city, says business coach Terence-Liam Preece.

“It’s a tiny little microcosm on the way to nowhere and that’s part of its appeal,” he says. “It’s not a through suburb.”

With its twisting, turning streets, northerly aspect over the harbour and historical value, Preece describes the bay as one of “the best places to live on the planet”.

Heritage haven

Preece moved from Saddleback Mountain in the Kiama hinterland to Elizabeth Bay 16 years ago to be closer to his city office and schooling for his daughter.

“There’s a grandeur around the topography and lots of interesting architecture,” he says. He makes special mention of Elizabeth Bay House, a colonial Regency-style residence, and now museum and function centre, and the sandstone manor Tresco, currently on the market with price expectations up around $50 million.

“Some of the early settlers built some beautiful homes in prize positions,” says Preece. “And we’re so blessed here to be able to walk up to the botanic gardens and the art gallery.”

Holiday at home

It was love at first sight for Ray White Elizabeth Bay agent Renee Cross the day she found her Billyard Avenue apartment.

“It was this little nook I didn’t really know about, but when I walked into this waterfront property I just had to be here, it took my breath away,” she says.

“You’ve got the water, the parks and then the proximity to the city. You just can’t beat it.”

Cross says she was so smitten with her Billyard Avenue apartment she didn’t have a holiday for the first three to four years she lived there.

“Why go anywhere when you’ve got this out your front door?” she says. “To have that water view to come home to every day is so good for you.

“People move to Elizabeth Bay for the lifestyle. It’s more peaceful [than neighbouring Potts Point]; a little removed from the action and more private.”

Cross says the area is popular with downsizers, while Preece says he bumps into people from all walks of life.

“There is such an eclectic community,” he says. “We have a diversity of ages and cultures and the ability to live your own lifestyle with no expectations to meet a norm. If it’s good enough for David Bowie [who lived in the suburb in the 1980s], it’s good enough for me!”

Top home in the area

In a quiet cul-de-sac leading off the Loop, a prestigious enclave on the peninsula, this ground floor apartment in Murrawan Court is as close to the water as you can get, with views across the boat-studded waters of Rushcutters Bay.

Renee Cross of Ray White Elizabeth Bay will take the property to auction on November 14, with a bidding guide of $3.7 million.