There’s no place like Home and Away‘s Summer Bay.
Between the gorgeous beaches, sunny landscapes and the dramatic characters always keeping us entertained, there’s plenty of reasons why Summer Bay seems like the perfect place to settle down. But a lot has changed since the beloved soap first landed on our screens.
Since the first episode, the beach and outdoors scenes have been filmed at Palm Beach in Sydney’s Northern Beaches. As any Sydney local will tell you, Palm Beach is very different to the relaxed, budget-friendly holiday town that Summer Bay presents. In fact, it’s one of the most exclusive and expensive pockets of real estate in the country.
So, it got us thinking: what would it actually cost to live in Summer Bay in 2026? And, more importantly, what would Alf Stewart’s (Ray Meagher) fictional property portfolio be worth in the brutal Sydney housing market?
To find out, we spoke to Adrian Lee, the CEO and Founder of Catalyst Advisers, who was quick to point out that while there isn’t a property as large as Summer Bay House and Caravan Park actually in Palm Beach, hypothetically, Alf Stewart would be doing pretty well for himself if it did.
“Nothing this large actually exists in Palm Beach, where the median house value is approximately $4.23m and most blocks are under 1,000 metre square. Value here is all about land and zoning,” Adrian explains to TV WEEK.
“A genuine caravan-park-scale holding on the peninsula, several hectares near the beach would be a trophy/development asset realistically in the $60–80 million-plus range. It’s a ‘name your price’ landbank, not a normal house sale. Absolute beach front properties at sub 1000 square metres are valued at $33 million to $40 million today.”
That’s not the only lucrative asset in Alf’s portfolio. Alf also owns the Bait Shop which is connected to Leah Patterson’s eatery, The Pier Diner.
According to Adrian, these waterfront businesses would be worth anywhere between $3.8 million and $11.5 million, due to the commercial value of such a great location.
While it’s great news for Alf — and now Leah (Ada Nicodemou) after Irene Roberts (Lynne McGranger) passed on her half of the business — if someone was to rent or take over the space, they’d be looking at paying roughly $150,000 to $350,000 per year.
Not too cheap for sleepy Summer Bay locals, is it?
Another classic Summer Bay location is the Surf Club and it’s adjoining restaurant Salt, run by Mackenzie ‘Mac’ Booth (Emily Weir).
Over the years, the Surf Club has been one of the most recognisable locations from Home and Away. While most of the scenes inside are shot in a studio, the outdoor scenes are shot at the North Palm Beach Surf Life Saving Club, making it a popular spot for fans hoping to glimpse the cast. n
While the Surf Club would likely be council-owned, Adrian says businesses like Salt are “among the most tightly held commercial real estate on the coast”.
“As a commercial asset, a realistic value lands in the $5–15 million range. As a leasehold, rents at or above the diner band given the elevated outlook,” he says.
“It’s genuinely rare, so wide margins apply.”
But what about the various troubled outsider characters like Tane Parata and Ziggy Astoni who stumble upon Summer Bay and decide to settle down. How much would it cost for them to buy or rent in Summer Bay?
“Entry point for a modern, multi-level hillside home with water views is roughly $3 million, with the median around $4.2m–$6.1m depending on source,” Adrian explains.
“Anything much below $3m tends to be smaller, older, or view-compromised.”
With price points like these, it’s no surprise Palm Beach’s demographic profile looks very different to the Summer Bay residents we see on screen.
According to Adrian, the predominant age group of people living in Palm Beach is 70 to 79, made up of mostly childless couples. 76 per cent of properties are occupied by the owner — leaving only 24 per cent for renters.
With such a high price point, it’s no wonder that Palm Beach’s buyer demographic skews much older and wealthier than the hot, young characters we see on the show.
So while the show’s whole premise resides on people coming in and out of town, Adrian says that in the real world, that’s not how locations like this work.
“It’s a low-turnover, blue-chip lifestyle market,” Adrian explains.
“In practice buyers are established high-net-worth professionals and retirees purchasing prestige primary residences or weekenders, rather than first-home buyers or young families.”
The price of living in Summer Bay isn’t just the constant drama, tragedy and scandal — It’s the financial cost too.
While it’s unlikely any Australian is surprised by these findings, at least we can take comfort and solace in one thing: Summer Bay’s finest gentleman and true-blue Aussie battler, Alf Stewart, is doing just fine for himself.
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