Sydney Property Market Update | What the Latest Data Means for Sydney Buyers

Buyer Conditions Emerge as Momentum Softens into 2026

Following the release of our Sydney Property Market Wrap 2025 – Stability, Segmentation and Strategic Opportunity, newly released data from CoreLogic/ Cotality provides a timely and important update on how the market finished 2025 - and what this means for Sydney buyers moving into 2026.

While annual growth figures remain positive, the most recent monthly data confirms a clear deceleration in momentum, reinforcing many of the buyer-centric opportunities we highlighted in our original wrap.

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The Big Picture: Strong Year, Softer Finish

Nationally, dwelling values rose 8.6% across 2025,making it the strongest year of growth since 2021. However, December marked and noticeable shift:

• National growth slowed materially
• Sydney dwelling values declined slightly month-on-month (-0.1%)
• Growth has increasingly narrowed to lower and middle price segments

For Sydney specifically, this confirms a market that never overheated - and is now transitioning into a more measured, selective phase rather than a broad-based upswing.

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What the Latest Data Means for Sydney Buyers

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1. Buyer Leverage Is Improving —Especially at the Top End

The most pronounced softening is occurring in upper-quartile and prestige stock, where affordability constraints and interest-rate uncertainty are having the greatest impact.

For buyers:

• Negotiation depth is improving
• Vendor expectations are becoming more realistic
• Conditional and strategic offers are increasingly being considered

This is particularly relevant in blue-chip suburbs, where long-term fundamentals remain strong but short-term momentum has eased.

2. Segmentation Is Now Driving Outcomes

Sydney is no longer a “rising tide lifts all boats” market.

CoreLogic data shows:

• Lower and middle-quartile properties continue to     outperform
• Higher-value homes are lagging due to serviceability limits
• Buyers are being far more selective on price, quality, and location

For informed buyers, this creates pricing inefficiencies - especially where quality assets are being sold in softer conditions despite strong underlying fundamentals.

3. Rate Expectations Are Influencing Behaviour

A key shift flagged in the latest data is renewed uncertainty around interest rates, with markets increasingly pricing in a “higher-for-longer” outlook rather than continued cuts.

This has resulted in:

• Reduced urgency among discretionary buyers
• Fewer emotional bidding environments
• Greater emphasis on value, downside protection, and long-term hold quality

For buyers with secure finance and a long-term horizon, this is typically where the best decisions are made.

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Why This Environment Favours Prepared Buyers

Despite the softer momentum, Sydney’s structural undersupply, strong population growth, and planning constraints remain unchanged. What has changed is timing and leverage.

This phase of the cycle tends to reward buyers who:

• Are well-advised and data-led
• Can act decisively without relying on momentum
• Focus on asset quality rather than short-term growth

Importantly, the latest data supports the view that opportunity does not require falling prices - it requires less competition, better negotiation, and disciplined execution.

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Our View Looking into 2026

The updated CoreLogic figures reinforce our original position:

• Sydney is entering a period of stability, not stress
• Growth is likely to be slower and more uneven
• Buyers, not sellers will increasingly set the tone

For those actively looking to buy in 2026, this is shaping up as a strategic window - particularly for long-term owner-occupiers and buyers targeting scarce, high-quality assets in proven locations.

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Final Word for Buyers

In this environment, outcomes are increasingly defined by strategy and execution -not urgency. For well-advised buyers positioned to act strategically, an opportunity has emerged quietly as momentum fades, confidence wavers, and negotiation returns.

The latest data suggests that moment is beginning to form in Sydney.

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