A small garage has raised eyebrows after it was sold for more than the price of an apartment in some parts of Australia.
The one-car garage sold off-market for as much as $500,000 in Woollahra, a suburb in Sydney’s affluent eastern suburbs.
Parking in the city center can be scarce in suburbs such as Woollahra, Surry Hills, Potts Point and Paddington, where parking spaces are in high demand.
It is assumed that the buyer is a local resident who needs a place to park their electric vehicle.
Data from CoreLogic shows the average price for an apartment in Australia is $644,758, but the price is lower in Darwin, where the price is set at $364,075, and Perth and Adelaide are both $514,369.
The locked garage (pictured) in Woollahra, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, sold for a whopping $500,000 so the buyer (a local resident) could house his electric vehicle
Broker Ben Collier of the Agency said this Yahoo Parking adds significant value to a property.
“Parking adds that I would advocate for a minimum of 10 to 12 percent of the total property per space. It’s more of a percentage,” he said.
“This gentleman would have felt that if his property was worth $5 to $6 million, the parking lot would reflect the added value of his home.”
The agent said the garage was a rare find because it was on private title, meaning it could be sold separately from the property.
“Normally, the garage associated with that apartment is on the same title as that apartment,” he said.
“So that’s why you can’t split them, so you have to buy the apartment.”
Mr Collier said that when an apartment comes up for sale in a particular building in an area with little parking, “more often than not” it is a local resident who buys it.
The resident keeps the parking space for himself and rents out the apartment.
The Woollahra purchase was the most expensive garage sale of which Mr Collier is aware.
Several car spaces in Potts Point sold in 2023 with advertised prices in excess of $150,000 – and one of 18 sq/m sold for $315,000.
Woollahra, Sydney has a median house price of $4.7 million, while units cost a median of $1.31
As Sydney faces a rental shortage and cost of living crisis, some people may buy apartments just for the parking space (photo of potential renters queuing to inspect a Sydney property)
Ms Collier confirmed that people were really buying them to house their cars and not for themselves, as the spaces are ‘not big enough’ to turn into living accommodation.
Earlier this year, a Bondi property owner was offered as much as $1 million for his small garage attached to his apartment.
Ric Serrao of Raine and Horne said the bid was rejected because it was too complicated to try to break the title.
Mr. Serrao also said the car space would be worth more than $1 million in the future.
The apartment was eventually sold along with the garage with a price estimate of $4 million to $4.4 million.
Mr Serrao also thinks garages are a good investment because people can still get a rental income from the spaces, with that garage having a rental potential of between $250 and $300 per week.
According to real estate.com.auAccording to the latest data, the average house price in Woollahra is $4.7 million.
An Australian would have to shell out a lot of money to buy an apartment in the area just for the parking, with the average unit costing $1.31 million.