Free market report · Data to July 2026

Woollahra property market

Woollahra is one of the 453 council areas we track on the Momentum Dial, our property clock. This page is the plain-numbers read: where it sits in the cycle, who lives there, what's being built, and the suburbs inside it.

Woollahra is home to 55,218 people. On the Buyers First Momentum Dial its house market currently reads Rising, while units read at Peak. Same council, different clocks, which is exactly why we track them separately. The number to sit with before anything else: population has been shrinking at -0.3% a year. Everything below should be read against that. Here's the rest of the picture, in plain numbers.

Houses · cycle position

Rising

The Woollahra house market is accelerating. Growth is building pace rather than fading, which is the phase most investors wish they had caught in hindsight.

-5% to +9%

Modelled 12-month price range

-0.8%

Modelled 12-month rent change

Units · cycle position

Peak

The unit market is growing at its fastest pace in the current cycle. That is a momentum reading, not a crash call: markets can sit at peak growth for a long time before easing.

-3% to +8%

Modelled 12-month price range

+3.2%

Modelled 12-month rent change

At a glance · houses

$4,132,559

Typical house, August 2026

+2.5% a year since 2010

+1.0%

Growth a year, last 10 years

-1.1% a year over the last 5

$2,019

Rent a week

2.5% gross yield

8 of 15

Years prices fell since 2010

Worst: 2024, -5%

The clock measures growth momentum, not price. Peak means growing fastest, not about to fall. Cycle data and projections sourced from HtAG Analytics. See Woollahra on the clock.

Free · One per person

Want all of this written up for Woollahra?

The full report is this data as a written document, plus the current price, rent, yield and growth on one suburb inside Woollahra, and the numbers that cut against the area. I write them by hand, so it comes from me rather than out of a system.

Leave your details and I'll get in touch about it myself, by email or phone, usually within one business day. It comes from dan@buyersfirstagency.com.au, and it lands in junk more often than it should, so check there if you don't see it. You'll also go on the Market Pulse mailing list, one email a month on where the market is actually heading. Unsubscribe whenever you like, and I never pass your details to anyone else.

The numbers, explained

Woollahra in charts.

The typical house in Woollahra went from $2,753,603 in 2010 to $4,132,559 in August 2026. That is +50% in total, +2.5% a year. It went backwards 4 years in a row at one point. Any market can have a bad year. The ones that stack them are the ones that hurt, and this is the number we weigh most.

Houses · price change each year · 2011 to 2026

Prices in Woollahra fell in 8 of the last 15 years

Watch this
-4.5% '11 -2.6% '12 '13 '14 11.7% 2015 '16 '17 -4.3% '18 -0.2% '19 2020 '21 -0.5% '22 -1.4% '23 -5.5% '24 -2.6% 2025 1.1% '26 ytd

+50%

Since 2010

+1.0%

Per year, last 10 years

8 of 15

Years going backwards

-5.5%

Worst year (2024)

What this shows. How much the typical house price in Woollahra went up or down each year. Teal bars are up years, red bars are down years, and the faded bar is this year so far.

Why it matters. The size of a good year matters less than how many bad years there were and whether they came in a row. Boring? Absolutely. But the length of the down stretch is what decides whether you get out the other side. Typical price at December each year, data from HtAG Analytics.

You don't need to know property to read this. Every chart below opens with the point in one line, then says what it shows and why we care. Teal is a good sign, amber is okay, red means watch it.

The scorecard · 7 things we check

Woollahra scores 19 out of 35. Mixed.

Okay
Cycle 4Down years 1Supply 5People 1Jobs 5Affordability 1Rentals 2 5 = best
Where it is in the cycle

prices are rising and speeding up

Years prices fell since 2010

8 of 15 years

New homes being built

1.0 new homes approved per 100 that exist

People moving in

population shrinking 0.3% a year

Jobs

2.4% unemployed, Australia 4.2%

Can locals afford it

a house costs 21.0 years of a local household's income

Empty rentals

2.6% of rentals are empty, so about 3 in every 100

What this shows. Seven quick checks on Woollahra, each scored out of five. Five is the reading we most want to see.

