Freshwater is a compact beach suburb roughly 12km from the Sydney CBD with 9,186 residents. Of its 3,910 private dwellings, 2,161 are units and 1,728 are houses, which makes it one of the more evenly balanced markets on this stretch of coast: 55.3% apartments, and a rental share of 38.2% overall. Tenants hold 56.1% of the units but only 16.1% of the houses.

Freshwater Numbers at a Glance

Source: Stash Property. The sales window is the 12 months from October 2025, and the listing counts are for September 2026. Prices shown are medians. Houses sold between $2,390,000 and $13,950,000 across 43 sales, with the middle half from $3,205,000 to $4,515,000. That top-end outlier means the house median describes a typical sale better than the average does. Units were 91 sales, mostly under $1,358,500.

What Your Budget Gets You

Unit buyers are mostly shopping for one or two bedrooms, which together made up 96.7% of unit sales.

Only 3 three-bedroom units sold, so that row is a sketch, not a benchmark. A one-bedroom at $855,000 carries the highest yield of any bedroom segment in these tables, at 4.30%.

Three- to five-bedroom houses accounted for 93.0% of house sales. Stepping from three to four bedrooms adds $1,127,500 to the median, and four to five adds $222,500. Five-bedroom homes are the only size with a rising median over the year (+2.7%); three- and four-bedroom medians are -2.9% and -2.3%.

Getting Around and the Local Schools

Commuting here is car and home-office driven. The 2021 Census recorded 2,566 people working from home, 1,756 travelling by car, 114 on foot, 129 by bus or ferry, 43 by bike and 12 by train. Sale listings describe buses to Manly Wharf, Warringah Mall and an express city service, and one places the B-Line 1.4km from the front door. Stash gives government schools in the area an average ICSEA percentile of 88.5. Listings name Harbord Public School, Northern Beaches Secondary College Freshwater Senior Campus, St John the Baptist Primary and St Luke’s Grammar, though zones can change and need checking with the Department of Education.

The streets tell the story. A four-bedroom house at 96 Wyadra Avenue sold for $2,800,000 in October 2026 on 361 sqm, and 14 Corella Street reached $3,620,000 in November 2025 on 808 sqm. At 11 Coles Road, a five-bedroom home with a pool made $4,530,000 on 550 sqm in July 2026. Higher up the ladder, 100 Wyuna Avenue made $5,600,000 in February 2026, and 7A Ozone Street made $4,750,000 in March 2026 on 958 sqm. For apartments, 9/16 Soldiers Avenue made $1,360,000 in October 2026, 14/80 Wyadra Avenue made $1,270,000 in December 2025, 4/17 Waine Street made $990,000 in March 2026 and 8/108 Soldiers Avenue made $950,000 in July 2026.

Is the Market Moving?

Both property types gave back ground in the past year: houses -5.0% and units -5.7%. The longer record is firmer. Units are +20.0% over three years and +66.7% over ten, while houses are +1.5% over three years, +12.1% over five and +91.8% over ten. Units sell faster, at 15 days against 24, and unit auctions cleared 72.2% compared with 42.2% for houses. Units sold at a median 1.8% below asking.

For Investors

Units pay 3.81% gross against 2.73% for houses, a gap of 1.08 percentage points, with vacancy at 0.5% for units and 0.8% for houses. Median weekly rent is $850 for units (up 6.3%) and $1,800 for houses (up 2.9%). Stock on the market is modest, at 22 units and 9 houses for sale, and the last year brought 6 house and 3 unit building approvals. With the Reserve Bank cash rate at 4.60% since 29 September 2026, a 2.73% house yield needs capital growth to carry it.

The People Behind the Postcode

The largest age band is 45 to 64 (2,339), alongside 2,010 residents aged 20 to 24 and 1,594 aged 25 to 34. Household income is $2,726 a week, rent is $600 a week and mortgage repayments are $3,055 a month. Professionals (1,826) outnumber managers (1,140), and the population is up 6.0% over three years.

Planning and Hazard Snapshot

As a sample, Stash checked 96 Wyadra Avenue. It came back R2 Low Density Residential under the Warringah Local Environmental Plan 2011, with an 8.5m height limit, a 450 sqm minimum lot size and Landslide Risk Area A, slope under 5. No bushfire, heritage or biodiversity flags appeared, and flood data was unavailable. One address cannot speak for the whole suburb, so ask Northern Beaches Council about the lot you are considering.

Freshwater Buyer Checklist

• Set your ceiling by property type, since the medians are $1,200,000 for units and $3,705,000 for houses
• Read the building report and strata records for any apartment, particularly the levies and any special works
• Benchmark house offers against the three-bedroom median of $3,180,000 and the four-bedroom median of $4,307,500
• Visit near the village at a weekend and at school drop-off, and check the bus times you would actually use
• Ask council about flooding and any lot-specific controls, then price the transfer duty with the NSW stamp duty calculator

Freshwater Questions Answered

Do units or houses suit investors better in Freshwater?
Units on yield: 3.81% gross and 0.5% vacancy, against 2.73% and 0.8% for houses. Check strata costs before relying on the headline yield.

How many homes are for sale right now?
Stash counted 22 units and 9 houses listed in September 2026, alongside 15 unit and 7 house rentals.

Are prices falling in Freshwater?
Over twelve months, yes for both: -5.0% for houses and -5.7% for units. Over ten years they remain +91.8% and +66.7%.

What do people do for work here?
Professionals (1,826) and managers (1,140) lead, and 2,566 Census respondents worked from home.

This is general information only, not personalised financial, legal or tax advice. Speak with the relevant licensed professional, mortgage broker, solicitor or accountant before making a decision.