- Most of the top ten were located in Forrest
- The list included a mix of short streets and longer roads
- The median price for the most expensive street was above $4.7 million
Canberra is Australia’s most expensive city to rent in, according to Domain, both in a 2021 report and its latest report. Renting a house is almost $800 per week, with renting a unit not far behind at almost $600 per week.
The difference between houses and units is more stark, with a house in Canberra setting you back around $1 million on SQM Research’s latest figures, and a unit setting you back just under $600,000.
The nation’s capital has a median house price of $1,096,114, according to Domain’s September 2022 figures, a quarterly fall of 5.8%.
For context, that’s $70,000 more than Melbourne’s median at $1,028,452, but cheaper than Sydney at $1,464,371.
A town of swimming pools and tennis courts
Houses on Canberra’s most expensive streets all sit on palatial land plots of almost 2000 square metres, with the smallest plots on the list still hundreds of square metres larger than a quarter acre.
The most common features for Canberra’s most expensive streets are swimming pools and tennis courts – you will be hard-pressed to find a house without these hallmarks of a wealthy home.
The Canberran suburb of Red Hill barely made it into Australia’s top 20 most expensive suburbs in our recent report, with a median house price of $2,755,400. The median price for houses on the most expensive street in Canberra is over $4.7 million, making the street median some 75 per cent higher than the Red Hill suburb median price.
Canberra is also the city of first home buyers and AirBnB, experts told The Property Tribune mid-last year – read on here.
Canberra’s most expensive streets
- Ord Street, Forrest, 2603
- National Circuit, Forrest, 2603
- Hobart Avenue, Forrest, 2603
- Dampier Crescent, Forrest, 2603
- Talbot Street, Forrest, 2603
- Hotham Crescent, Deakin, 2600
- Empire Circuit, Forrest, 2603
- Barkly Crescent, Forrest, 2603
- Mugga Way, Forrest, 2603
- Canterbury Crescent, Deakin, 2600
For the study generated by Suburbtrends, founder Kent Lardner said the methodology was not about selecting streets with one or two sales of mansions or streets with very large block sizes.
“We have selected streets with a significant number of houses with the highest overall median prices, rather than selecting a street based on the sale of one mansion. Our methodology has created a very different ‘top streets’ list, representing streets with a significant number of high priced properties and surrounded by the highest priced homes in the country” he said.
“Home buyers, sellers and agents should know how a street ranks within a suburb, especially in today’s market. For sellers and agents, this can help sell a home just like any other feature. For buyers, more listings are now entering the market compared with previous years. Knowing where the best streets are located can help you make better choices using a free street ranking search now available at suburbtrends.com.”
The Canberran suburb of Forrest was the standout for the top end of the list, with the remaining suburbs comprising a mix of Deakin, Yarralumla, Red Hill, O’Malley, Griffith, and Turner.
Asking prices for 2603 (incl. Forrest)
Asking prices for houses in the suburb of Forrest have most recently surged to a hair under $2 million, according to SQM Research data.
There was a large amount of price growth in the two years prior to Covid19, with houses reaching highs of over $1.6 million, before dropping below the $1 million during the early days of Covid19. While it flatlined for a period later in 2020, prices have since picked up the pace substantially for Forrest.
Ord Street
On the Red Hill side of Forrest, Ord Street is home to some of the most palatial city streets around. The median land size for homes on Ord Street is a palatial 1962 square metres, with building sizes 388 square metres. Median bedroom count is four, with homes commanding a median house price of $4,722,000.
National Circuit
Homes on National Circuit are much larger at 558 square metres of median building size. Land size is similar to Ord Street at 1947 square metres, with five bedrooms typical for the street. Median house prices for National Circuit is $4,409,000
Hobart Avenue
This street is home to smaller land sizes, with the site area median only 1,232 square metres. Homes are sizeable though at 465 square metres. Median house prices along Hobart Avenue are $4,235,000.
Dampier Crescent
Modestly sized homes of 341 square metres are typically situated on 1,368 square metres of land, with four bedrooms. The median price for the street is $4,227,000.
