Kirribilli Suburb Review

Summary: An incredibly pretty, charming and surprisingly accessible suburb surrounded by waterfront with a likewise incredibly high barrier to entry, Kirribilli is as beautiful as it is out of reach for the majority of Australian property owners – especially in terms of detached housing.

While it has a ‘prestige mansion image’, Kirribilli is also highly apartment-centric, and provides the potential for a hell of an outlook should you be able to afford it – while still offering a decent little smattering of amenities within its (fairly tiny) borders as well.

There’s a reason it was chosen as the site of prominent homes for politicians, as its views are not only some of the greatest Sydney has to offer, but its proximity and connectivity to the CBD are all equal or better than many of its neighbouring or fellow-elite peers, too.

Key stats

Of all of Sydney’s many “if money were no object…” suburbs, Kirribilli may just rank as the most well-rounded of all when factoring all of the criteria we look for here.

A number of the city’s other most exclusive suburbs are all close to some form of secluded, “gated communities” that feel more disconnected from daily city life – yet Kirribilli suffers little to none of this while still enjoying most of the key perks at the same time.

It’s one of the city’s oldest suburbs – and to be fair, if I’d rocked up to the site of the city a couple of hundred years ago, I’d have probably chosen a spot overlooking where the Sydney Opera House would wind up some day, too.

Many of the properties here have been here for a long time – with its handful of truly impressive waterfront mansions the most obvious, flagship living spaces among its relatively small cluster of detached & semi-detached homes that get all the attention.

However, Kirribilli as a suburb is actually fairly dense – around 85% of the suburb’s housing inventory is apartment/unit blocks – and also has fairly good variety in other property types as well, with a sprinkling of terraces and a fairly decent distribution of ‘relatively’ affordable blocks dotted throughout.

This helps make it not quite as exclusive as a potential place for living like other highly wealthy, low-density-only expensive suburbs throughout Sydney, as single-bedroom apartments can still occasionally be had for the sub-$1 million range (or even less in the case of studios). While those in this price range will most often be quite tiny, you’re still getting all the same benefits of its city-adjacent location that those who can afford multi-million-dollar mansions are as well.

Physically, the outcrop of land the suburb sits on is quite hilly and can put a bit of a burn into the calves to navigate, and its streets are quite narrow and not the most U-turn friendly either – but this is seldom a problem, as the suburb boasts some great public transport connections.

Milsons Point Station on the North Shore line provides an excellent springboard into the city or in the opposite direction further north, while its ferry wharves provide another avenue for access.

Driving here isn’t as terrible as some other nearby suburbs either, although general traffic is nothing special and becomes a major headache for locals during the annual Jacaranda season when people from all over flood its streets to look at its famously colourful flowers.

Greenery abounds throughout the suburb, as its streets are highly leafy, and it’s extremely pet friendly as a whole, even for apartment dwellers given its solid array of parks.

I’d challenge any Sydneysider to find a more visually impressive dog-friendly parkland than the grassed area at (the actual) Milsons Point, which lies next to the pillars of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and provides a direct view out onto the harbour, the Opera House, and the city skyline.

Cafes & community

Amenity-wise, Kirribilli has everything one could need for daily life for such a small suburb (including a Woolies Metro for groceries) and while its smattering of local restaurants, bakeries, delis and the like along Broughton St rank toward the pricier end but are all quite friendly and of universally high quality.

It’s cafe-and-dining central here, and sitting outside during a sunny day is very pleasant, but on the other hand for those who like things more lively there’s not much in the way of nightlife – which isn’t much of an issue given the city lies just a couple of stops away.

Walking the streets here is a lovely vibe, whether it’s the more commercial area near the bridge or down the back streets to admire the homes and the views. And no matter how long you live here or how frequently you visit, there’s still an eternal charm to grabbing an ice cream from the local gelateria and sitting down at Olympic Park for the panorama over the harbour/Opera House.

The high degree of care (and lack of nightlife) from the residents here also reflects in an ultra-low crime rate, clocking in a 0.06% per capita which is well under the Sydney average. This is despite the suburb having a fairly high percentage of housing commission dotted amongst its residences, as well as being a popular spot for tourist, which breaks from most general trends that combines both of these.

While it’s lacking much in the way of fashion or household goods stores, the ability to jump on the train opens up the greater retail world in short order, including at stops further up the North Shore train line such as St Leonards or Chatswood.

Its intermittent Kirribilli Markets are also a lively and alternative way to browse some additional hand-crafted goods when they pop up twice a month.

Schools are available nearby for families, with a decent selection of a couple of quality options within its borders given the suburb’s physically small size and population – but they’re as exclusive and in-demand as one might expect, and cost a pretty penny for the privilege of attendance.

Public options here are limited, and those looking for such will need to seek options in other surrounding LGA’s or elsewhere across the greater Lower North Shore.

Kirribilli itself offers separate private options for both girls and boys, with Loreto Kirribilli (Catholic girls’ school from kindy up to year 12) and St Aloysius College for the boys (Catholic, year 3 up to year 12). Both are prestigious and historic institutions, and balance academic/spiritual curriculums.’

It’s a peaceful suburb as a whole, but as a result is also quite dead at night; there’s basically zero going on in Kirribilli in terms of nightlife, and its demographic’s slant towards the older end of the scale most likely prefer it this way.

Pray for the lottery

Of course, all the on-paper points of Kirribilli that point towards it being a dream place to live in theory are moot if one can’t afford it, and that’s unfortunately going to be the case for the majority of buyers after anything outside an older apartment.

There’s an incredibly slow turnover rate in property here, and detached property especially so, with little real reason for many house owners to ever let one go – you’d have to have incredibly deep pockets with a starting price of several million $ and get extremely lucky at an auction to luck into owning a house here.

Current median house prices in Kirribilli hover around the $4,450,000.00 mark, and this varies/spikes up and down wildly given the infrequent nature of transactions given only around 5% of the suburb is legitimately ‘houses’ as opposed to some kind of mid-density at least.

“Walking the streets here is a lovely vibe, whether it’s the more commercial area near the bridge or down the back streets to admire the homes and the views.”

For those wanting to enjoy the suburb temporarily and sacrifice living space however, Kirribilli has a surprisingly affordable array of smaller (older) apartments that hover around the $700-$750 a week mark for renters.

While many of these don’t come with an included parking space, its accessibility via public transport can eliminate this as a concern for those who can subsist without a car.

The Verdict

Combine all of the above, and professionals working in the city without kids who want to experience the best balance of Sydney and who are content with temporary apartment life should definitely give living in Kirribilli for a year or so a go, as it’s something you’ll likely always remember.

All but the most well-heeled families will likely find themselves locked out of the detached housing market, however its options for higher-density living make Kirribilli a legit option for those who don’t need a backyard.

Visually striking, highly safe, and extremely well-connected, there’s simply a lot to like here. For those wanting more living space, most without all but the deepest of pockets will (unfortunately) have to look elsewhere.