Suburb guide · Bayside council area
Mortgage broker for Kogarah (2217) home buyers
1,848 of Kogarah's 16,416 residents were born in Nepal, more than any other country outside Australia, and 58.7% of the suburb was born overseas (ABS Census 2021). Flats and apartments make up 71.2% of occupied homes, and the median strata sale in postcode 2217 was $810,000 in January to March 2026. There is no Kogarah shopfront to visit. Sulav meets clients from Kogarah by phone or video and manages the loan through to settlement.
On this page
Kogarah at a glance
- Residents
- 16,4166,149 occupied homesABS Census 2021
- Born overseas
- 58.7%Top birthplaces: Nepal, China, IndiaABS Census 2021
- Born in Nepal
- 1,84811.3% of residentsABS Census 2021
- Speak Nepali at home
- 1,90311.6% of residentsABS Census 2021
- Arrived 2016 to 2021
- 18.2%2,980 people born overseasABS Census 2021
- Median age
- 352.5 people per householdABS Census 2021
- Median household income
- $1,903/wk$98,956 a yearABS Census 2021
- Households renting
- 48.4%26.8% mortgage, 21.6% owned outrightABS Census 2021
- Flats and apartments
- 71.2%20.9% separate houses, 6.9% semis and townhousesABS Census 2021
- Median rent, new leases
- $750/wkAll dwellings, postcode 2217NSW DCJ, April to June 2026
Kogarah straddles more than one council area: Bayside (64.6% of its land) and Georges River (35.4% of its land). Compared with the other suburbs we cover, its Nepal-born count is the seventh-highest of 26 and its share of renters is the tenth-highest. The median resident is 35 and the average household has 2.5 people. 15.5% of workers caught a train on Census day 2021, a lockdown day when 30.6% stayed home, which makes this a rail commuter suburb.
The cost of buying in Kogarah
A typical unit in postcode 2217 changed hands for $810,000 in January to March 2026 from 97 sales, while houses went for a median $2,183,000. Read the house figure with care: DCJ marks it as a small sample. A house costs 2.7 times as much as a unit here, a gap of $1,373,000. A median unit costs 8.2 years of the suburb's 2021 median household income of $98,956; a house, 22.1 years.
| Item | Median unit | Median house |
|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | $810,000 | $2,183,000 |
| 5% deposit | $40,500 | $109,150 |
| 10% deposit | $81,000 | $218,300 |
| 20% deposit (no LMI) | $162,000 | $436,600 |
| Transfer duty, standard | $30,637 | $101,352 |
| Transfer duty, first home buyer | $1,959 | $101,352 |
| Registration fees | $365 | $365 |
| 5% Deposit Scheme cap ($1,500,000) | Under | Over |
| Cash needed, first home buyer, 10% deposit | $83,325 | $320,017 |
- Owner-occupier, established home, every scheme condition met. Cash needed excludes conveyancing and LMI. 2026-27 rules, checked 26 October 2026.
The median unit ($810,000) falls in the concession taper between $800,000 and $1,000,000: a first home buyer pays $1,959 instead of $30,637, saving $28,678. The median house is over $1,000,000, so no first home concession applies and every buyer pays $101,352 in duty.
The median unit is under the 5% Deposit Scheme cap for Sydney ($1,500,000); the median house is $683,000 over it, so a house at that price needs a bigger deposit or LMI.
Try a price other than $810,000 in the NSW stamp duty calculator
Kogarah rents and what they mean for buying
The median rent on a new lease in postcode 2217 was $750 a week in April to June 2026, based on 325 bonds lodged, which adds up to $39,000 over a year. By size, a two-bedroom unit leased for $750 a week and a three-bedroom house for $900.
Back in 2021, Kogarah households with a mortgage repaid a median $2,200 a month, 13% more than the median rent ($450 a week). New leases now cost 67% more than the 2021 median, although the two sources measure different things (new bonds against all renters). That 2021 rent was 24% of a median household's income.
A 5% deposit on the median unit ($40,500) equals about 54 weeks of the current median rent, between one and two years of rent. Renters are a large minority here (48.4% of households); 26.8% of homes have a mortgage and 21.6% are owned outright.
| Dwelling | Weekly | Yearly | New bonds |
|---|---|---|---|
| All dwellings | $750 | $39,000 | 325 |
| 1-bedroom unit | $628 | $32,656 | 66 |
| 2-bedroom unit | $750 | $39,000 | 164 |
| 3-bedroom unit (small sample) | $895 | $46,540 | 11 to 30 |
| House (all sizes) | $900 | $46,800 | 53 |
| 3-bedroom house (small sample) | $900 | $46,800 | 11 to 30 |
| 4+ bedroom house (small sample) | $1,100 | $57,200 | 11 to 30 |
- No interest rate is assumed: compare with your own rate in the repayments calculator.
