Property & Greenspace

Australia

April 2021 About CoreLogic

CoreLogic is a leading property information, analytics and Contact services provider in the United States, Australia and New Zealand. CoreLogic helps clients identify and manage growth opportunities, improve Call us 1300 734 318 performance and mitigate risk, by providing clients with innovative, [email protected] technology-based services and access to rich data and analytics.

Whilst all reasonable effort is made to ensure the information in this publication is current, CoreLogic does not warrant the accuracy, currency or completeness of the data and commentary contained in this publication and to the full extent not prohibited by law excludes all loss or damage arising in connection with the data and commentary contained in this publication.

Author: Anna Russell, Senior Professional, Consulting & Risk Management

corelogic.com.au 2 What value does the property market put on greenspace?

Greenspace has a known value in improving mental and physical health as well as perceived wellbeing.

Other benefits include increased levels of resident exercise and A large proportion of the prior studies investigating price potential for reduction in crime. International studies have premiums on greenspace have been conducted in the Northern suggested that the positive effects of greenspace may translate Hemisphere, with only one substantial study (Lockwood & to a price premium for residential property, with both proximity Tracy, 1995) conducted in Australia. The Australian property to public greenspace and the presence of private greenspace market, and the manner in which the Australian public relate to having the potential to encourage a price premium in certain and value property, is distinctly different to other markets; as a markets. result the value ascribed to greenspace may also be different. Whilst property ownership is proportionally low in many This paper explores the benefits of greenspace and the European nations, and multiple property ownership is overseas evidence for a price premium in ‘green’ locations, and uncommon, Australia has a relatively high rate of home then utilises a blend of CoreLogic and public data to conduct an ownership, and property as an asset class for wealth building is initial investigation into whether the Australian market also a popular option amongst investors. Further, the parameters of considers greenspace worthy of a price premium. the Australian mortgage market do not allow for non-recourse default in the same way as the US. This means Australian The term ‘greenspace’ refers to land that is partly or completely homeowners are more likely to ‘stick it out’ when their covered with grass, trees, shrubs or other vegetation.1 In the ownership position is not ideal. We see examples of this in how context of cities, greenspace includes parks, community Australians responded to the 2020 Black Summer fires and also gardens, cemeteries, school yards, playgrounds and vacant lots. tropical cyclones such as Cyclone Debbie in 2017. Greenspace may be public and available for all members of the community to benefit from, or it may be privately owned such as large yards or gardens. In academic studies, greenspace is often measured using a measure called “Normalised Difference Vegetation Index” which is derived from satellite imagery.

1 https://www3.epa.gov/region1/eco/uep/openspace.html

3 Access to nature makes us healthier, happier and more resilient

There is a large body of literature across both health science The study found that living within 300m of public green space and urban planning disciplines evidencing health and wellbeing had a significant effect on perceived wellbeing of residents in a benefits from exposure to nature. A particularly significant densely populated urban setting. It also found that perceived example is Engemann et al’s report published in 20192, wellbeing went up significantly as the area of greenspace examining the impact of greenspace exposure on mental available increased.3 health. The study used satellite imagery to determine the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) within a 210m x Greenspace also has the potential to improve a range of 210m square around the residence of 943,027 Danish children physical conditions, most specifically those associated with the from birth to the age of 10 years. Across this large cohort the western lifestyle – obesity, hypertension and blood sugar study found that the impact of greenspace on a person’s disorders, which frequently co-exist as metabolic syndrome. A likelihood to express a psychiatric disorder was comparable to longitudinal study of 6,000 British adults from 1997 to 2013 other factors such as family history and parental age, higher found that long term exposure to greenspace appears to play than urbanisation and slightly lower than parents’ an important role in preventing metabolic syndrome as well as socioeconomic status. Mood disorders, depression, anxiety reducing or preventing the individual components of the and somatic disorders were most closely linked to NDVI levels disorder such as high blood lipid concentration or 4 indicating that permeation of high-quality greenspace into hypertension . Given the burden these illnesses place on the urban areas might counter many of the woes thought to be due public health system in western countries, plus the inherent to population density and general features of urban living. utility of parks for play and socialisation, provision of greenspace seems a particularly low cost and effective way to These findings are supported by a UK study conducted by reduce the burden of public health costs and deliver a healthier Newcastle University, University of Warwick and University of happier urban population. Sheffield, and published in Applied Geography Aug. 2019.

