Researching locations
How to shortlist suburbs
Fast screening against hard exclusions to reduce hundreds of possible suburbs to five to ten real candidates — before deep research, not instead of it.
- Screen quickly against hard exclusions before investing time in deep research on any single area.
- Budget fit, property-type availability, commute, mandatory services and market activity are the core screening criteria.
- Every shortlisted area should have a written, specific reason for inclusion — not reputation.
- Five to ten areas is a workable initial range — narrow enough to research, broad enough to survive elimination.
Screen before you research deeply
Reducing hundreds of possible suburbs to a workable list of five to ten candidates should happen through fast screening against hard exclusions, before investing time in deep research on each one. Detailed research belongs in the next stage, on a shortlist that has already passed basic feasibility.
Screening criteria
Budget fit — can your required property type realistically transact here within budget?
Property-type availability — does this area actually have meaningful stock of what you need?
Commute — does it fall within your maximum acceptable travel time?
Mandatory services — are non-negotiable requirements (a specific school zone, healthcare access) even possible here?
Known hazard exclusions — does anything rule the area out immediately?
Minimum market activity — is there enough transaction volume to trust the evidence you'll gather (see the sales-volume guide)?
Write down why, not just where
Every area on your initial list should have a one-sentence reason for inclusion — for example, "established two-bedroom units transact within budget, the train journey is acceptable, and family support is within 20 minutes." Avoid vague inclusion reasons like "it's tipped to boom" or "it's a good suburb" — these aren't evidence, and they make it hard to later explain why an area was ever on the list.
How many is enough
Five to ten areas at this initial stage is generally a workable range — few enough to research properly, broad enough to survive areas that get eliminated once you dig into market depth, planning risk or actual travel time in the next stages.
Practical checklist
Building your initial shortlist
- List every area that passes your hard budget and property-type exclusions
- Check commute and any mandatory service requirements for each
- Write a specific, evidence-based reason for including each area
- Aim for five to ten areas, not two or three, at this initial stage
Relevant Delora tool
Once shortlisted, compare suburbs using consistent evidence →