Kogarah buyers we work with
Nepali-speaking households
Nepali is the home language of 1,903 residents (11.6%), and 1,848 people here were born in Nepal. We often help document a gift from family in Nepal, explain how lenders treat savings held overseas, and turn lakh and crore figures into a deposit in Australian dollars.
Nepali community home loans NPR to AUD converter
Visa holders and new permanent residents
18.2% of Kogarah's population, 2,980 people, had arrived in Australia in the five years to 2021. On a temporary visa you are a foreign person, so FIRB approval, the ban on established homes (to 30 June 2029) and 9% surcharge purchaser duty all apply; permanent residents usually avoid all three. The surcharge alone is $72,900 on the median unit. Postcode 2217 is not a designated regional area, so a 491 or 494 holder bound by condition 8579 can't live here on that visa.
Visa guides: subclass 189, 190, 491, 482.
Reviewing the loan you have
26.8% of Kogarah homes are owned with a mortgage, with a median repayment of $26,400 a year in 2021. If your loan is a few years old, or your income or visa status has changed, a review shows whether another lender would treat you better. Refinancing
Buying a unit
Most buyers here are looking at strata (71.2% of homes are apartments), where the valuation and the building decide how much you can borrow. Before you bid, read the strata report for special levies and defects, and let us confirm the building suits your lender.
Compare nearby suburbs
Carlton is the closest suburb in our guides, 1.4 km from Kogarah. Three of the five neighbours listed have a lower median unit price than Kogarah's $810,000. Hurstville has a larger Nepal-born community (4,938 people).
| Suburb | Distance | Born in Nepal | Median rent | Median unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kogarah | — | 1,848 | $750/wk | $810,000 |
| Carlton | 1.4 km | 590 | $700/wk | $838,000 |
| Rockdale | 1.5 km | 2,451 | $750/wk | $760,000 |
| Allawah | 2.2 km | 653 | $700/wk | $838,000 |
| Hurstville | 3.2 km | 4,938 | $750/wk | $740,000 |
| Penshurst | 4.7 km | 1,096 | $630/wk | $735,000 |
- Born in Nepal: ABS Census 2021. Rent and unit price: NSW DCJ, latest quarter.
See Carlton rents and prices, buying in Rockdale or our Allawah guide. All NSW suburb guides
Kogarah buyers often ask
How much stamp duty would a first home buyer pay on a median Kogarah unit?
About $1,959 instead of $30,637: the $810,000 median unit is in the concession taper. Checked against Revenue NSW on 26 October 2026.
What deposit do I need to buy in Kogarah?
For the median unit ($810,000): $40,500 at 5%, $81,000 at 10% or $162,000 at 20%. The median house needs $436,600 for 20%. Below 20%, expect LMI unless you use the 5% Deposit Scheme or a guarantor.
Can I use the 5% Deposit Scheme in Kogarah?
The median unit ($810,000) is $690,000 under the $1,500,000 cap. The median house ($2,183,000) is $683,000 over the $1,500,000 cap. You must be a citizen or permanent resident and a first home buyer.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Kogarah?
We can't say without your rate. For scale: a year of median rent on a new lease is $39,000, and 2021 mortgage repayments ran at a median $26,400 a year.
Can I buy in Kogarah on a 491 visa?
Not to live in while you hold the 491: postcode 2217 is not a designated regional area, and condition 8579 requires you to live in one. Once you hold the 191 permanent visa, that restriction ends.
Buying in Kogarah?
Sulav checks your deposit, income and visa against lender policy for a unit around $810,000, in a 60-minute call by phone or video.
Sources
Data last updated . Census figures are for 2021; DCJ figures are quarterly medians.
- ABS QuickStats 2021: Kogarah (SAL12190)
- ABS Census 2021 tables for SAL12190
- ASGS Edition 3 boundaries
- Rent and Sales Report, sales January to March 2026
- Rent and Sales Report, rents April to June 2026
- Transfer duty rates
- First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme (new or existing home)
- 5% Deposit Scheme price caps
- Regional postcodes (condition 8579)
- Established dwelling ban