Is Glebe a nice place to live?

Glebe is an inner-city Sydney suburb of tree-lined Victorian and Edwardian terraces, a long village shopping strip on Glebe Point Road with cafes, bookshops and weekend markets, and foreshore parks along Blackwattle Bay. It is a community of many renters and couples without children at home, with renters accounting for 63.6% of homes. Everyday amenity includes Glebe Point Road’s shops and markets, local parks and community venues, foreshore paths and frequent inner-city bus links that make accessing the city and neighbouring precincts straightforward. The Cowper Street social housing redevelopment delivered 75 new social homes.

Is it expensive to live in Glebe?

A typical local household earned about $1,756 a week at the most recent Census. On the current rents, a house at around $1,200 a week would take about 68% of that weekly household income, and a unit at about $750 a week would take about 43% — both large shares of a typical local household's income in Glebe. For buyers, the median house price of $2,438,000 works out to about 26.7 times a typical local annual household income, while the median unit price of $835,000 is about 9.1 times annual income. On these figures, buying sits well above local incomes, with houses much higher than units; whether that feels expensive depends on your own income and circumstances. Everyone's financial situation is different, so it's important to consider your own circumstances when deciding which suburb is right for you.

Is Glebe a good place to invest?

The most striking change in Glebe over the past 12 months is a strong 14.3% rise in house rents, alongside a modest 4.2% increase in median house values. Unit values climbed a solid 7.6% while unit rents rose a modest 2.7%. Put simply, for houses rental income rose faster than capital growth, whereas for units capital growth outpaced rent growth. This information has been prepared without taking your objectives, needs and overall financial situation into account. It is not meant to be a substitute for professional financial advice. For this reason, you should consider the appropriateness of the information and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice.

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Glebe suburb profile

Glebe is an inner-city Sydney suburb in the inner west, known for tree-lined streets of Victorian and Edwardian terraces and a mix of converted warehouses and low-rise apartments. Pockets of leafy parkland and foreshore reserve along Blackwattle Bay give the suburb a green edge within an urban setting.

Glebe Point Road is the suburb's long village shopping strip, with cafes, bookshops and regular weekend markets, and there are local parks and community venues for events. Proximity to the University of Sydney and frequent inner-city bus links make accessing the city and neighbouring precincts straightforward.

Glebe property market performance

Current median dwelling price$1,636,500Past 3 months

Property growth+5.9%Past 12 months

Glebe's median house price is $2.44 million, up 4.2% over 12 months, a modest rise. Units sit at $835,000, up 7.6% over 12 months, a notable rise, and unit values rose faster than house values over the year.

In Glebe, house rents rose sharply by 14.3% over 12 months and ran ahead of house values.

	Houses	Units
Median price Past 3 months	$2.44M	$835K
Change in value Past 12 months	4.2%	7.6%
Sold Past 3 months	29	33
Median days on market Past 12 months	47	41
Average rent Past 12 months	$1200	$750
Change in rent Past 12 months	14.3%	2.7%

5 year median price trend for houses and units

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Glebe demographics

Glebe is a community of many renters and couples without children at home.

Couples without children make up 52.9% of families and renters account for 63.6% of homes. At the 2021 Census, 11,680 people lived in Glebe.

Glebe and NSW

	Suburb	NSW
Median age years	38	39
Median household income weekly	$1,756	$1,829
Couples with children share of families	27.3%	44.7%
Couples without children share of families	52.9%	37.9%
One-parent families share of families	17.2%	15.8%
Homes owned outright share of homes	20.1%	32.6%
Homes with a mortgage share of homes	16.3%	33.6%
Homes rented share of homes	63.6%	33.7%

Source: ABS 2021 Census. Shares of homes exclude other and not-stated tenure.

Glebe infrastructure, key developments and investment opportunities

Glebe's Cowper Street social housing redevelopment delivered 75 new social homes and opened in 2026.

Other civic works include the Blackwattle Bay State Significant Precinct rezoning (finalised 2022), which enables about 34,000 square metres of parks and a 30-metre foreshore promenade; the final stage of the Glebe foreshore improvements (completed 2020), creating an uninterrupted 2.2-kilometre waterfront path; Council-approved Glebe Street Playground works in May 2024 with a consolidated play space for children aged 1–8; the City's $3 million contribution in 2024 to Wesley Mission to convert RJ Williams into 39 dwellings (56 bedrooms); and Council's 2024 request for a Wentworth Park masterplan to guide its return to public use when the greyhound lease ends in 2027.

Suburbs near Glebe

Some popular suburbs near Glebe include:

How does Glebe compare to nearby suburbs?

Median unit prices: Glebe’s median unit price is 0.9% higher than Chippendale’s.
House price growth: Over the past 12 months, house prices in Glebe have grown 2.1% higher than in Forest Lodge.
Unit price growth: Over the past 12 months, unit prices in Glebe have grown 1.6% higher than in Forest Lodge.
Selling speed for houses: Properties in nearby Forest Lodge are selling 36.2% faster than in Glebe.
Selling speed for units: Properties in Glebe are selling 42.3% faster than in Chippendale.
Investment considerations: In Glebe, the rental yield for house is 30.0% higher than the Sydney average, while the rental yield for units is 5.1% lower.
House price growth: Over the past 12 months, house prices in Glebe have grown 29.4% higher than the average rate of growth across Sydney.
Unit price growth:Over the past 12 months, unit prices in Glebe have grown 3.2% higher than the average rate of growth for units across Sydney.

Common questions about Glebe

Is Glebe a nice place to live?
Glebe is an inner-city Sydney suburb of tree-lined Victorian and Edwardian terraces, a long village shopping strip on Glebe Point Road with cafes, bookshops and weekend markets, and foreshore parks along Blackwattle Bay.

It is a community of many renters and couples without children at home, with renters accounting for 63.6% of homes. Everyday amenity includes Glebe Point Road’s shops and markets, local parks and community venues, foreshore paths and frequent inner-city bus links that make accessing the city and neighbouring precincts straightforward. The Cowper Street social housing redevelopment delivered 75 new social homes.
Is it expensive to live in Glebe?
A typical local household earned about $1,756 a week at the most recent Census. On the current rents, a house at around $1,200 a week would take about 68% of that weekly household income, and a unit at about $750 a week would take about 43% — both large shares of a typical local household's income in Glebe.

For buyers, the median house price of $2,438,000 works out to about 26.7 times a typical local annual household income, while the median unit price of $835,000 is about 9.1 times annual income. On these figures, buying sits well above local incomes, with houses much higher than units; whether that feels expensive depends on your own income and circumstances.

Everyone's financial situation is different, so it's important to consider your own circumstances when deciding which suburb is right for you.
Is Glebe a good place to invest?
The most striking change in Glebe over the past 12 months is a strong 14.3% rise in house rents, alongside a modest 4.2% increase in median house values.

Unit values climbed a solid 7.6% while unit rents rose a modest 2.7%. Put simply, for houses rental income rose faster than capital growth, whereas for units capital growth outpaced rent growth.

This information has been prepared without taking your objectives, needs and overall financial situation into account. It is not meant to be a substitute for professional financial advice. For this reason, you should consider the appropriateness of the information and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice.

Choose the right real estate agents in Glebe

In Glebe ,77 agents are actively selling property, but a small number do the heavy lifting. Just 5 agents handled 39.6% of all sales in the past year, giving them a strong presence and deep experience in the local market.

Commission rates usually sit between 1.66% and 2.15%. Comparing agents and understanding what’s included in their fee structure can help you find the right mix of service, value, and motivation—without compromising on outcomes.