2 Engemann, E., Pedersen, C., Arge, L., Tsirogiannis, C., Mortensen, P. & Svenning, J., Residential green space in childhood is associated with lower risk of psychiatric disorders from adolescence into adulthood, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Mar 2019, 116 (11) 5188-5193; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1807504116 3 Houlden, V., de Albuquerque, J.P., Weich, S. & Jarvis, S. ‘A spatial analysis of proximate greenspace and mental wellbeing in London’, Applied Geography,Volume 109,2019. Sourced at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0143622818312384 4 https://www.salud.carlosslim.org/english2/living-near-green-spaces-is-associated-with-a-lower-risk-of-met abolic-syndrome/#:~:text=NOTICIAS-,Living%20near%20 green%20spaces%20is%20associated%20with%20a%20lower%20risk,conditions%2C%20including%20obesity%20and%20hypertension.

4 Proximity to nature positively impacts urban housing prices – in some settings

A meta-analysis of 37 hedonic pricing studies across Europe, North America and Australasia found that urban nature, such as parks and forests, has positive impacts on house value in the areas surrounding it.5 The authors then further interrogated this relationship through a detailed case study in the Dutch city of Utrecht, finding that the presence of urban nature such as reserves, green corridors and play-spaces drove increases in local property values of up to 20% compared to areas in which urban nature was absent. The analysis concluded that both organically situated and man-made urban nature settings can offer both human and price benefits, and that this may apply across a wide range of locations and settings.

Closer to home, the 2013 study ‘Valuing Victoria’s Parks’6 showed a 5-7% increase in home value for properties immediately adjacent to parks in Melbourne, with similar data also found for Perth by McIntosh et al. in 2014.7 Lockwood & Tracy’s 1995 analysis hints at potential price effects in Sydney, although it deals with a very specific scenario of proximity to Centennial Park.8

5 Brander, L. & Koetse, M., The value of urban open space: Meta-analyses of contingent valuation and hedonic pricing results. Journal of Environmental Management, 16 July 2011. 6 Parks Victoria (2015). Valuing Victoria’s parks, Parks Victoria, Melbourne. Sourced at https://soe.environment.gov.au/theme/built-environment/topic/2016/ livability-urban-amenity. 7 McIntosh J, Trubka R & Newman P (2014). Can value capture work in a car- dependent city? Willingness to pay for transit access in Perth, Western Australia. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice 67:320–339. 8 Lockwood & Tracy, 1995. In Brander, L.M. & Koetse, M.J. The value of urban open space : Meta-analyses of contingent valuation and hedonic pricing results. Journal of Environmental Management, 16 July 2011.