Talbot Street
Still in the suburb of Forrest, homes here have a median building size of 502 square metres, 1,682 square metres, and four bedrooms. House value medians for Talbot street are $4,143,500.
Hotham Crescent
Located in neighbouring Deakin, Hotham Crescent typically has sees homes with five bedrooms, a median land size of 1,701 square metres, and building are median of 370 square metres. Homes along the street have a median house value of $4,131,500.
Empire Circuit
Returning to the suburb of Forrest, Empire Circuit sees a median bedroom count of four, homes of typically 406 square metres building area and 1,549 square metres of land area. The median house price for the street is $4,130,000.
Barkly Crescent
Homes along this stretch of road fetch around $4,122,000, with land sizes a bit larger at 1,710 square metres. Buildings are smaller at 375 square metres, but bedroom count remains at four.
Mugga Way
The penultimate member of the top ten is still located in Forrest and like the streets before, have a median bedroom count of four. Site area on Mugga Way is typically 1,785 square metres, and buildings 411 square metres. House price median for the street is $4,114,500.
Canterbury Crescent
The final entrant to Canberra’s most expensive streets is located in Deakin, with homes here a mere 273 square metres, compared to other streets, with land size a reasonable 1,689 square metres. Again, homes here typically have four bedrooms, with the house value median $4,043,000.
Canberra’s top 50 most expensive streets full list
| Street name | Street type | Suburb | Postcode | Bedroom median | Site area median | Building area median | House value median | HouseCapitalValue90Percentile |
| ORD | STREET | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1962 | 388 | $ 4,722,000 | $ 5,344,400 |
| NATIONAL | CIRCUIT | FORREST | 2603 | 5 | 1947 | 558 | $ 4,409,000 | $ 5,245,800 |
| HOBART | AVENUE | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1232 | 465 | $ 4,235,000 | $ 4,766,000 |
| DAMPIER | CRESCENT | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1368 | 341 | $ 4,227,000 | $ 4,815,000 |
| TALBOT | STREET | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1682 | 502 | $ 4,143,500 | $ 5,486,500 |
| HOTHAM | CRESCENT | DEAKIN | 2600 | 5 | 1701 | 370 | $ 4,131,500 | $ 5,131,400 |
| EMPIRE | CIRCUIT | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1549 | 406 | $ 4,130,000 | $ 4,972,800 |
| BARKLY | CRESCENT | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1710 | 375 | $ 4,122,000 | $ 5,067,000 |
| MUGGA | WAY | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1785 | 411 | $ 4,114,500 | $ 5,742,100 |
| CANTERBURY | CRESCENT | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1689 | 273 | $ 4,043,000 | $ 4,378,600 |
| EMPIRE | CIRCUIT | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1804 | 392 | $ 4,041,000 | $ 4,992,200 |
| DOMINION | CIRCUIT | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1919 | 430 | $ 4,020,000 | $ 4,766,600 |
| NATIONAL | CIRCUIT | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1582 | 373 | $ 3,991,000 | $ 4,510,600 |
| ARTHUR | CIRCLE | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1454 | 342 | $ 3,977,000 | $ 5,279,100 |
| MELBOURNE | AVENUE | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1625 | 351 | $ 3,960,000 | $ 4,408,300 |
| DURVILLE | CRESCENT | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 1254 | 327 | $ 3,940,000 | $ 4,115,400 |
| HUNTER | STREET | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 5 | 1960 | 427 | $ 3,937,000 | $ 4,665,400 |
