'Quite rare': Dural, the pocket where prestige buyers can have the best of country and city living

For many prestige house hunters, a big, beautiful home within easy reach of the city, which also has space to keep a horse or ride trail bikes, is nothing but a pipe dream. But this year’s opening of the long-awaited Sydney Metro has made the dream a whole lot more achievable for those who call Dural home.

Residents of north west Sydney can jump aboard at Castle Hill or Cherrybrook and be in Chatswood in under 20 minutes or in Wynyard in less than 40 minutes. The impressive acreage estates of Dural are only a relatively short car ride to the north.

“The train line has dramatically transformed the area,” says long-time local Dean Herald, principal of Rolling Stone Landscapes. The multi-award-winning landscape designer says he can be on the Harbour Bridge within 35 minutes of leaving his Dural acreage, where he has built his dream home and what is arguably one of the city’s most divine workplaces.

Office oasis

Herald’s business is housed within a separate dwelling surrounded by gorgeous gardens that meld with the existing bushland. The office has become a showpiece for the company, offering atmosphere and scale to match the Dural countryside.

“Our clients love coming out here,” he says. “We’re surrounded by beautiful trees and it’s a very different atmosphere from a corporate office environment.”

Herald and his staff have worked their magic on many Hills’ estates, with more than 50 per cent of their clients hailing from the area. 

Herald says the rural culture in the area is a significant drawcard, with locals enjoying space for hobbies that are more difficult to pursue in the inner city. 

“It’s pretty extraordinary to have this level of farmland and a village atmosphere so close to the CBD,” he says. “Instead of having a city pad and a country escape, Dural can be both.”

LJ Hooker Dural agent William Brush agrees.

“Dural gives buyers the space and privacy they want within the closest acreage pocket to the city and you can still get your five acres, manicured lawns and a substantial home,” he says. “That’s quite rare.”

Family favourite

Brush grew up in the area and says it’s a brilliant lifestyle for families with plenty of space for kids to run around and enjoy themselves, riding motorbikes and kicking a footy without worrying about traffic. 

There is a clutch of top-notch cafes in the area, including Brush’s favourite Wild Pear, where you may run into this year’s MasterChef winner Larissa Takchi, whose family own the eatery.

And for many more dining options and one of the country’s biggest shopping centres, Castle Hill is only a short car trip away.

Top home in the area

Go fishing without leaving home at this family estate, a two-hectare parcel with its own dam and lovely gardens.

Relax on the poolside terrace after a dip, catch the latest flick in the media room or choose from a selection of living spaces in the main house.

LJ Hooker Dural have set the price guide at $5.2 million.