5 Case Study – Sydney and Surrounds: Association between proximal greenspace and house prices

Our case study evaluates the extent to which the presence of Other property features known to influence price such as land greenspace in general and more intensely vegetated size, distance to employment, build quality and number of greenspace forested with trees more than 3m in height co-vary bedrooms are likely to interact with and mediate the influence with residential property prices, based on transactions across of greenspace. Our intention here is to determine if there are Greater Sydney in 2019. We define these two greenspace types indications of a price effect, in order to establish the case for a as ‘greenspace’ and ‘tree cover’ for the purpose of this analysis. more detailed nationwide study prepared in the coming months. As a representation of these greenspace measures, we leveraged a pre-aggregated mesh block level summary of NDVI Preliminary analysis of data indicated mesh block pricing data data prepared by the NSW Dept. of Planning, Industry & was sparse in some locations due to small geographic area and Environment9. The dataset leverages multi-spectral remote low housing turnover. This created some noise in the data sensing data from satellite imagery, providing coverage in making trends harder to extract. A decision was therefore square metres of trees > 3m in height, shrubs, open green made to utilise SA2, with a mean area of 6km2 instead of the space/ grassed area and total ‘greenspace’ as well as mesh more granular mesh block with areas as small as 400m2. Whilst block area, also in square metres. this does lose some of the precision in terms of maximum distance to greenspace, the volume of sales transactions was To provide the price inputs, residential property listing and sale sufficiently larger to improve stability of results. data for the 2019 calendar year was extracted from CoreLogic’s proprietary database at a property level. We elected to use the We analysed the interactions between price and greenspace 2019 calendar year as our initial sample as the 2020 property for Sydney overall and for the seven planning districts within market had highly irregular characteristics due to COVID-19. Sydney as defined by the NSW Dept. of Planning, Industry and Sales volume, contract price, time on market, price premium Environment. Each district of Sydney contains a different mix of and price growth metrics were generated at mesh block and private greenspace and public greenspace, as shown in the Statistical Area 2 (SA2) level for analysis. We defined ‘price table below. Public greenspace and public tree cover levels are premium’ as a sale price in excess of the property’s listing price. exceptionally high across the North. The more intensely populated Central and Eastern areas of the city have low levels This case study is necessarily brief and intentionally does not of both private and public greenspace, and we expect that this attempt to establish a causal effect of greenspace on price. may influence the value placed on greenspace due to scarcity in these districts.

% of District area classed in each greenspace category

Western Eastern Central Other North South Illawarra City City City South

Private Greenspace 32.8% 21.1% 17.1% 11.6% 10.0% 0.0% 0.0%

Private Tree Cover 10.2% 7.2% 6.4% 8.0% 5.3% 0.0% 0.0%

Public Greenspace 19.4% 16.0% 14.4% 47.3% 53.1% 0.0% 12.6%

Public Tree Cover 11.9% 7.9% 9.1% 36.6% 35.9% 0.0% 7.8%

SA2s 74 62 60 52 52 1 1

6 9 https://data.gov.au/dataset/ds-nsw-96d5f9a6-af2c-45f9-8966-3741dfc34f02/details?q=vegetation%20cover Geographical bounds of ‘Districts’ used by NSW Dept. of Planning, Industry & Environment

Sheet 12

District Central City Eastern City Illawarra North Other - South South Western City

Sheet 12

District Central City Eastern City Illawarra North Other - South South Western City

Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows details about District. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16.

Using the SA2 level dataset we computed the strength of association between a subset of greenspace metrics and the selected pricing metrics using Pearson Correlation, with ANOVA F test used to test the significance of each relationship. The variables were then plotted and a linear regression line of best fit calculated against each of the price variables.

Correlation matrix for greenspace and price metrics across Sydney Basin sample

Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows details about District. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16.

7 Correlation coefficients and indicators of significance for greenspace and price metrics

% public % public tree % private % private tree greenspace at SA2 cover at SA2 greenspace at SA2 cover at SA2

Average unit sale price 0.150 0.193 -0.028 0.317 at SA2 p=0.012 p=0.001 p=0.645 P< 0.001

Average house sale 0.076 0.107 -0.013 0.326 price at SA2 p=0.201 p=0.069 p=0.825 p<0.001

Across Greater Sydney at an overall level, the percentage of private open space made up of ‘tree cover’ (defined as trees 3m or more in height) had a statistically significant positive relationship to the average 2019 sale price for both houses and units, however the relationship is weak, indicating that this is only one of many variables driving pricing. The percentage of private tree cover has a stronger positive association to price, but was still only able to explain 13.8% of variation in house prices and 13.9% of variation in unit prices between SA2 areas. When we examined these relationships at a district level, we found there are substantial geographic differences in how strongly greenspace and price are related. For example, we can observe that in the densely populated Eastern suburbs of Sydney, private greenspace has a far stronger relationship to price, independently explaining 26.6% of house price variation and 20.6% of unit price variation. The relatively high price of land and consequent scarcity of private greenspace in Sydney’s East and Inner City is likely to be a contributing factor.

SA2 public green space (2) SA2 private greenspace Avg. % Public Greenspa.. Avg. % Private Greensp..