| WALLANGARA | STREET | O’MALLEY | 2606 | 5 | 1931 | 546 | $ 3,907,500 | $ 5,403,500 |
| BULWARRA | CLOSE | O’MALLEY | 2606 | 5 | 1922 | 497 | $ 3,899,500 | $ 4,437,400 |
| SOMERS | CRESCENT | FORREST | 2603 | 4 | 1821 | 548 | $ 3,873,000 | $ 4,582,800 |
| STOKES | STREET | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 1249 | 317 | $ 3,777,000 | $ 4,368,500 |
| BELMORE | GARDENS | BARTON | 2600 | 4 | 975 | 304 | $ 3,761,000 | $ 4,444,300 |
| DOMINION | CIRCUIT | DEAKIN | 2600 | 5 | 1901 | 379 | $ 3,731,000 | $ 4,475,700 |
| NORTHCOTE | CRESCENT | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1711 | 304 | $ 3,664,500 | $ 5,145,900 |
| BOUGAINVILLE | STREET | FORREST | 2603 | 3 | 1184 | 321 | $ 3,641,500 | $ 3,962,500 |
| STATE | CIRCLE | DEAKIN | 2600 | 3 | 1537 | 696 | $ 3,592,000 | $ 3,988,200 |
| SCARBOROUGH | STREET | RED HILL | 2603 | 4 | 1358 | 411 | $ 3,515,000 | $ 4,607,800 |
| ARTHUR | CIRCLE | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 3 | 1083 | 276 | $ 3,503,500 | $ 3,947,000 |
| DALY | STREET | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1340 | 302 | $ 3,496,000 | $ 4,183,799 |
| PENRHYN | STREET | RED HILL | 2603 | 4 | 1372 | 374 | $ 3,462,500 | $ 3,956,000 |
| FITZGERALD | STREET | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 4 | 1317 | 335 | $ 3,446,500 | $ 3,986,500 |
| AKAME | CIRCUIT | O’MALLEY | 2606 | 5 | 1491 | 485 | $ 3,427,000 | $ 4,508,999 |
| BASS | GARDENS | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 1196 | 331 | $ 3,382,000 | $ 3,895,200 |
| DUYFKEN | PLACE | RED HILL | 2603 | 3 | 894 | 839 | $ 3,376,000 | $ 3,394,000 |
| FURNEAUX | STREET | FORREST | 2603 | 3 | 1298 | 243 | $ 3,354,000 | $ 3,736,400 |
| CLARKE | STREET | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 4 | 789 | 254 | $ 3,321,000 | $ 3,808,400 |
| BERBET | STREET | O’MALLEY | 2606 | 7 | 1365 | 458 | $ 3,220,000 | $ 4,515,599 |
| FRANKLIN | STREET | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 822 | 1009 | $ 3,194,500 | $ 4,549,600 |
| FRANKLIN | STREET | FORREST | 2603 | 3 | 1393 | 331 | $ 3,183,000 | $ 4,122,400 |
| GRANT | CRESCENT | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 1020 | 292 | $ 3,166,500 | $ 3,869,400 |
| GIPPS | STREET | BARTON | 2600 | 3 | 986 | 281 | $ 3,136,500 | $ 3,576,800 |
| FURNEAUX | STREET | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 1338 | 1885 | $ 3,131,000 | $ 4,104,400 |
| HAYES | CRESCENT | GRIFFITH | 2603 | 4 | 1307 | 209 | $ 3,122,000 | $ 4,254,800 |
| BROWN | STREET | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 5 | 722 | 257 | $ 3,117,000 | $ 3,469,800 |
| GREY | STREET | DEAKIN | 2600 | 4 | 1324 | 321 | $ 3,113,000 | $ 4,380,200 |
| EWART | STREET | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 4 | 975 | 286 | $ 3,093,000 | $ 3,403,799 |
| CHARLOTTE | STREET | RED HILL | 2603 | 4 | 1528 | 431 | $ 3,083,000 | $ 4,062,600 |
| KNIBBS | STREET | TURNER | 2612 | 4 | 1349 | 212 | $ 3,076,000 | $ 3,487,500 |
| HUTT | STREET | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 4 | 1114 | 334 | $ 3,065,000 | $ 3,727,000 |
| ALEXANDRINA | DRIVE | YARRALUMLA | 2600 | 4 | 1314 | 449 | $ 3,054,500 | $ 3,885,600 |
Source: Suburbtrends.
Methodology
Suburbtrends started by compiling a list of house price estimates for every street in Australia.
The company subsequently removed streets that did not have price estimates for at least five properties and where the median lot size was over 2,000 square metres.
Suburb trends said that to ensure the results were not swamped by select few suburbs, streets were allocated to areas (Statistical Area 4 SA4) and a maximum quota of 10 streets per SA4 area was applied.
