Agent Michelle Brooks says people who buy churches need time to settle in. Picture: Carly Earl

A string of churches converted into houses have hit the market, advertised at prices ranging from $400,000 to more than $4 million, and they’ve kept their soaring ceilings, cavernous spaces and stained-glass windows.

The churches are selling to meet Sydney’s insatiable demand for housing, and offer a compelling proposition for many buyers — churches are often on large blocks in prime locations.

A converted church at Denison St, Bondi Junction.Source:Supplied

“Churches are usually in prominent spots around town, so it’s not surprising many are selling as housing,” Ray White agent Michelle Brooks said.

These include a chapel at the site of the old St Catherine’s orphanage in the Hawkesbury River suburb of Brooklyn, and the former St John’s church in Oxford St in Paddington, which is now a three-bedroom house.

A former convent is also for sale in Coolamon, in the state’s Riverina, complete with a main bedroom carved out of an old chapel.

Living in these church conversions usually requires some adjusting, even for those who’ve spent millions on them, Ms Brooks said.

She recently sold a three-bedroom house converted from an old Bondi Junction church for $3 million and said the new owners needed a moment to let what they’d bought sink in.

“Not many people can say to their partner ‘we bought a church’. It’s certainly not an ordinary family home,” Ms Brooks said.

Denison St, Bondi Junction. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied

Despite this, or because of this, some homebuyers specifically want former churches as homes due to their prior history, Raine and Horne agent John Ellis said.

“Some people will tell you it is weird living in a church, but for others, particularly downsizers, it’s an opportunity to live in a unique home built of sandstone,” Mr Ellis said.

He said Australia’s shift to a more secular society partly explained why religious bodies were decommissioning some churches, but said many sales were being driven simply by Sydney’s property boom.

Real estate agent, Michelle Brooks. Picture: Carly EarlSource:News Corp Australia

“The land value of some of these churches has become very high. (Sellers) can make a lot of money,” he said.

A similar trend has hit petrol stations, with many now being converted into housing blocks for six or seven-storey apartments offering developers a handsome return.