Balmain is a harbourside suburb located 5km west of Sydney's CBD in the Inner West Council Local Government Area.
Previously Balmain was a large industrial hub of Sydney, which lead many of the mid 1900s trade unionist movement. The population was mainly blue collar workers working in the shipyards, boiler making and dockhands.
Throughout the 1960s onwards due to the exceptional harbourfront location, Sydney's middle class begun moving into Balmain, largely rejuvenating and then gentrifying the suburb.
Today, Balmain is one of Sydney's wealthiest suburbs, and well known for its exceptional village lifestyle close to the CBD. Prices in Balmain have soared since the 1900s, now pricing at close to $2.5M.
Lifestyle
Balmain is one of Sydney's most liveable suburbs, and also one of Sydney's most beautiful. The Balmain Peninsula holds some of the best harbour views of the lower north shore, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Anzac Bridge.
Many locals enjoy the peninsula along Darling Street - the main street of Balmain, which is fantastic for coffee, restaurants, pubs and also pop culture.
Balmain has a number of parks and facilities, that include Gladstone Park, Birrung Park, Hyam Street Reserve and White Bay Park. Elkington Park is another with great views north to Greenwich and Gladesville.
Many locals enjoy walking throughout the suburb with family, friends and pets. Exercising is done throughout the suburb, and towards Bay run in nearby Rozelle.
School Zones
Alike to residents of Rozelle, many of the professionals and wealthier residents send their children to private schools. Newington College in Stanmore, Trinity in Summer Hill, Presbyterian Ladies College in Croydon or International Grammar School in Ultimo are all popular.
Younger residents often attend Balmain Public School, Birchgrove Public School or Rozelle Public School. Inner Sydney Montessori School is also within the suburb on Smith Street.
St Mark's Catholic Primary School is within the suburb and serves younger residents with a catholic education.
Sydney Secondary College - Balmain and Leichhardt are the two most common schools for publically educated secondary students.
Bridge Road School is a school of special needs located at nearby Camperdown, within 5 minutes of Rozelle.
Demographics
Historically, Balmain was an extremely working class neighbourhood, with most of the suburb in the early 1900s working as miners, and in the shipyards in the mid 1900s.
Today, Balmain is one of Sydney's wealthiest suburbs, especially in the inner west and known for being a privileged pocket of the inner west.
The median weekly household income in Balmain was $3,039 per week in 2021, up from $1,876 in 2006. Families, childless couples and long term residents are all common in Balmain.
Australian, English, Kiwi, Irish, Scottish and American ancestry is all very common in Balmain.
Employment
Balmain has close to double the Australian average of professional and managerial employees, many of which are in very distinguished industries. Close to 70% of Balmain's working residents sit in these fields.
Law, Finance, IT and Healthcare are all the largest employers in Balmain, with many residents holding very high corporate positions in their respective fields.
Median weekly personal incomes in Balmain are close to double the national average at $1,577 per week compared to the Australian average of $805 per week.
Transport
Balmain once was home to a tramway in the early 1900s to mid 1900s, which largely improved Balmain's population.
Balmain residents who work and enjoy lifestyle events in the inner west and CBD often catch buses from the main roads of the suburb such as Darling Street, Beattie Street, Mullens Street, Glassop Street and Robert Street.
Working from home is extremely common in Balmain, with over 60% of the working population working entirely from home, creating a great lifestyle and freedom for many residents.
Cycling and walking is also very popular as many residents only have a single vehicle due to space constraints and very easy commutability.
Shopping Centre's, Restaurants & Facilities
Balmain is best known for its village lifestyle. Darling Street is a fantastic high street style location where many residents enjoy some of Sydney's best restaurants and cafe's.
Darling Street in Balmain is one of Sydney's best locations for a pub crawl, town night out and live music, with many original pubs dating back to the late 1800s creating fantastic host atmosphere.