0.0084 0.3000 0.0000 0.3000

© 2021 Mapbox © OpenStreetMap © 2021 Mapbox © OpenStreetMap Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of % Private Greenspace. Details are shown for Sa2 Main16. Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generate%d). Cofolor publicshows avera ggreenspacee of % Public Greenspac eat. De tSA2ails are slevelhown for Sa2 Main16. The data is ﬁltered on D%ist riofct, w privatehich keeps 7 of 7greenspace members. at SA2 level

Public greenspace in general has a small but statistically significant positive relationship with unit prices whilst private greenspace in general does not. This is somewhat expected - most private greenspace belongs to houses, therefore the private greenspace in an area do not benefit unit dwellers. It is likely that the positive price effect of public greenspace is in part driven by the social utility of sports fields, play spaces and the like, particularly for those unit dwellers living in more densely populated areas who often do not have access to private outdoor space. This hypothesis is supported by the proportionally stronger value placed on these public greenspaces in densely populated areas of Sydney’s central and eastern suburbs.

8 Relationship between SA2 % of private greenspace and house sale price (2019) for Sydney Eastern Suburbs

Greenspoace SA2 relationships (2)

Avg. total MB area 467,895 6000K 2,000,000 4,000,000 5500K 6,000,000 8,000,000 5000K 10,000,000 11,877,539

4500K House Sale Vol 2019 1 840

9 4000K 1 0 2 e c

r i 3500K P e S a l

e 3000K u s o

Greenspoace SA2 rH elationships (2)

g v

A 2500K Avg. total MB area 467,895 6000K 2000K 2,000,000 4,000,000 5500K 6,000,000 1500K 8,000,000 5000K 10,000,000 1000K 11,877,539

4500K House Sale Vol 2019 500K 1 840

9 4000K 0K 1 0 2

e 0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20 c

r i 3500K

P % Private Tree Cover e

S a l Sum of % Private Tree Cover vs. sum of Avg House Sale Price 2019. Color shows sum of House Sale Vol 2019. Size shows e 3000K

u s average of total MB area. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on District, which keeps Eastern City. o H

The view is ﬁltered on Sa2 Name16, which excludes Dural - Kenthurst - Wisemans Ferry. g v

A 2500K

2000K

1500K

1000K

500K

0K 0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20 % Private Tree Cover

Sum of % Private Tree Cover vs. sum of Avg House Sale Price 2019. Color shows sum of House Sale Vol 2019. Size shows average of total MB area. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on District, which keeps Eastern City. The view is ﬁltered on Sa2 NWhereame16, which excludes Dural - Kenthurs t - canWisemans Ferry. I find a ‘green’ place to live?

For property hunters wanting to seek out the benefits of living alongside greenspace there are many options across Sydney. The scale and quality of greenspace, both public and private, differs widely across the metropolitan area. The Northern Beaches and Sutherland shire and the lower Blue Mountains offer the largest number of well-greened localities, although with the exception of lower Blue Mountains, this amenity does come at a price.

9 Highest % of private tree cover (top 10)

Avg. House Sale Avg. Unit Sale Avg. % Private SA2 SA4 Price 2019 Price 2019 Tree Cover

Avalon - Palm Beach Sydney - Northern Beaches $2,657,696 $744,868 27.90%

Newport - Bilgola Sydney - Northern Beaches $1,938,216 $946,017 25.90%

Holsworthy - Wattle Sydney - South West $815,484 $623,262 25.10% Grove

Lindfield - Roseville Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $2,612,073 $1,073,009 24.40%

Sydney - Baulkham Hills and Castle Hill - South $1,463,534 $753,136 24.30% Hawkesbury

Pymble Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $2,216,293 $1,015,880 23.70%

Gymea - Grays Point Sydney - Sutherland $1,184,108 $808,798 23.40%

Chatswood (West) - Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,961,881 $849,677 23.10% Lane Cove North

Lilli Pilli - Port Sydney - Sutherland $2,159,055 $1,365,000 22.60% Hacking - Dolans Bay

Wahroonga (East) - Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $2,194,839 $1,101,957 22.10% Warrawee

Top 10 SA2s for % private tree cover Top 10 private tree cover Top 10 private tree cover Avg. % Private Tree Cov..

0.22104 0.27909 Avg. % Private Tree Cov..

