The cost of renting and buying in Time Out's coolest Australian suburbs

Buying or renting a home in some of the world’s coolest neighbourhoods sounds costly, but the reality might not be as expensive as you think.

Melbourne’s Richmond and Sydney’s Surry Hills were recently named among the coolest neighbourhoods in the world, outranking pockets of Barcelona, Oslo and Tokyo in Time Out’s latest annual ranking. 

Yarraville and Footscray in Melbourne, Marrickville in Sydney and The Waterfront in Hobart have also had their cool factor recognised on the global stage, all making the top 15 in recent years.

However, with these areas making the list for their dining scenes, nightlife and culture – and also for factors like community spirit and sustainability in the latest rankings – living in our edgiest, gentrifying neighbourhoods can mean paying for more than just the accommodation.

Here’s what it will cost you to live in Australia’s coolest pockets.

Richmond

In Richmond, ranked the 10th coolest neighbourhood in the world in this year’s list, both the median house rent of $650 per week and the median unit rent of $400 are more expensive than the Greater Melbourne median – at $430 for houses and $370 for units.

$650 per week

11 North Street, Richmond VIC 3121

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Those median rents could get you a two-bedroom terrace or a two-bedroom apartment. However, rentals available on the market right now range from $185 per week for a bedsit without parking to $1900 per week for a four-bedroom contemporary house. 

If you’re looking to buy, median house and unit prices will set you back $1.38 million and $585,000 respectively, with both up about 5 per cent over the year to September. By comparison, the Melbourne median sits at about $1,038,000 for houses and about $577,000 for units.

A three-bedroom, one-bathroom house in the suburb recently sold for bang on the suburb’s $1.38 million median, while a two-bedroom terrace ready for renovation sold for $981,000 and a renovated four-bedroom Edwardian home sold for more than $2.1 million.

SOLD - $1,380,000

125 Buckingham Street, Richmond VIC 3121

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Surry Hills

This Sydney suburb ranks big for cool factor – 19th in the world in this year’s list – but poor for housing affordability, with both rents and property prices well above the city’s medians of $580 for houses and $485 for units.

The inner-city suburb has a median house rent of $840 per week – which would almost stretch to a three-bedroom terrace without parking – but rental properties are currently advertised for up to $2500 per week. Meanwhile, the apartment median of $530 could get you a two-bedroom unit without parking.

$530 per week

64/2 Goodlet Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010

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House-hunters will need to have cash to splash. An original-condition four-bedroom terrace on a 67-square-metre block sold earlier this year for a little under the suburb’s $1,937,500 median house price – well above the Sydney median of about $1.5 million. Meanwhile, a renovated four-bedroom terrace on 120 square metres recently sold for $2.72 million.

A two-storey, one-bedroom apartment recently sold for just over the suburb’s $802,475 median unit price.

SOLD - $1,916,000

32 Denham Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010

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Yarraville

Median rents in Melbourne’s Yarraville, ranked 5th in the world for cool factor in 2020, sit at $540 per week for houses and $360 for units.

Tenants searching at those price points could nab a three-bedroom house or two-bedroom unit. However, advertised rentals in the suburb currently range from $270 per week for a two-bedroom apartment to $820 per week for a stylish four-bedroom house.

$620 per week

10 Pearce Street, Yarraville VIC 3013

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Median house and unit prices sit at $1,090,000 and $628,750, respectively, but homes on the market range from a guide of $330,000 to $360,000 for a one-bedroom unit with a courtyard, to a guide of $2.8 million to $3 million for a four-bedroom, four-bathroom Californian Bungalow.

SOLD - $3,202,000

68 Powell Street, Yarraville VIC 3013

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Marrickville

Marrickville, in Sydney’s inner west, took out 10th place in 2020. Both the suburb’s median unit price ($782,000) and rent ($445) sit below the Sydney median, but house prices ($1.7 million) and rent ($750) are well above it.

$825

23 Despointes Street, Marrickville NSW 2204

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Renters looking at around the typical asking prices could lease a three-bedroom house or two-bedroom unit, while those prepared to spend up to $1300 could pick up a four-bedroom house with a pool.

For buyers, the median prices do not stretch as far as they did earlier in the year, with an original two-bedroom semi and a three-bedroom home – both in need of a renovation – recently selling for more than $1.7 million. Nice two-bedroom units in the suburb have been selling for more than $1 million.

SOLD - $1,712,000

264 Victoria Road, Marrickville NSW 2204

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Footscray

Footscray is the most affordable of the three Melbourne suburbs to be named among the coolest neighbourhoods – ranking 13th in 2019.

Asking rents for available properties range from around $170 for studios in student accommodation, up to $950 per week for a new three-bedroom apartment with city views and a large terrace.

400

106 Victoria Street, Footscray VIC 3011

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Closer to the median rents of $450 for a house and $340 for units, tenants could find a two-bedroom terrace close to the station or a one or two-bedroom unit.

Those looking to buy could secure a two-bedroom unit for around the suburb’s median apartment price of $476,800. Meanwhile, house hunters recently spent a little under the $890,000 median house price on a two-bedroom house in the suburb’s north and a two-bedroom semi in “need of copious amounts of TLC” in central Footscray.

SOLD - $865,000

35 Moore Street, Footscray VIC 3011

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Hobart

The Hobart city centre, or rather the waterfront specifically, ranked as the sixth coolest neighbourhood in the world in 2019.

Rents across Greater Hobart have soared, and within the city centre they are up more than 30 per cent annually to a median of $555 for houses and $500 for units. Unsurprisingly, it’s pricier to live closer to the water, with a three-bedroom townhouse less than 200 metres from the waterfront asking $695 per week.

$680 per week

11/1 Creswells Row, Hobart TAS 7000

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Meanwhile a two-bedroom apartment in a waterfront block, recently sold for almost $1.3 million, well above the Hobart CBD’s median of $766,250. The home had a large deck area and patio, but no water views.