Balmain Tigers was home to the original Western Suburbs Magpies, now West Tigers in the Rugby League.
Cricket, soccer, rowing and sailing are also very popular sports. Balmain FC plays in the National Premier League Division 3, and Sydney Cricket Club play at Birchgrove Oval.
Balmain Rowing Club is located in Birchgrove and home to the annual Balmain Regatta, and Balmain Rowing Club occupies its White Street location.
Birkenhead Point is straight across the bay, at Drummoyne and is a well known location for many Sydney residents to do their shopping. Darling Street in Balmain also holds a high street feel with many boutique brands.
Most of the larger department shopping if not found in Birkenhead Point, is done at DFO Olympic Park or the CBD.
Clubs such as arts, crafts, running and yoga are all popular in Balmain, and often are run in mornings and afternoons in the parks of the suburb, sometimes homes.
Development
Most of Balmain, close to 60% is detached and attached houses, many dating back to the 1800s. Many of these homes also hold heritage protection by-laws which restrict development.
Townhouses are more common towards the Harbour and Darling Street, though many developments are met with fierce backlash from local community groups wanting to take care of the community and street scape.
Most of the development in Balmain, involves redevelopment of existing miners cottages or terraces, which can sometimes fetch over $5 million.
Larger scale developments are fairly rare, and often sold for incredible sums of money, sometimes more than $40 million. Occasionally double lots are available in Balmain, though also extremely rare.
Shop top housing is also common along Darling Street, though very firmly held, often for many generations.
Capital Growth
The Balmain Peninsula is known for having some of Sydney and Australia's strongest capital growth. Rozelle, Balmain, Birchgrove, Lilyfield and Balmain East are all commonly top performers.
Houses in Balmain have performed at over 9.5% capital growth year on year for more than 100 years, representing some of the longest growth in Australia. Many of the best streets in Balmain have growth over 12.5%, though very rarely turnover.
Townhouses and units average 7% and 4% growth respectively. Townhouses have fairly solid growth, however they are very rare, especially in the desirable pockets.
Cash Flow
Houses in Balmain yield 2.5-2.7% yield, which is high for a suburb with a high median price of over $2.5M.
Homes in Balmain can sometimes yield closer to 3%, many of which are miners cottages freshened up for professionals.
Townhouses and units yield close to 3.5%, which is low for Sydney, but largely due to the average median price being over $1.35M.
Rental Demand
Alike to many of its Peninsula neighbours, Balmain has some of the lowest vacancy rates in the inner west. Houses average 1.8% vacancy rates, very low for a suburb with a very high median price.
Apartments average 2.1% vacancy rates, still low. Townhouses generally average the same vacancy rates as houses.
Over the past 15 years, rents in Balmain for houses have doubled, moving from $700 per week to $1,400 per week on average. This represents some of the highest rental increases in Sydney.
Properties in Balmain, particularly waterfront properties can sometimes lease for more than $6,000 per week, numbers comparable with the Eastern Suburbs and Lower North Shore.
Why You Require a Buyers Agent in Balmain
The secret of the Peninsula is one no more, Balmain is a fantastic location to live. This has been known since the 1950s, where the suburb went through large rejuvenation and then gentrification in the 1970s and 1980s.
Today, Balmain is a hot suburb for wealthy families, immigrants, developers, investors and professional childless couples wanting to enjoy the village lifestyle close to the CBD.
Stock levels in Balmain are critically low, with rarely more than 10 houses on the market at any point in time. This low stock level is met with a very strong demand from a wealthy demographic, forcing prices even higher.
Balmain is also home to many very notable residents such as Dawn Fraser, who do not transact their homes on market, but to the highest bidder off market, meaning some of the best homes are inaccessible.
Having a buyers agent in your corner will ensure that you have the access, market knowledge and experience to close a deal saving you thousands on the purchase price and will potentially make you millions in years to come.
Why not seek Professional Advice from one of our consultants
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