Two years after the NSW Government announced its density reforms, the buyer frenzy may have cooled but exciting deals are still being made.
Sydney’s LMR (low, mid-rise reform) buzz may have died down, but for developers and vendors prepared to work through a deal, there are still plenty of enticing opportunities, insiders say.
The Harbour City’s development landscape has come a long way over the past two years, since the NSW Government – frustrated by slow council approvals – took matters into its own hands to create new housing supply.
The NSW Government is pushing on with densification efforts. Picture: Supplied
The NSW Government’s Transport Oriented Development (TOD) program has rezoned land within 400m of 37 key train and metro stations, allowing buildings of up to six to eight storeys, with 170,000 new homes planned over 15 years.
The complementary reforms have extended that logic outward, permitting terraces, townhouses and apartment buildings of up to six storeys within 800m of 171 town centres and stations across greater Sydney.
When the reforms first landed, the market went into a frenzy. Agents threw around eye-watering numbers, neighbours banded together, and supersites changed hands at multiples of individual properties’ value.
In Rose Bay, 12 amalgamated homes sold for $173m. In Cremorne, nine neighbours stitched together a $60m super site. By mid-year, another handful of Mosman mega lots had listed.
Nine neighbours in Rose Bay banded together to offer up this super site. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
From frenzy to fundamentals
Since then, the market has sobered up: Construction costs are high, councils are pushing back, and developers are wary of oversupply.
“If you put a development site on the market three years ago, you’d have 200 inquiries,” said Paul Ephron of Colliers Sydney. “Now you’re lucky to get 20 or 30.”
Plus the resistance has been fierce in some quarters, with legal challenges, heritage battles, and residents unhappy about the prospect of new towers in their suburbs.
“There are people who say, ‘I’ve been living here my whole life and I don’t want to move, but I might be forced to’,” said Zorick Tolstan of Ray White Commercial Eastern Suburbs.
23-25 East Crescent Street, McMahons Point is on the market with stunning waterfront views of Sydneys most iconic landmarks. Picture: Supplied
Clover Moore, longstanding Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney, said her LGA has seen the bulk of densification efforts, but the planning needs more diversity.
“Our local area has grown rapidly over the last 10 years, with around 25,000 private homes built. This is about 8% per cent of all housing growth in the greater Sydney area over the same period,” Ms Moore told realcommercial.com.au.
“While we welcome the commitment from the NSW Government to providing new homes, quickly, results are far better when state and local governments work together.
“We don’t just need more housing – we need more diverse housing that allows everyone to experience life in our beautiful city.”
City of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore. Picture: Damian Shaw
For investors, planning approvals can be costly and complex, while vendors also need to be patient.
“A lot of owners assumed the developer would settle in six months but they required 18-24 month settlement arrangements,” Mr Toltsan said. “Deals have fallen over because of it.”
But many vendors who held their nerve have done well, according to Mr Ephron.
“Pricing is down, but vendors are still seeing outcomes they wouldn’t see in the normal market. There’s a lot of hard work required to find buyers who see the value, but the value is still there.”
Here are some development opportunities in some of Sydney’s most desirable suburbs.
Central Mosman
At 89a Cowley Road, Mosman, 12 vendors are hoping to fetch around $23m for a 3,317sqm LMR site five minutes from Mosman village, with potential for city and harbour views from the upper levels of a six-level development.
89a Cowles Road is for sale, approved for a six-storey apartment block. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
A four-storey block currently sits on the site, which is also earmarked for rezoning under Mosman’s alternative planning strategy, which may enable more ambitious developments.
“The sale gives owners a great opportunity to sell for a premium and not have to invest capital,” said Harry Sullivan of JLL Sydney.
But he’s candid about the market.
“Developers are being very selective. Sites need strategic merit within their respective suburb – location, orientation, scale and price. We’ve received good interest considering current conditions.”
Double Bay
This 2,694sqm LMR site at 11-13 Ocean Ave, Double Bay is currently a 12-unit complex with a pool, on offer for north of $80m.
It sits a short walk from Double Bay village and Edgecliff station, with sweeping harbour views.
This Double Bay apartment block is listed for sale and has been earmarked for redevelopment. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
“Opportunities of this scale and positioning are exceptionally rare,” said Miron Solomons of Cushman and Wakefield.
He said while developers had become more picky, there remained high demand for well-located development opportunities, and he has received strong interest, particularly from well-capitalised groups.
Further down the street, three neighbours have banded together at 55, 57 and 63 Ocean Avenue to create a 3,295sqm LMR parcel in a leafy residential pocket with the potential to capture north-facing harbour views, for an undisclosed sum.
Several Double Bay residents have banded together to offer up this super site. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
Woollahra
Mr Ephron is hoping to achieve $170m with 62 Ocean Street, Woollahra – a 4,622sqm site 300m from Edgecliff station.
The site’s potential lies in what’s coming. The long-dormant Woollahra train station is scheduled to reopen in 2029, and proposed rezoning around it could push density well beyond standard LMR and TOD controls.
A a 4:1 floor space ratio (FSR) could unlock up to 18,400sqm of floor space across two towers, while boasting panoramic views of the CBD, Harbour Bridge and Centennial Park.
An artist’s impression of the development potential at 62 Ocean Street in Woollahra. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
“It’s the first site to take advantage of the proposed rezoning surrounding Woollahra station,” said Mr Ephron.
He said the interest is there, but finding a developer willing to run a $100m-plus deal all the way through to approval is another matter.
McMahons Point
At 23-25 East Crescent Street, McMahons Point, two neighbouring heritage properties sit on what may be one of the finest remaining unimproved harbourfront sites on the North Shore.
They offer gun-barrel views of the bridge, Opera House, Luna Park and the CBD plus the possibility of deepwater berths or a jetty – all for around $50m-60m.
The site sits outside LMR zoning, which agent Adrian Bridges of Raine and Horne Mosman frames as a selling point.
“There’s such a concentration of sites within town centres and train stations. Some developers are looking at this as a hedge against that.”
But with over a century of history on the site, heritage elements will need to be preserved, and the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority adds another layer of complexity.
“It’s not plug-and-play,” he conceded.
However, the views have a way of cutting through, with interest coming from large firms and boutique developers, local and overseas alike.
“Done well, it’d be an iconic development and would have huge appeal,” said Mr Bridges.
One of the most impressive sites is up for grabs in McMahons Point but it’s admittedly not ‘plug and play’. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
Lindfield
A DA-approved TOD site at 5-7 Middle Harbour Road, Lindfield – 300m from the station and 13km north of the CBD – is the kind of opportunity that rarely surfaces. It has approval for 51 apartments across nine storeys, with an FSR of 2.47:1.
Ku-ring-gai was among the most resistant councils in the state to the TOD framework, with its alternative scheme for Lindfield, Gordon, Killara and Roseville only taking effect in November 2025 — and only after the NSW Government stepped in to strengthen height and density controls. Getting a DA through in this environment is no small thing.
5-7 Middle Harbour Road in Lindfield is up for grabs with a ‘hard won’ development approval. Picture: realcommercial.com.au
Lincoln Blackledge at Stonebridge Property Group Sydney said very few sites had actually cleared the approval hurdle.
“A hard-won DA, a compelling FSR and a prestige address make this one of the most compelling development opportunities we have brought to market,” he said.
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