What Kogarah's homes are like
Every kind of home
Kogarah has the full range, from detached houses to medium-density flats and high-rise apartments. In 2021, 71.2% of homes were flats or apartments, 20.9% separate houses and 6.9% semis or townhouses.
Close to half rented
48.4% of Kogarah homes were rented at the 2021 Census, 26.8% had a mortgage and 21.6% were owned outright.
An older suburb
Kogarah grew around St Paul's Church, opened in 1869. The railway arrived in the 1880s, it became a municipality in 1885, and the Moorefield estate was subdivided in the 1950s.
Split between two councils
Kogarah, 14 km south of the CBD, sits across Georges River Council and Bayside Council. It's named for Kogarah Bay on the Georges River, now its own suburb.
Renting in Kogarah
In NSW you can only make alterations if your lease allows it or your landlord agrees in writing. The changes a landlord can't unreasonably refuse are small ones, like fly screens and picture hooks, and a split system means drilling through a wall. So ask first, in writing, saying which room and what system.
If the landlord is replacing an old air conditioner, NSW's Energy Savings Scheme may offer an upfront discount for a high efficiency one. It runs through Accredited Certificate Providers, which work independently of the NSW Government, and the nomination form has to be signed before installation starts. Our ESS guide explains who's eligible.
Owning a Kogarah unit
A new reverse cycle air conditioner is a minor renovation under NSW strata rules. It needs more than 50% of the votes at a strata meeting, unless a by-law lets the committee approve it. Work that alters the building's exterior or structure can count as a major renovation instead, and that takes a special resolution. With 2.3 bedrooms the average, one well-sized split in the living area often does most of the work. See split systems in Sydney.
Your part, and the installer's
You can
- Get the landlord's or the strata's written yes, with the outdoor unit's spot agreed.
- Measure the room and note which way it faces.
- Once it's in, clean the filters as the manual says.
Leave to a licensed installer
- Sizing the system for the room.
- Refrigerant pipework, which needs an ARC licence.
- Any new circuit, which needs a licensed electrician.
What we'd do
What we'd do in Kogarah
We'd get permission sorted before anyone quotes: the landlord in writing if we rented, the strata if we owned a unit. Then we'd fit one reverse cycle split in the main room, sized for that room. An installer who does rentals and strata buildings week in, week out will know what agents and committees want to see. Licence-checked installers around Kogarah who do that work can see your job, and only the one who takes it gets your details. If 48 hours pass with no taker near Kogarah, installers elsewhere in NSW may see it too.