Why it matters. No single number tells you whether an area is a good buy. Together they show whether the pieces line up. These are bands, not rules: a council outside a band can still be the right buy for the right person, and one inside every band can still be wrong for you.

House prices since 2010 · Woollahra vs the 5 most similar councils in NSW

Woollahra has grown more slowly than similar councils over ten years

Watch this
$1.22m $2.45m $3.67m $4.89m Woollahra $4.09m 20102012201420162018202020222024
WoollahraSimilar councils (middle of 5)

-1.1% vs +2.5%

A year, last 5 years

+1.0% vs +2.5%

A year, last 10 years

+2.5% vs +3.1%

A year, last 15 years

What this shows. The typical house price in Woollahra every year, in teal, next to the middle of the five councils in NSW closest to it in size and starting price: Waverley, North Sydney, Willoughby, Mosman, Hunters Hill. The small "vs" number in each tile is those councils.

Why it matters. Sometimes a slower market is catching up, sometimes it is being passed. The jobs and supply readings on this page tell you which.

Momentum · the last 36 months

Prices in Woollahra are moving at a steady pace

Okay
$3.95m $4.28m $4.61m 0 38 sold September '23March '24September '24March '25September '25March '26
Last 3 months' priceLast 12 months' priceHouses sold each month

$4,132,904

3-month price, August 2026

+0.0%

3-month price vs 12-month price

200 vs 236

Houses sold, last 12 months vs the 12 before

What this shows. Two versions of the same price. The dotted teal line averages the last three months, so it reacts fast. The grey line averages the last twelve, so it moves slowly. The bars are how many houses sold each month.

Why it matters. The three-month and twelve-month prices are moving together. No acceleration either way.

New homes · approvals as a share of all the homes here

Not many new homes are being built in Woollahra

Good sign
balanced · 1.5% to 3% a year above this, a lot of building 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 0.6% FY24 · 147 approved 0.5% FY25 · 113 approved 1.0% FY26 · 237 approved · now

What this shows. For every 100 homes already in Woollahra, how many new ones the council approved each year. The teal band is the range we call balanced.

Why it matters. Fewer new homes means the ones that exist stay in demand. It can also mean building here is hard or slow, which cuts the same way. The home count is the population divided by the average household size, so treat the rate as a guide rather than a census.

Affordability · house price in years of local household income

A house in Woollahra costs 21.0 years of a local family's income

Watch this
expensive · over 8 years stretched · 6 to 8 years affordable · under 6 years 27.4 2016 28.6 2017 26.5 2018 25.5 2019 26.2 2020 27.3 2021 26.2 2022 25.0 2023 22.8 2024 21.5 2025 21.0 2026 so far

What this shows. Take the typical house price and divide it by what a typical household here earns in a year. A bar of 7 means seven years of the whole household's income buys one house.

Why it matters. Expensive for the people who live here. Prices at this level need outside buyers to keep moving, and outside buyers are the first to leave when things wobble. Income is the 2021 Census figure carried forward at 3.5% a year, so it is an estimate, not a measurement.

Rents · typical weekly house rent, last 36 months · and how many rentals sit empty

Rent in Woollahra is $2,019 a week, up 9.3% in a year

Good sign
$1641 $1890 $2140 $2,019 a week now September '23March '24September '24March '25September '25March '26

$2,019

A week, August 2026

+9.3%

Change in the last year

2.6%

Rentals sitting empty (balanced)

What this shows. What a typical house in Woollahra rents for each week, month by month. The empty-rentals number is the share of rental homes with nobody in them: under 1.5% is tight, over 3% means tenants have plenty of choice.

Why it matters. Rents rising faster than inflation means more people want to live here than there are homes to rent. That pressure eventually shows up in prices.

Rental yield · a year of rent as a share of the price, Woollahra vs similar councils

Rent covers 2.5% of the price each year in Woollahra

1.2% 2.0% 2.8% 202120232025
WoollahraSimilar councils

What this shows. Yield is simple: a whole year of rent divided by the house price. A $500,000 house renting for $500 a week earns $26,000 a year, which is a 5.2% yield.

