The Sydney suburbs where rents soared most over 2025

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Sydney house rents hit a new record high in December, with the median asking price in one suburb jumping almost 30 per cent over the calendar year, as tenants seek more affordable options further out of the city.

The median asking rent for units remained at an all-time high too, and one spot recorded a 22.2 per cent increase over the year to December.

Rents increased in a mix of sought-after and affordable suburbs, with areas including Gosford on the Central Coast and Pyrmont and Barangaroo in the inner city clocking major hikes, Domain’s latest Rent Report, published on Thursday, revealed.

Sydney’s vacancy rate lifted to 1.4 per cent in December, from 0.9 per cent in the previous quarter, reflecting the beginning of the annual changeover period when many students conclude their leases. Even so, it was lower than the 1.7 per cent reached in December 2024, indicating that the market for renters remains exceedingly tight.

Over 2025, the median asking rent for units rose 7.1 per cent to $750, bringing it close to parity with the median asking rent for houses, up 3.9 per cent to $800.

Domain senior economist Dr Joel Bowman said more renters were vying for apartment stock as house rents became less affordable.

Curl Curl on the northern beaches recorded the biggest jump in asking rents for units, at 22.2 per cent in a year.

“Tenants who might have tried for a detached house are now trying for a townhouse or a unit,” he said.

Curl Curl on the northern beaches recorded the biggest jump in asking rents for units, at 22.2 per cent, followed by West Gosford on the Central Coast at 21.7 per cent and Barangaroo in the inner city at 17.6 per cent.

In all, four suburbs in the Gosford area made the top 20 list of suburbs where unit rents grew the most, and a further three Gosford-area suburbs made the top 20 list for houses.

“The big factor driving those gains on the Central Coast is affordability flight,” Bowman said.

“People are having to allocate more of their income to rent, which naturally leads to a greater drive towards more affordable pockets that are within commuting distance of Sydney.”

Of the top five suburbs where asking rents for houses rose most, two were in the Gosford area (Gosford at 21.5 per cent and Lisarow at 20 per cent) and two were on the northern beaches (Beacon Hill at 21.6 per cent and Wheeler Heights at 18.7 per cent).

The suburb with the biggest jump in asking rents for houses was Pyrmont at 29.8 per cent. That was a product of its desirable inner-city location and the lack of new housing stock in the area, said Bowman.

While certain suburbs recorded double-digit annual growth in asking rents, the citywide average increases were well below the surges of 2022-2024.

The market for renters remains exceedingly tight, data shows.

“All in all, affordability constraints are limiting how much landlords can push up rents,” said Bowman.

That’s cold comfort for prospective renters who must compete for apartments in a low-vacancy, high-cost environment, said Centre for Independent Studies chief economist Dr Peter Tulip.

“Anyone who has queued up for an inspection recently will verify that it remains very difficult to find an appropriate rental,” he said.

The chronic undersupply of housing in NSW remained the key driver of rent increases, Tulip said.

He reckons Sydney rents will stabilise and then decrease in the coming years. “But that’s not much help for people looking for a rental this year.”

Saskia Gray, 20, works in retail and began looking for an apartment to rent with her partner, a student, in March last year.

It took the couple four months to secure their place, a small one-bedroom in Drummoyne with a garage, for which they are paying $600 per week.

It took Saskia Gray and her partner four months to secure their Drummoyne rental.

Although they had to increase their original budget of $500 and give up on living in the trendy Newtown area, Gray said they felt “incredibly lucky” to have found housing.

“We got knocked back from six or seven places and when we found our current home, we applied for it before we even inspected it,” Gray said.

The pair dream of buying a property one day.

“But at this point, I can’t see us ever getting there,” Gray said. “The prices in Sydney have become unrealistic.”

Gray dreams of buying a property one day.

The Rent Fairy tenants’ agency director Sarah Elkordi said many Sydneysiders were being priced out of the rental market.

“They might have been in their rental for 18 months or two years, they’ve been given a rent increase, and that increase is a step too far, so now they’re moving back in with their parents.”

Elkordi said her Sydney clients were experiencing a higher degree of financial stress than those in other states and territories, but nowhere in Australia was immune.

“Every state is struggling. Everyone has an issue with supply and demand and an issue with the rise in living costs.”