Avalon - Palm Beach 0.22104 0.27909

Newport - Bilgola

Avalon - Palm Beach

Wahroonga (East) - Warrawee

Newport - Bilgola Castle Hill - South

Pymble Lindﬁeld - Roseville

Chatswood (West) - Lane Cove North

Wahroonga (East) - Warrawee

Castle Hill - South

Pymble Lindﬁeld - Roseville

Chatswood (West) - Lane Cove North Holsworthy - Wattle Grove

Gymea - Grays Point Lilli Pilli - Port Hacking - Dolans Bay

Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of % Private Tree Cover . The marks are labeled by Sa2 Name16. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on Top 10 Private tree cover, which keeps 10 members.

Holsworthy - Wattle Grove

Gymea - Grays Point Lilli Pilli - Port Hacking - Dolans Bay

Avg. House Sale Avg. Unit Sale Avg. % Public SA2 SA4 Price 2019 Price 2019 Tree Cover

Berowra - Brooklyn - Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,007,297 $738,500 68.50% Cowan

Heathcote - Waterfall Sydney - Sutherland $912,937 $662,500 65.10%

Terrey Hills - Duffys Sydney - Northern Beaches $2,185,206 $585,000 61.30% Forest

Asquith - Mount Colah Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,065,767 $660,995 54.30%

Woronora Heights Sydney - Sutherland $1,095,702 $976,250 50.70%

Turramurra Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,924,818 $993,229 50.30%

Menai - Lucas Heights - Sydney - Sutherland $998,368 $738,072 46.70% Woronora

Helensburgh Illawarra $941,500 $726,368 46.20%

Blaxland - Warrimoo - Sydney - Outer West and Blue $767,564 $524,875 42.80% Lapstone Mountains

Wahroonga (East) - Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $2,194,839 $1,101,957 22.10% Warrawee

Top 10 SA2s for % public tree cover Top 10 public tree cover Top 10 public tree cover Avg. % Public Tree Cover 0.4234 0.6845 Avg. % Public Tree Cover

Berowra - Brooklyn - Cowan 0.4234 0.6845 Asquith - Mount Colah

Bayview - Elanora Heights

Terrey Hills - Duﬀys Forest Berowra - Brooklyn - Cowan Turramurra

Asquith - Mount Colah Blaxland - Warrimoo - Lapstone

Bayview - Elanora Heights

Terrey Hills - Duﬀys Forest

Turramurra

Blaxland - Warrimoo - Lapstone Menai - Lucas Heights - Woronora

Heathcote - Waterfall

Helensburgh

Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of % Public Tree Cover. The marks are labeled by Sa2 Name16. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on Top 10 public tree cover, which keeps 10 members.

Menai - Lucas Heights - Woronora 11

Heathcote - Waterfall

Helensburgh

Avg. House Sale Avg. Unit Sale Avg. % Private SA2 SA4 Price 2019 Price 2019 Greenspace

Cobbitty - Leppington Sydney - South West $762,823 $641,230 68.30%

Austral - Greendale Sydney - South West $1,456,156 60.00%

Horsley Park - Kemps Sydney - South West $2,820,800 53.10% Creek

Mulgoa - Luddenham - Sydney - Outer West and Blue $1,418,762 $435,500 50.10% Orchard Hills Mountains

Rosemeadow - Glen Sydney - Outer South West $618,186 $356,760 48.50% Alpine

Camden - Ellis Lane Sydney - Outer South West $854,407 $365,250 47.00%

The Oaks - Oakdale Sydney - Outer South West $941,984 46.40%

Sydney - Outer West and Blue Richmond - Clarendon $644,514 $464,102 45.70% Mountains

Claymore - Eagle Vale - Sydney - Outer South West $598,922 $455,807 44.10% Raby

Sydney - Baulkham Hills and Pitt Town - McGraths Hill $1,047,458 $296,916 42.00% Hawkesbury Top 10 private green space

Avg. Private green map..

Top 10 SA2s for % private greenspace 0.4205 0.6825 Top 10 private green space

Avg. Private green map..

