Northern Beaches

The Sydney suburbs where home owners never want to leave

PHOTO: Sydney, Australia. FILE

Sydney home owners are holding on to their homes longer than ever as the pricey property market makes it tough to move.

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The increasing cost of stamp duty, unaffordable housing, the limited number of homes for sale and the desire for space to accommodate adult children and grandchildren have all driven home owners to hold on to their properties longer, in some cases for twice as long as two decades ago.

Stamp duty costs are one of the major reasons driving homeowners to hold onto their properties for twice as long since 2002.
Stamp duty costs are one of the major reasons driving homeowners to hold onto their properties for twice as long since 2002.CREDIT:PETER RAE

The median hold period for houses across greater Sydney has jumped from 5.3 years in December 2002 to 10 years in December 2022, CoreLogic data revealed.

For units, the median hold period increased from 4.3 years December 2002 to 8.3 years in December 2022.

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The biggest increase in hold periods was for houses in the inner west, increasing from 5.4 years to 11.7 years.

The longest hold periods for houses were in Sutherland, at 12.3 years.

CoreLogic’s head of research Tim Lawless said larger deposits and stamp duty costs were causing people to stay in their homes for longer.

“The cost of stamp duty is very prohibitive. It’s one of the things that keeps people from transacting. It keeps them in their house for longer, rather than trading up or trading down,” Lawless said.

“Funding the cost of stamp duty is a real challenge. Then saving for deposit has become a real challenge, it’s influencing lower turnover.”

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Even when home owners overcome these hurdles, there are few homes for sale to choose from.

In the 12 months to February, only 4 per cent of Sydney homes have sold. Even at the height of the boom, turnover wasn’t much higher at 5.9 per cent.

“Fewer people are transacting through the market – that flows through to longer hold periods,” Lawless said, noting home owners in affluent suburbs held property for longer while the reverse was true for lower priced postcodes.

Home owners were choosing to stay put and spend what they would have spent on stamp duty to extend or renovate to accommodate their changing needs.

For Bruce and Jenny Finn, selling their long-term family home in Ryde has been on the cards for some time, but they had delayed it until now because of the cost of stamp duty, even in a downsize, and the need for space to host their adult children and grandchildren.

Bruce and Jenny Finn are selling their family home of 40 years after it accommodated them through the different stages of life.
Bruce and Jenny Finn are selling their family home of 40 years after it accommodated them through the different stages of life.CREDIT:JESSICA HROMAS

“We had thought of it but then taking all those things into consideration, well, we might as well stay,” Bruce said.

The Finns said the home has served them well, being close to shops, parks and schools.

“Even our grandkids have started to have sleepovers, we can take them down to Buffalo Creek for adventures. We’re right next to Ryde park, it’s a very good spot to enjoy the facilities.”

One of their daughters, Erica Frain, 48, said while it will be hard to sell the home as it holds sentimental value, it has served the whole family, including her sister, in different stages of their lives.

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