Why it matters. Higher than similar councils, which are around 2.0%. The rent does more of the heavy lifting here, so holding costs less out of pocket. We don't buy on yield alone and we never set a yield cut-off; it is one piece of the picture, next to growth.

The people

Who lives in Woollahra.

The population has been shrinking, -0.3% a year over the last five years, and that is the single biggest caution flag in this report. Interesting mix underneath: locals have been leaving on net (-2,933 over three years) while overseas migration more than filled the gap (4,178). Worth understanding who is arriving and what housing they need. The median age is 41 and the median household brings in $3,192 a week (Census 2021). 37% of households rent, a deep tenant pool if you're buying to hold, and more investor competition when stock is tight.

Population · ABS estimates 2015 to 2025

Woollahra is losing people: 55,218 residents, -0.3% a year

Watch this
57,513 55,218 201520202025

55,218

People, 2025

-0.3% vs +0.6%

A year, last 5 years · typical NSW council

-0.4%

A year, last 10 years

Why it matters. A shrinking population is the single biggest caution flag in this report. Fewer people means fewer buyers and fewer tenants.

Where the growth came from · last 3 years

Overseas arrivals are doing the heavy lifting in Woollahra: 4,178 in three years

Okay
Births minus deaths
+349
Moved from elsewhere in Australia
-2,933
Moved from overseas
+4,178

Net change: +1,594 people over three years.

What this shows. Three ways a place gains or loses people: babies born minus people who died, people who moved here from another part of Australia, and people who arrived from overseas. Bars to the right add people, bars to the left take them away.

Why it matters. Overseas arrivals usually rent first, so this kind of growth shows up in rents before it shows up in prices.

Age and households · Census 2021

Woollahra is about the same age as the typical NSW council: median age 41

Typical age
Median age 41 vs 42
People per household 2.3 vs 2.4

Woollahra Typical NSW council (middle of 122)

Why it matters. A mixed-age area has demand for most housing types, which makes it easier to sell to whoever the next buyer is.

Income and who owns the homes · Census 2021

Woollahra is a renters' market: 37% of homes are rented, vs 25% in the typical NSW council

Deep rental pool
Household income a week $3,192 +115% vs typical
Who lives in the homes 59% own · 37% rent

Own or paying off Renting Other

Why it matters. Lots of renters means a deep tenant pool if you are buying to hold, and more investor competition when stock is tight.

New supply

What's being approved to build.

237 dwellings were approved in FY26, 54 of them houses. Approvals are clearly trending up, so more supply is coming. Whether that's a problem depends on whether the population keeps outrunning it. $121 million of non-residential building was approved in FY26, nearly all of it private. Within that, $69 million of education and health buildings have been approved across the last three financial years. Schools and hospitals are the most honest signal governments give about where they expect families.

Homes approved · ABS, by financial year

Not much new is being built in Woollahra: 237 homes approved in FY26

Good sign
FY24
147
FY25
113
FY26
237

Houses Units, townhouses and other

237

Homes approved, FY26

23%

Of them houses

1.0%

New homes per 100 that exist

What this shows. How many new homes the council approved each financial year, split into houses and everything else. Approved is not built, but it is the earliest warning of supply on the way.

Why it matters. When little gets built, the homes already here do not have much competition. Good for prices, as long as people keep arriving.

Non-residential building approved · ABS

Government building spend in Woollahra has eased: $529k approved in FY26

Okay
FY24
$35m
FY25
$59m
FY26
$121m

Government projects All non-residential

$121m

All sectors, FY26

$529k

Government, FY26

$69m

Schools and health, last 3 years

What this shows. The dollar value of shops, offices, schools, hospitals and other non-home buildings approved each year. The darker bar is the government's share.

Why it matters. Governments build where they expect people. Schools and hospitals are the most honest signal they give about where families are heading. For the named projects behind these numbers, ask for the full report.

Jobs

Who's working in Woollahra.

