Why this photo of a small garage that went on sale at Woollahra has raised eyebrows

A small garage has raised eyebrows after it was sold for more than the price of an apartment in some parts of Australia. 

The one-car lock-up garage sold off-market for a whopping $500,000 in Woollahra, a suburb in Sydney's affluent eastern suburbs. 

Inner-city parking can be scarce in suburbs like Woollahra, Surry Hills, Potts Point and Paddington - with spaces in hot demand.

Not surprisingly, the buyer was a local who needed a place to park their electric vehicle.

CoreLogic data showed the median price for an apartment in Australia is $644,758, however the price is lower in Darwin where the price is set at $364,075, and Perth and Adelaide are both $514,369.

The Agency real estate agent Ben Collier told Yahoo parking adds significant value to a property.

'Parking adds I would argue a minimum of 10 to 12 per cent of the overall property per space. It’s more on a percentage basis,' he said.  

'This gentleman would have taken a view that if his property is worth $5million or $6million, the car park reflects the value add to his house.'

The real estate agent said the garage was a rare find because it was on its own title - meaning it could be sold separately to the property.

'Normally the garage associated to that apartment is on the same title as that apartment,' he said.

'So therefore you can’t split them so you’ve got to buy the apartment.'

Mr Collier said when an apartment comes up for sale in a particular building in an area with little parking, it's 'more often than not' a local who buys it.

The resident keeps the parking for themselves and rents out the apartment.    

The Woollahra purchase was the most expensive garage sale Mr Collier is aware of.

Several car spaces in Potts Point were sold in 2023 with advertised prices of over $150,000 - and one measuring 18sq/m selling for $315,000. 

Ms Collier confirmed people were genuinely buying them to house their cars and not themselves, as the spaces 'are not big enough' to convert into living quarters.

Earlier this year, a Bondi property owner was offered a staggering $1m for their small lock-up garage that was attached to their apartment. 

Raine and Horne’s Ric Serrao said the the offer was rejected because it was too complicated to try to break up the title. 

Mr Serrao also said the car space would be worth more than $1million in the future.

The apartment ended up being sold with the garage with a price guide of $4million to $4.4million.

Mr Serrao also thinks garages are a good investment because people can still get a rental yield out of the spaces, with that garage having the rental potential for between $250 and $300 a week.

According to realestate.com.au's latest data, the median house price in Woollahra is $4.7million.

An Aussie would have to be cashed up to buy an apartment in the area just for its parking, with the median unit costing $1.31million.