The zoning lockdown: 26 Melbourne train-station suburbs building fewer homes than Southbank
Melbourne has 26 suburbs with their own train station where more than 80% of the residential land is locked in the Neighbourhood Residential Zone — Victoria's most restrictive. Together they house 320,468 people but have just 7,736 new homes in the pipeline. That's fewer than Southbank (8,338) or Docklands (9,095) is building on its own.
The pattern
A suburb next to a train line is exactly where planners want more housing — the infrastructure is already paid for. Yet the most sought-after, best-connected suburbs are often the ones most tightly zoned against change. Comparing station suburbs by how much of their residential land sits in the Neighbourhood Residential Zone (NRZ) makes the tension visible:
Locked suburbs (80%+ Neighbourhood Residential Zone)
coming per 1,000 residents · median house $1,744,000 · 26 suburbs
Open station suburbs (under 50% NRZ)
coming per 1,000 residents · median house $1,250,000 · 37 suburbs
The heavily-locked suburbs are the more expensive ones (median $1,744,000 vs $1,250,000) and they add barely half as many homes per resident. Several add none at all: Surrey Hills, Montmorency, Carrum have zero major projects recorded in the pipeline.
Every locked station suburb, ranked by price
| Suburb | Median house | Home land in NRZ | Homes in pipeline | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brighton | $3,355,000 | 95% | 402 | 23,252 |
| Canterbury | $3,000,000 | 96% | 188 | 7,800 |
| Glen Iris | $2,685,000 | 92% | 382 | 26,131 |
| Camberwell | $2,530,000 | 95% | 333 | 21,965 |
| Sandringham | $2,495,000 | 96% | 554 | 10,926 |
| Mont Albert | $2,310,000 | 85% | 79 | 4,948 |
| Elsternwick | $2,250,000 | 83% | 434 | 10,887 |
| Hampton | $2,227,500 | 100% | 153 | 13,518 |
| Surrey Hills | $2,200,000 | 97% | 0 | 13,655 |
| Caulfield North | $2,180,000 | 82% | 539 | 16,903 |
| Ashburton | $1,990,500 | 94% | 28 | 7,952 |
| Murrumbeena | $1,870,000 | 98% | 277 | 9,996 |
| Fitzroy North | $1,788,000 | 82% | 1,806 | 12,781 |
| Carnegie | $1,700,000 | 89% | 202 | 17,909 |
| Bentleigh | $1,650,000 | 85% | 68 | 17,921 |
| Parkdale | $1,635,000 | 85% | 105 | 12,308 |
| Clifton Hill | $1,602,500 | 89% | 75 | 6,606 |
| Highett | $1,506,300 | 94% | 1,484 | 12,016 |
| Aspendale | $1,492,500 | 87% | 14 | 7,285 |
| Edithvale | $1,305,000 | 88% | 80 | 6,276 |
| Bonbeach | $1,280,000 | 86% | 22 | 6,855 |
| Montmorency | $1,180,000 | 100% | 0 | 9,250 |
| Carrum | $1,020,000 | 97% | 0 | 4,239 |
| Briar Hill | $996,000 | 100% | 15 | 3,220 |
| Bayswater | $958,500 | 91% | 134 | 12,262 |
| Boronia | $926,000 | 85% | 362 | 23,607 |
Frequently asked
What is the Neighbourhood Residential Zone (NRZ)?
The NRZ is Victoria's most restrictive residential zone. It limits building heights and, in many cases, the number of dwellings on a lot, so it constrains how much new housing can be added. A suburb with most of its land in NRZ is largely locked against higher-density redevelopment.
Why does zoning near train stations matter?
Suburbs with their own train station are exactly where more housing makes most sense — the transport infrastructure already exists. When those suburbs are tightly zoned against change, new homes get pushed to the fringe or into a few high-rise pockets instead of near established services.
Which Melbourne station suburbs are building the fewest homes?
Several well-connected suburbs have zero major projects recorded in the pipeline — including Surrey Hills, Montmorency and Carrum — despite each having a train station. Across the 26 most tightly-zoned station suburbs, the combined pipeline is smaller than Southbank's alone.
Where does this data come from?
Planning zones from Vicmap Planning, train-station locations from PTV, the housing pipeline from the Victorian Government's Urban Development Program (UDP, mrs2025), and house prices from the Valuer-General Victoria. It measures major projects, so a zero means no major development is recorded, not zero small infill.