Work here runs on professional services (21% of jobs), ahead of finance and health care and social assistance. 2,437 more residents are in work than five years ago (+7.8%). Unemployment sits at 2.4%, comfortably under the national 4.2%. On the ABS advantage index this council ranks in the top 10% of the country, which you'll notice in the price tags.

Jobs · SALM, March 2026

2,437 more people in Woollahra have a job than five years ago

Good sign

33,701

Residents in work

2.4% vs 4.2%

Unemployed · Australia

+7.8%

Jobs change, 5 years

Unemployment rate 2.4% vs 3.4% typical NSW council

Woollahra Australia

Why it matters. Strong jobs growth shows up in housing demand with a lag. People get the job first and buy the house a year or two later.

Who employs people here · Census 2021

Professional services is the biggest employer in Woollahra, 21% of jobs

Advantage 10 of 10
Professional services
21%
Finance
14%
Health care and social assistance
11%
Education and training
7%
Retail trade
6%

What this shows. The five industries that employ the most residents, as a share of all jobs. The pill is the ABS advantage score: Woollahra sits in decile 10 of 10 nationally, where 10 is the most advantaged.

Why it matters. One industry carrying a fifth or more of the jobs is a concentration risk. If it wobbles, the whole town feels it.

The outlook

Is Woollahra worth buying into?

The strongest thing the data says for Woollahra is a job base that has expanded. Against that, weigh a shrinking population. None of this guarantees anything. It tells you where to look harder, which is what a report like this is for.

Free · Written by hand · One per person

This page is the public data. The full report is that written up as a document, plus the current price, rent, yield and growth on one suburb inside Woollahra. One per person.

Name, email and phone. I write these by hand, one per person, and the conversation afterwards is the only thing the report costs.

Leave your details and I'll get in touch about it myself, by email or phone, usually within one business day. It comes from dan@buyersfirstagency.com.au, and it lands in junk more often than it should, so check there if you don't see it. You'll also go on the Market Pulse mailing list, one email a month on where the market is actually heading. Unsubscribe whenever you like, and I never pass your details to anyone else.

Inside the LGA

The suburbs of Woollahra.

Next step. See what's for sale in Woollahra on realestate.com.au or Domain. Then send me the address before you make an offer. That is the part the data cannot do.

All 10 suburbs and localities in Woollahra

Bellevue Hill · Darling Point · Double Bay · Edgecliff · Paddington · Point Piper · Rose Bay · Vaucluse · Watsons Bay · Woollahra

Free · Written by hand · One per person

Want the full workup on Woollahra?

This page is the public data. The full report is the written workup: current price, rent, gross yield and vacancy, growth over 1, 3, 5 and 10 years, days on market and demand, and the supply coming down the pipe, for Woollahra or any suburb in it. Same data we run for clients. I pull it and email it through, usually within a business day. One per person, no charge, and no 14-part email sequence afterwards. All I ask is that if it lands, you take the fifteen minute call at the end of it.

Name, email and phone. I write these by hand, one per person, and the conversation afterwards is the only thing the report costs.

Leave your details and I'll get in touch about it myself, by email or phone, usually within one business day. It comes from dan@buyersfirstagency.com.au, and it lands in junk more often than it should, so check there if you don't see it. You'll also go on the Market Pulse mailing list, one email a month on where the market is actually heading. Unsubscribe whenever you like, and I never pass your details to anyone else.

Keep comparing

Markets of a similar size in NSW.

A council only makes sense in context. These are the NSW markets closest to Woollahra in population, each with its own written report.

General information only, not financial or investment advice. Cycle positions and projections are modelled LGA-level figures to July 2026, sourced from HtAG Analytics. Population and approvals are ABS estimates; employment is SALM smoothed data; income, age and tenure are Census 2021. None of it can see street quality, flood maps, zoning or the contract, which is where deals are actually won and lost. Get advice on your own situation before acting.

Data finds the area. It doesn't buy the house.

We narrow 15,000 suburbs to the top 5 for each client, then find the street and the property. If Woollahra is on your list, that's a conversation worth having early.

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