Backyard tennis courts, ski field homes; maybe not as out of reach as you'd think
Tennis courts and ski resorts; API Magazine looks at the suburbs and regional areas that offer home buyers the chance to enjoy these luxuries on their doorstep.
Walking out the house onto the ski slope or taking a step into the back yard for a spot of tennis aren’t aspirations for the average homeowner.
But the reality is that while a home with a tennis court is out of reach for most, there are some suburbs where you have a sporting chance.
The ski fields are also well within reach for those property buyers seeking a life with winters on the slopes.
With the Australian Open tennis grand slam underway in Melbourne, the sport is in the spotlight and its perhaps apt that the city leads in residential tennis court numbers within Australia.
But it’s Wahroonga on Sydney’s north shore that has had the most sales of properties containing tennis courts. Coming in second is Frankston South and Mount Eliza, both having a lot of large blocks that are able to fit a court on-site.
The game is played by more than 1.25 million people in Australia but having a court to call your own is becoming more difficult.
Installing a private tennis court is becoming more challenging, according to Nerida Conisbee, Chief Economist, Ray White Group.
“Block sizes continue to shrink, even in suburbs traditionally known for private courts.
“Many existing tennis courts have been replaced with new housing developments to meet growing residential demand.
“Location remains crucial for those seeking properties with tennis courts, with affluent suburbs with larger blocks typically featuring the most tennis courts.”
Not all suburbs with tennis court homes for sale are in the multi-million dollar range.
Frankston South, Mount Eliza and Templestowe each have house price median in the low to high million dollar zone.
Unlike a swimming pool, which has near-universal appeal, the more niche market for tennis aficionados means the addition of a tennis court does not necessarily translate into a corresponding price premium when selling the property.
“The impact on property values follows basic economics: a tennis court costing $50,000 to build should theoretically add $50,000 to the property’s value, Ms Conisbee said.
“However, tennis courts differ from amenities like swimming pools.
“With tennis attracting a more specific group of enthusiasts, courts may not command the same broad market premium as pools.”
Affordable ski field regions
With ski seasons getting shorter and infrastructure issues besting some ski fields in New South Wales and Victoria, the property markets in surrounding regional centres have generally underperformed the national annual property price increase of 4.9 per cent.
Bucking that trend is Tumut, which serves the Selwyn snowfields in New South Wales.
Data provided exclusively to API Magazine by Ray White Group shows that Tumut property prices rose by 6.2 per cent in 2024 but were still the most affordable of the alpine regions measured.
| State | Region | Median dwelling value | Annual capital growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Tumut Surrounds | $408,042 | 6.2% |
| NSW | Jindabyne - Berridale | $958,615 | 1.9% |
| NSW | Cooma Surrounds | $545,636 | 3.2% |
| VIC | Towong | $414,905 | 5.9% |
| VIC | Bruthen - Omeo | $524,222 | 3.9% |
| VIC | Bright - Mount Beauty | $785,862 | 2.3% |
| VIC | Wangaratta Surrounds | $625,126 | 1.9% |
| VIC | Mount Baw Baw Region | $612,702 | 1.3% |
| VIC | Mansfield | $698,477 | 0.6% |
Jindabyne and Berridale, which service the Thredbo, Perisher and Charlotte Pass ski areas, had the highest median price but relatively low capital growth.
In Victoria’s Mount Baw Baw village, the low capital growth reflects some of the difficulties that have beset the area.
More than one-third of commercial sites lie empty and the Financial Review has reported that as many as 17 of the 49 titled sites at the off-grid alpine village resort, 170 kilometres east of Melbourne, are vacant.
This is reportedly due to a lack of power supply and the resort unable to operate to its full potential.
The resort gets less snow than higher resorts such as Mount Buller (Mansfield), Falls Creek and Mount Hotham (Bright, Mount Beauty).
In Bright, figures from CoreLogic show 71 homes on the market in the last month, more than double that recorded in November 2019. Additional data shows separate data from CoreLogic shows house prices in Bright have fallen by an average 4.5% over the past year – an equivalent of $41,763 – to $892,559.
For those seeking the winter skiing lifestyle, opportunities are plentiful and relatively affordable.
It’s now deemed a buyers’ market as people sell because of interest rates, state government land tax changes and downsizing, as well as a return to the cities in the wake of the Covid exodus.
