Real estate agent and mother of two Chloe Hart bought a two-bedroom apartment in Manly, Sydney, choosing location and lifestyle over a suburban house.
Hart, who works for Belle Property, purchased the home on Sydney's Northern Beaches in 2021. She chose the apartment despite having the option to buy a house with a backyard, saying the beachside lifestyle, walkability and family-friendly community proved far more valuable than extra space.
She told Daily Mail Australia that the neighbourhood where children grow up matters a lot more than the square meterage of a property. Hart and her husband share the home with their two sons, aged two and three, who were both born in Manly.
"I feel like it's a bit old-school to think kids need a backyard and their own bedroom," Hart said. "My husband and I decided the trade-off of a bigger home for a smaller apartment was worth it because it allows us to enjoy our lives and give our kids the best childhood."
Living in an apartment allows the family to spend less time maintaining a large home and more time enjoying the outdoors, according to Hart. "We're all time-poor these days. You want to spend your time doing things you actually enjoy, not just housework and maintenance," she said. "We kind of eat and sleep at home, and then spend the rest of our time outside doing stuff."
Prioritising location over extra bedrooms
Hart said her decision reflects a broader trend among buyers who are increasingly prioritising location and proximity to amenities over sheer floor space. "It's all about the lifestyle now, location, proximity to amenities, the ability to get the ferry to work," she said.
The real estate agent recently sparked debate after sharing her unpopular opinion on Instagram that living in a great neighbourhood is more important than having an extra bedroom.
She said the response from other parents was overwhelmingly positive, with many agreeing that community, convenience and lifestyle outweigh the benefits of a larger home. "The overwhelming majority couldn't agree more," Hart said.
"The best property investment you can make isn't the brick and mortar, it's the lifestyle and community you make," she added. "You just can't beat the lifestyle of not having to put the kids in the car. Having Manly Beach as your backyard and being close to all the amenities is hard to beat."
Sydney suburbs rank high for families
Hart's comments come after Manly was named one of Australia's best places to raise a family, ranking 10th in a new study by health insurer iSelect.
Manly, located on Sydney's Northern Beaches, is famous for its ocean beach and ferry links to central Sydney. Researchers for iSelect, an Australian financial comparison company, analysed government data across five key measures: child development, childcare availability and affordability, healthcare performance, and birth rates.
Manly stood out for its comparatively affordable childcare costs, with childcare accounting for just 22.4 per cent of household income, while also performing strongly across healthcare and family amenities.
Sydney dominated the rankings overall, claiming five spots in the national top 10. Dural-Wisemans Ferry in the city's north-west emerged as Sydney's highest-ranked suburb, taking second place nationally due to its strong childcare availability, healthcare services and high fertility rate.
Inner West favourite Leichhardt, renowned for its Italian restaurants and village atmosphere, ranked third overall, while leafy Ku-ring-gai on Sydney's Upper North Shore came in fifth. The Chatswood-Lane Cove region secured seventh place before beachside Manly rounded out the top 10.
