EV charging is the next apartment premium

Australian property buyers are increasingly paying a premium for homes that cost less to run.

Research published last year by Cotality in its Watt’s It Worth report, drawing on data from more than six million homes, found houses with solar systems commanded about 2.7 per cent more in value than comparable properties without them – an uplift of around $23,100 nationally and $14,939 in Perth.

For apartment owners, being able to charge their electric vehicle (EV) at home could become the next feature buyers pay extra for.

Western Australia’s total EV fleet stood at fewer than 1400 vehicles when the State Electric Vehicle Strategy for WA was released in November 2020.

By the December 2025 quarter, the Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure’s Western Australian electric vehicle licensing data put this figure at 47,025.

CSIRO’s WA EV fleet projection for 2030 has also been revised upward three times since the strategy’s release, reaching about 250,000 vehicles in the most recent estimate, which was published in an October 2025 progress update to the State Electric Vehicle Strategy for WA.

That trajectory has since been accelerated by the Middle East conflict, which has driven fuel prices sharply higher and significantly boosted EV demand.

Nationally, EV sales surged by nearly 90 per cent year on year in March, reaching 14.6 per cent of the new vehicle market, according to the Electric Vehicle Council and the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

The acceleration carries a direct implication for apartment values, particularly in the inner suburbs.

Department of Transport data shows Perth’s city centre recorded 21.5 per cent EV growth in the December 2025 quarter – among the fastest in the state.

Most of the buyers driving those numbers live in apartments and are already asking questions about charging.

Australian property buyers are increasingly paying a premium for homes which cost less to run.

Research published last year by Cotality in its Watt’s It Worth report, drawing on data from more than six million homes, found houses with solar systems commanded about 2.7 per cent more in value than comparable properties without them – an uplift of around $23,100 nationally and $14,939 in Perth.

For apartment owners, being able to charge their electric vehicle (EV) at home could become the next feature buyers pay extra for.

Western Australia’s total EV fleet stood at fewer than 1400 vehicles when the State Electric Vehicle Strategy for WA was released in November 2020.

By the December 2025 quarter, the Department of Transport and Major Infrastructure’s Western Australian electric vehicle licensing data put this figure at 47,025.

CSIRO’s WA EV fleet projection for 2030 has also been revised upward three times since the strategy’s release, reaching about 250,000 vehicles in the most recent estimate, which was published in an October 2025 progress update to the State Electric Vehicle Strategy for WA.

That trajectory has since been accelerated by the Middle East conflict, which has driven fuel prices sharply higher and significantly boosted EV demand.

Nationally, EV sales surged by nearly 90 per cent year on year in March, reaching 14.6 per cent of the new vehicle market, according to the Electric Vehicle Council and the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

The acceleration carries a direct implication for apartment values, particularly in the inner suburbs.

Department of Transport data shows Perth’s city centre recorded 21.5 per cent EV growth in the December 2025 quarter – among the fastest in the state.

Most of the buyers driving those numbers live in apartments and are already asking questions about charging.

The National Construction Code now requires new apartment buildings to have electrical distribution boards sized to accommodate a seven-kilowatt EV charger in every car parking space – a provision which became mandatory in WA from May 2025.

Perth’s existing apartment stock largely predates this regulation, and retrofitting is significantly more expensive and disruptive than building in charging facilities from the start.

Developers incorporating core EV infrastructure into their projects today are reading the same market signal that made solar a premium feature in houses.

As Perth’s EV fleet continues its rapid growth, the price gap between buildings with that capability and those without is likely to widen considerably.