‘A very sought after location’: Canberra’s new million-dollar suburbs

Anyone keeping an eye on the market will not be shocked to hear many suburbs in Canberra reached the $1 million dollar mark in the past year, but some recent additions may come as a surprise. 

According to the latest Domain House Price Report, Canberra’s median house price reached $1,096,114, remaining over $1 million despite dropping by 5.8 per cent over the quarter. The median was still up by 3.8 per cent from the previous year. 

The report revealed that 17 Canberra suburbs had median house prices of over $1 million. Of these, 11 were new to the list after recording high year-on-year growth. 

Among the 11 were Florey, Forde, Watson and Fisher, which recorded the highest yearly growth of all Canberra suburbs.

Florey’s median house price jumped by 37 per cent, going from $740,876 to $1.15 million year-on-year. 

Jonny Warren of Jonny Warren Properties said he had seen a noticeable increase in buyers looking to Florey to purchase, due to rising recognition of what it has to offer. 

“The majority of buyers that have come through the homes we have sold over the last 12 months in Florey live nearby or want to move to the suburb,” he said. 

“It’s close to the Belconnen Town Centre, it’s not too far from the city, and it has become a very sought-after location.” 

There had been a change within the last year in the suburb itself, coming from the same increase in demand that had increased sale prices, Warren added. 

“We have particularly seen a lot of families coming into Florey, especially from Gungahlin and Tuggeranong, who were relocating for schools,” he said. 

Just behind Florey, Forde recorded the second-highest yearly increase in its median house price, going up by 34.6 per cent from $910,104 to $1.225 million. 

This was followed by Watson, up 33.2 per cent from $895,270 to $1,192,500, and Fisher, up 31.1 per cent from $819,985 to $1.075 million year-on-year. 

Robert Peaker of Blackshaw Tuggeranong said both Watson and Fisher had become good options for buyers looking to buy in the Inner North and areas around Woden Valley.

“A lot of prices in other suburbs in the Inner North, like Ainslie, Campbell and O’Connor, have gone up by so much that a lot of people have been priced out of them,” he said. 

“The next step from the expensive suburbs are places like Hackett and Watson, a bit more affordable and still close to the city and the amenities around there.

“It’s the same situation for Fisher; because the Woden Valley area has gotten too expensive, the next port of call is the suburbs in Weston Creek. Fisher is one of the more inner suburbs within Weston Creek.” 

As well as the appeal of their locations, both Watson and Fisher have other drawcards that have made them popular over the past 12 months, Peaker added. 

“In Watson, people look there who are downsizing or retiring … there are some smaller blocks and townhouse developments, so a lot of people who don’t want a big block anymore look there,” he said. 

“Fisher, on the other hand, has blocks that are generally quite large – the average size is probably 700 to 900 square metres so you can purchase a good amount of land.

“If you were looking towards buying land in the newer suburbs in the Molonglo Valley you still have to build a house, but in Fisher, you can buy a house on a good block of land and can justify spending a bit more to renovate.”