0.4205 0.6825 Pitt Town - McGraths Hill Richmond - Clarendon

Horsley Park - Kemps Creek Mulgoa - Luddenham - Orchard Hills

Austral - Greendale Cobbitty - Leppington Pitt Town - McGraths Hill Richmond - Clarendon Claymore - Eagle Vale - Raby The Oaks - Oakdale

Camden - Ellis Lane

Rosemeadow - Glen Alpine

Horsley Park - Kemps Creek Mulgoa - Luddenham - Orchard Hills

© 2021 Mapbox © OpenStreetMap Austral - Greendale Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of Private green map top 10. The marks are labeled by Sa2 Name16. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on SA2 Top 10 % Private Greenspace, which keeps 10 members. Cobbitty - Leppington 12

Claymore - Eagle Vale - Raby The Oaks - Oakdale

Camden - Ellis Lane

Rosemeadow - Glen Alpine

Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of Private green map top 10. The marks are labeled by Sa2 Name16. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on SA2 Top 10 % Private Greenspace, which keeps 10 members. Highest % of public greenspace (top 10)

Avg. House Sale Avg. Unit Sale Avg. % Public SA2 SA4 Price 2019 Price 2019 Greenspace

Heathcote - Waterfall Sydney - Sutherland $912,937 $662,500 80.50%

Berowra - Brooklyn - Cowan Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,007,297 $738,500 78.10%

Terrey Hills - Duffys Forest Sydney - Northern Beaches $2,185,206 $585,000 75.00%

Asquith - Mount Colah Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,065,767 $660,995 66.30%

Menai - Lucas Heights - Sydney - Sutherland $998,368 $738,072 64.10% Woronora

Bayview - Elanora Heights Sydney - Northern Beaches $1,871,173 $1,718,333 57.80%

Woronora Heights Sydney - Sutherland $1,095,702 $976,250 57.40%

Turramurra Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby $1,924,818 $993,229 57.00%

Helensburgh Illawarra $941,500 $726,368 56.20%

Manly Vale - Allambie Sydney - Northern Beaches $1,795,332 $772,182 52.70% Top 10 public green space Heights

Avg. % Public Greenspa..

0.5270 0.8048 Top 10 SA2s for % public greenspace Top 10 public green space

Avg. % Public Greenspa..

0.5270 0.8048

Berowra - Brooklyn - Cowan

Asquith - Mount Colah

Terrey Hills - Duﬀys Forest

Turramurra Bayview - Elanora Heights

Manly Vale - Allambie Heights

Berowra - Brooklyn - Cowan

Asquith - Mount Colah Menai - Lucas Heights - Woronora

Terrey Hills - Duﬀys Forest Heathcote - Waterfall

Turramurra Bayview - Elanora Heights

Helensburgh Manly Vale - Allambie Heights

© 2021 Mapbox © OpenStreetMap Menai - Lucas Heights - Woronora Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of % Public Greenspace. The marks are labeled by Sa2 Name16. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on Top 10 Public greenspace, which keeps 10 members.

Heathcote - Waterfall 13

Helensburgh

Map based on Longitude (generated) and Latitude (generated). Color shows average of % Public Greenspace. The marks are labeled by Sa2 Name16. Details are shown for Sa2 Name16. The data is ﬁltered on Top 10 Public greenspace, which keeps 10 members. Conclusion

We can see some tentative indicators of value placed on A more detailed hedonic pricing analysis looking at the wider greenspace in the Sydney metropolitan market but it does not Australian market is planned, so as to fully draw out the appear to be a significant factor in pricing at this point in time. relationship between greenspace and property prices. This may in part come down to the fact that our city has far greater amounts of greenspace than many of the cities As we mark Earth Day 2021, following two years of analysed in Europe – for example, Sydney has 46% public extraordinary and extreme climate events, we hope this greenspace whilst Amsterdam has 13% and London 33%. In analysis prompts some readers to reflect on the potential cities where accessible greenspace is scarce, it is possible that benefits we gain in living alongside nature and caring for our this scarcity has led residents and authorities to begin to place greenspace, in the cities and beyond. more value on it.

We also note that the Sydney market is not necessarily an accurate reflection of other Australian or New Zealand residential markets, and that a wider geographic analysis may present different results.

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