Melbourne home prices: City’s east dominates Victoria’s housing growth — PropTrack
Suburbs in the city’s east have boomed in the past year, with families driving $100k+ gains for already pricey postcodes. SEARCH EVERY REGION’S MEDIAN HOME PRICE.
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Melbourne’s east has dominated Victoria’s housing growth over the past year, with families driving $100,000-plus gains for blue-chip postcodes already home to seven-figure prices.
Exclusive new PropTrack data shows Forest Hill homeowners are almost $128,000 better off than a year ago after the suburb’s typical house price soared 11.72 per cent to $1,219,430.
Market strength was highlighted in Vermont South where house values increased by $147,750 (10.84 per cent) to $1,511,391, as well as in inner-east areas like Burwood East, up almost $120,000 (9.91 per cent) to $1,328,851 and Box Hill South boasts a $1,529,053 median house price after an about $147,000 (9.61 per cent) uptick.
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National Property Buyers Victoria boss Antony Bucello said he was unsurprised.
“The love affair with the eastern suburbs continues to grow, and it keeps getting further out,” Mr Bucello said.
Suburbs like Forest Hill and Vermont South are 18km and 26km from the CBD respectively.
But Mr Bucello said demand and price growth were likely to extend to areas like Ringwood, 29km from the CBD, Ringwood East, 31km, and Heathmont, 24km, in the near future.
“A lot of the eastern suburbs are family-orientated areas that provide good transport, schools and open spaces,” he added.
“There’s a lot of really good primary and secondary schools in the public sector which drives families there.”
The buyer’s agent noted that limited numbers of family homes hitting the market had driven the price gains.
However, property guru and McGrath Estate Agents boss John McGrath has tipped inner city postcodes Flemington, Spotswood and Elsternwick as the next to boom.
“With gentrified North Melbourne and Kensington on its doorstep, Flemington offers a similar level of inner city convenience at a much more attractive price point,” Mr McGrath said in a new report released today.
He added that Spotswood offered a similarly affordable alternative to nearby Seddon and Yarraville, while Elsternwick was rising in popularity for its proximity to the CBD and bayside beaches.
Other areas predicted to take off next year included Point Cook, 22km southwest of the city, and Mansfield in the foothills of the Victorian alps.
In the southeast, PropTrack’s data showed Murrumbeena was also a strong growth performer, with house prices climbing 9.61 per cent to $1,674,117 since September last year.
Gary Peer Carnegie agent Christian De Frece, who recently sold a property at 31 Murrumbeena Rd that set a new $3.8m record for the suburb, said the area had “gone crazy”.
“We’re getting bigger results,” Mr De Frece said. “It’s such a good, family area and close to Chadstone, Murrumbeena shopping centre and Hughesdale.”
Ray White auctioneer Aaron McDonald agreed with Mr Bucello and said with investors selling units and apartments dominating sales in the area lately, house sales were “doing very well” as families circled.
It comes after PropTrack figures revealed about 29 per cent of sales across Victoria in June were landlords exiting the market.
Despite an uptick in apartments and units being listed for sale, more than half of Victorian suburbs recorded a lift in the median unit value over the past year.
Regionally, the Gippsland area performed particularly well, with towns like Sale and Bairnsdale recording respective 14.26 and 12.66 per cent increases in median unit prices.
PropTrack senior economist Eleanor Creagh said this was a result of unit affordability in these areas, with a typical flat in Sale costing $359,101, while in Bairnsdale most cost $376,467.
Ms Creagh also noted that despite a weaker growth performance in regional Victoria than in the big smoke, there were still some regional markets that defied the downward trend.
House prices in Beechworth are up 8.25 per cent year-on-year at $762,000.
The median price also rose in Shepparton suburbs including Cobram, $439,396, and Kyabram, $423,714, with 6.83 per cent and 5 per cent gains respectively.
“Home prices in regional Victoria as a whole are down on an annual basis and it has underperformed compared to during Covid,” Ms Creagh said.
“Capital city markets have definitely led the price growth this year … so it’s interesting that there are some pockets of regional Victoria that have defied the trend.”
However, the Surf Coast region recorded the most pain in the past 12 months, with house prices in towns like Point Lonsdale, Queenscliff, Lorne, Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads dropping more than any other suburb across the state.
Ocean Grove even lost its status as a millionaire neighbourhood after dropping $106,591 in the past 12 months, with a hefty $39,865 lost since the end of June.
Its typical house price is now $997,171.
CASHING IN
Roxanne Cheney and her husband Mark have lived in Forest Hill for more than five years with their children, Curtis, 20, Josie, 24, Abbey, 27, and dog, Archie.
After upsizing from nearby Burwood, the family have grown to love their community and its proximity to local shops, parks and walking areas.
“Our street has changed so much in the past five years … there’s lot’s of families moving to the area,” Ms Cheney said.
“There’s a childcare centre on our street and everything is just so close to us.”
The couple are now cashing in on a home price increase in the suburb, listing their five-bedroom house at 64 Raleigh St with Ray White Forest Hill auctioneer Aaron McDonald.
They are looking to buy a larger block of land and enjoy a tree change to the Dandenong Ranges.
PropTrack records show the Cheneys paid $1.25m for their Forest Hill house in 2018.
The suburb’s median house price has gained $127,950 since September of last year and $56,647 just in the past three months to hit $1,219,430.
“The aqua link is close by for water activities and public transport is very accessible,” Ms Cheney added.
“We have some great schools around us and Deakin University is in the neighbouring suburb.”
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