The neighbour who wasn't looking.

BW: Tell us about the property.

MK: 83 George Street is the kind of home that's genuinely hard to find in Redfern. Five bedrooms, a wide frontage, parking, and a 210 square metre block that gives a buyer real scope to do something with it. The home had been in the vendors' family since 1978, and we were selling on behalf of the five siblings following the passing of their mother. There was a lot of care in how we brought it to market - it wasn't just a transaction for the family, and we approached it that way.

BW: How did the buyer come about?

MK: Before the property went live, I called the neighbours on George Street to let them know the property was coming to market. This is pretty commonplace practice as it helps inform the street before they see the signboard and allows them the opportunity to ask any questions they may have. We also know that locals love and appreciate their local area more than most, so if they are in the market to buy, they’re often keen to stay in close proximity. Tracy and Michiel [the successful purchasers] were living just down the road. They weren't actively looking to buy but they said they'd be interested in seeing the property due to its potential for future value-add - so we organised an inspection.

BW: When did they first see it?

MK: At the photoshoot, before it was advertised to the wider market. They made it clear to us that they were very interested. The land size, the width, the potential to turn it into their own. Michiel works as an architect, so they could see immediately what was possible. The catch was that they'd need to sell their own home first before they could purchase.

BW: What happened next?

MK: We listed their home at 48 George Street on bw.com.au in the days following - off-market, meaning it didn’t appear on the portals. We held a number of inspections and it sold within the next fortnight. Their home was a classic Victorian terrace which appealed to a larger group of buyers due to the demand for ready-to-move in properties. They exchanged on their new home just days later. So, end to end the process took place over about five weeks.

BW: What does the speed of the off-market sale tell us about the market?

MK: That the buyer depth in these suburbs is genuinely strong. When a home sells off-market in two weeks, it indicates healthy levels of broad demand among active buyers. That’s not uncommon in the key lifestyle areas of Sydney. What’s probably most telling is the fact that Tracy and Michiel were not active in the market to begin with, but were prepared to move for the right opportunity. That indicates that the value proposition of the location is also very clear. 

BW: What's driving that appetite in Redfern right now?

MK: There's a number of factors. The investment in amenity and hospitality, the connectivity - particularly with the Waterloo Metro - is helping drive the evolution of the area. Projects like Toga's Surry Hills village and the planned Inner Sydney High School are also drawing people's attention to what's happening across this broader pocket of the city. It's changed a lot in recent years from being somewhere that people might consider among a set of suburbs to somewhere that people are really seeking out and wanting to establish themselves in.

BW: What does this sale signal more broadly?

MK: Well, this was an unusually streamlined example of movement between buyers and sellers. It doesn’t always happen that way, but I think it does reflect the appreciation for an area that locals have. It also highlights why keeping an open mind is important as to where the buyer might come from, how they find out about opportunity and the timeline in which they’re prepared to make a move.