Game, set and match for homes with tennis courts

Throughout last year, luxury properties with tennis courts have been in high demand across the country due to COVID-19 lifestyle changes, according to recent research conducted by Knight Frank.

The real estate agency’s Australian Residential Tennis Court Premium 2021 report assessed the sales performances of Australia’s ‘super-prime’ residential properties with a tennis court, which were defined as the most desirable and most expensive properties in a given location, generally known as the top one per cent of each market by value.

The research revealed that across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and the Gold Coast, the total value of transactions of super-prime residential sales with tennis courts was $682.8 million in 2020 across 38 transactions, up by 230 per cent on a weak 2019, when there were just 14 transactions.

“Every Australian city analysed had overtaken the 2019 sales volume in 2020, with Sydney being the strongest performing market,” Knight Frank Head of Residential Research Michelle Ciesielski said.

While Perth’s market recorded the greatest uptick of 453 per cent in properties with tennis courts throughout 2020, Ms Ciesielski said this figure only included two sales totalling $41.5 million.

“In 2020, Sydney saw $436.6 million of tennis court-featured super-prime sales across 22 transactions, although this total volume fell short by three per cent of surpassing its highest volume reached in 2018,” she said.

“Melbourne was next with $134.6 million worth of sales last year across nine transactions, although it’s greatest volume was recorded in 2016 at $156.2 million.

“The Gold Coast lifestyle became more popular through COVID-19, resulting in last year being the only year in the past five to register any super-prime sales accommodating tennis courts, with a volume of $50 million – outperforming both the Brisbane and Perth markets, which recorded $20.1 million and $41.5 million in sales value.”

West Real Estate spoke with Edison McGrath Director Simon McGrath to determine whether or not a tennis court added significant value to a property’s sale price.

Having sold many residential properties in Perth’s affluent western suburbs area, Mr McGrath said homes for sale with a tennis court were less common than you might expect.

“Throughout my career I’ve sold around 1000 homes and three of those have included a tennis court,” he said.

Discussing the benefits that come with owning a private tennis court, Mr McGrath said there were a couple of standout reasons.

“For starters, tennis is a very intergenerational game,” he said. “It’s one of those sports people can pick up from a very young age and continue playing well into their golden years.”

For families, Mr McGrath said having a tennis court meant you had something fun to do all year-round.

“It’s also a highly social game, meaning you can invite your friends around to have some good old-fashioned fun,” he said.

“For those who can afford a property with a tennis court, there is also the added bonus of having extra space between your house and your neighbour’s.”

When asked if tennis courts have the potential to increase the value of a home for sale, Mr McGrath said it was difficult to give a definitive answer to this question.

“For example, most properties with tennis courts in suburbs like Dalkeith, Cottesloe, Claremont and Peppermint Grove tend to occupy fairly large lots,” he said.

“Per square metre, I’m not sure if adding a tennis court would add significant value, simply because buyers tend to be more interested in the overall lot size.”

Given a full-sized tennis court is generally just over 260sqm, Mr McGrath said buyers usually saw the potential to subdivide the lot, which meant the space had more value as a building block than a recreational area.

“I often say purchasing a home with a tennis court is like buying a mare in foal – it’s about to reproduce,” he said.

“This is why it’s best to list a property with a tennis court on the open market, as it will likely attract a lot of interest.”