Darlington, the inner-west Sydney suburb where house prices have tripled in a decade

When it comes to the small inner-city suburb of Darlington the old property adage that prices double every 10 years doesn’t hold true. Prices in the suburb have actually tripled and those who bet on the suburb next to Redfern and Chippendale a decade ago have seen their fortunes soar.

Just last week, the private treaty sale of an unrenovated home at 308 Abercrombie Street set a record for a terrace in the suburb, selling for $2.75 million. It last traded for $565,000 in 1999.

Since the year 2000, only two properties have sold for more. One was a three-level, warehouse conversion at 7 Ivy Lane, which was leased operating as commercial space. It sold for $3,325,000 in August last year. 

The second was the pub – The Royal Hotel – on the corner of Abercrombie and Codrington streets, which sold for $4.25 million in 2003.

 Darlington’s median house price is now at $1,618,750. Ten years ago, in the year to June 2007, it was 
$540,000, meaning prices have effectively tripled over the last decade.  

In 2016 there were three sales above $2 million – 258 Wilson Street at $2,275,000, 17 Thomas Street at $2.2 million and 36 Thomas Street, at $2.14 million.

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Only a year earlier there were none, with the top gong going to 26 Lander Street – a four-bedroom terrace, which sold for $1,855,000. That terrace doubled in value in just two years after being sold for $951,000 in 2013.

This year $2 million seems to be the magic number with a three-bedroom terrace at 217 Abercrombie Street selling for $2.12 million, a four-bedroom terrace at 20 Calder Road selling for $2.62 million and another four-bedroom terrace at 474 Wilson Street fetching $2.51 million.

Given there are only 40 free-standing houses and 578 terraces in the suburb, according to the latest census results, the competition is understandable.

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David Griggs, the manager of Abercrombie Street cafe The Shortlist, said the university student population gave Darlington a “good vibe”. 

“During term there’s a lot of young people around,” he said. “It has a great feel – quite a mix of people. It’s how Newtown used to be 10 years ago.”

However, he was concerned about the suburb becoming too gentrified and said it was essential the area remained a hub for the indigenous community.

Agent Therese Solomon from Ray White Newtown, who sold a property on Thomas Street early in July, said that proximity to the city, Sydney University and Carriageworks is one of the things that makes the small suburb appealing to buyers.

The community feel is another factor, she noted, with families often having birthday parties in the local park on Saturdays.

Solomon said the area has changed a lot over the last couple of decades, as have other suburbs in the inner-west, such as Erskineville.

“It used to be a pretty dangerous little pocket – they were not the desirable spots they are today. You wouldn’t sit out on the footpath having a coffee then.

“What I find, the people who buy in Darlington want to stay in Darlington,” she said. “Supply waxes and wanes, and there’s not a lot on the market at the moment. 

“It hasn’t been over-gentrified, it hasn’t lost its soul.”

Agent Zoran Zdravkovski, from Kellys Property, is currently selling 404 Abercrombie Street – a wider-than-usual terrace with two residences with a potential rental return of $2300 for both – with an asking price of $3.35 million.

He said he’s seen a change in the potential buyers coming to open homes.

“A couple years ago it was investors, but now its owner-occupiers looking close to the city, working close to the city”, he said. “Young couples, small families. The majority are owner-occupiers, not investors.”

He said the area is very much in demand.

“I think there should be another 5 per cent growth in the next year,” he said.

The median rent price for a house in Darlington is $825.