Port Stephens Property Market Update 2nd Half 2025
Port Stephens is a coastal sanctuary located 2 and a half hours north of Sydney and is home to 26 golden beaches and sea-side activities. The area includes the charming seaside villages of Nelson Bay, Shoal Bay, and Anna Bay. With a laid-back lifestyle but still home to all the modern conveniences, Port Stephens is ideal for families.
Property Trends
In Q3 2025, Port Stephens recorded a median house price of $1,080,000 and a median unit price of $667,500. This represents an annual (Q3 2024 – Q3 2025) slight softening of -3.6% for houses and -10.9% for units. This creates a more affordable and opportune market for first home buyers.
Comparing Q3 2024 and Q3 2025, sales surged by 12.6% (to 125 sales) for houses and remained steady (at 65 sales) for units. This confirms the market has been impacted by current economic conditions, despite higher demand. That said, with residential stock taking time to build, there is a high likelihood of a price increase, which will stimulate a price recovery in the short term.
Project Development
Port Stephens will see approximately $248.6M of new projects commence construction in 2025 and 2026. Of these, there are 235 units, 34 townhouses, 4 dwellings, and 51 lots to help assist with current demand.
That said, it takes time to build; thus, the addition of new stock is a medium-term solution. In the short term, buyers must act fast, as compared to Q3 2025 sales (125 houses and 65 units) there is not enough stock.
Rental Market & Growth
House rental yields in Port Stephens were 3.2% as of September 2025, slightly above the Port Stephens LGA (3.1%) and higher than Sydney Metro (2.7%). Further, median house rental price increased by 18.5% in the past 12 months to Q3 2025, at $735 per week.
At the same time, the number of houses rented decreased by -15.3% (to 72 houses) in Q3 2025; thus, there is an undersupply of rental houses. This indicates a highly demanded house rental market in Port Stephens, which is beneficial to investors – especially with a more affordable property sales (thus, entry) price in the past 12 months to Q3 2025.
Vacancy Rates & Property Investment
Port Stephens recorded a vacancy rate of 1.3% in September 2025, above the Port Stephens LGA average of 0.6% but on par with Sydney Metro’s 1.3%. Vacancy rates have fluctuated in the past 12 months, but overall showed an increasing pattern, due to more investors entering the market.
That said, a 1.3% vacancy rate is still well below the Real Estate Institution of Australia’s healthy benchmark of 3.0%, thus quicker occupancy of rental properties in Port Stephens. This is a conducive environment for investment.
