It has been likened to the weathered home from the film Up, standing firm while taller neighbours rose around it. But after nearly 50 years, one of Kensington’s last old-style boarding houses looks set to give way to redevelopment.
Read: $171-M Education Building Proposed for UNSW in Kensington
The property at 173–175 Anzac Parade has been held by the Prodromou family since 1975, when patriarch Erotocritos Yianni Prodromou purchased the 607-square-metre site for just $52,000. Now, the two adjoining terraces that operate as an 18-room boarding house are on the market with a price guide of $13.5 million.
Agent William Tsagaris from Bradfield BadgerFox launched the expressions of interest campaign last week and said the response had been immediate. He noted that interested buyers were considering a range of options, including purpose-built student accommodation or even a boutique hotel, given the limited supply in the precinct.
The sale comes as no surprise in a suburb that has seen a wave of redevelopment, especially with its proximity to the University of NSW. In recent years, neighbouring sites have sold for $13.8 million and $15.25 million before being replaced with seven- and nine-storey residential towers. The new buildings are filled with compact student studios, some renting for as much as $715 per week, making them highly profitable investments.
Despite its age, the boarding house has remained a solid earner for the Prodromou family through both short-term and long-term leases. But with so few remaining undeveloped parcels in Kensington, the property’s future as student housing or high-rise apartments seems inevitable.
Read: New Apartment Development in Kensington Draws Interest from Professionals and Investors
For many, its sale represents the end of an era — one of the last reminders of the suburb’s earlier streetscape, soon to be overtaken by the changing skyline.
Published 29-August-2025
