Melbourne, Melbourne council: house prices, rent and what to check before you buy
Melbourne median unit price: $490,000 in the Jan–Mar 2026 quarter, from 577 sales (Valuer-General Victoria), down 9.3% on the Jan–Mar 2025 quarter. House sales in Melbourne are too few for Valuer-General Victoria to report a reliable median. Median rent: $381 a week (ABS Census 2021, older than the price figures). Postcode 3000.
What stands out: Part of Melbourne is under a Public Acquisition Overlay (land reserved for a future public work); part of Melbourne is under an Environmental Audit Overlay (potentially contaminated land) (Vicmap Planning).
Page updated · market data to Mar 2026
- Zoning: mostly Public Park And Recreation zone (PPRZ), 37% of the land
- Planning change: new overlays of 3 types since 2017, latest in 2025 (details)
- School zones: parts of Melbourne are zoned for Carlton Gardens Primary School and Docklands Primary School (+8 more) (primary); Albert Park College and Collingwood College (+5 more) (secondary)
- Getting there: 8 min to Southbank by public transport (modelled)
- Unit median
- $490,000
- Mar qtr 2026 · down 9.3% on Mar qtr 2025
- Higher than 9% of the 319 Greater Melbourne suburbs with a reliable unit median · 577 sales in the quarter
- Valuer-General Victoria
- Median rent
- $381/wk
- Census 2021 (older)
- Census 2021 median, all rented homes
- Four years older than the price figures; not directly comparable.
- ABS Census 2021
- Planning risk
- Flood 18% ModerateBushfire 0% Very lowHeritage 52% Very high
- share of suburb land area
- 5 suburb-specific overlays to check
- Vicmap Planning
- Getting around
- 0.8 km to nearest station
- 8 min to Southbank by public transport (modelled)
- 10 zoned primary, 7 secondary schools
- PTV timetable data · Delora commute model · Victorian Department of Education school zones
Melbourne is a suburb with a young population — median age 29, around the state average on the ABS's SEIFA index of socio-economic advantage. Housing is mixed, with a meaningful share of apartments and units (around 99%) alongside houses. The area is dense with cafés, shops and everyday amenity. It's close to the city and well served by both train and tram. House sales here are too infrequent for a reliable median — see the unit and land figures below.
Ready to look at a specific property here? See the due diligence hub for what to verify before you sign.
Scope: Victoria, Australia. Suburb data here is Victorian (state valuer, rental, planning and school records); Greater Melbourne comparison group.
In this profile
- Planning and riskZones, overlays, flood and bushfire, and what is planned nearby, with an address check.
- Prices and rentsMedian prices and rents, how they have moved, and sales volume.
- SchoolsThe government school zones that cover the suburb.
- Living hereTransport, commute times, who lives here and the suburbs nearby.
- Before you buyThe checks every purchase needs, common questions and guides.
Risk and planning in Melbourne
Melbourne is among the most heritage-dense suburbs Delora covers — around 52% sits under a Heritage Overlay — so many homes are period properties where demolition and even external changes need a planning permit. It also carries meaningful flood-overlay coverage (about 18% of the suburb).
Suburb-wide shares of the land, not a check of any one address.
Flood-related overlays can add building rules and raise insurance cost.
Share of the suburb. Source: Vicmap Planning · Verify this address
If it applies it adds bushfire construction requirements (a BAL rating) and cost.
Share of the suburb. Source: Vicmap Planning · Verify this address
No part of Melbourne is in a designated bushfire prone area. That is the building system’s map, not proof that bushfire can’t reach the suburb.
Share of the suburb. Source: Designated Bushfire Prone Area (DataVic) · Verify this address
Changes to the outside of a building, and demolition, need council approval. 582 named overlay areas (HO398, HO446, HO402 +579 more) — oldest gazetted 1999.
Share of the suburb. Source: Vicmap Planning · Verify this address
On summer mornings in 2017–18 the ground surface across Melbourne averaged 6.6 °C above the non-urban baseline, cooler than 89% of metropolitan Melbourne suburbs. (Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub, for the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, verified 23 Oct 2026) Tree cover was 15.6%, more tree cover than 66% of these suburbs.
It measures the surface, not the air temperature, and is a guide to exposure, not a forecast. (Clean Air and Urban Landscapes Hub, for the Victorian Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, verified 23 Oct 2026) Streets vary: Address Check shows the figure for an address.
Averaged over the suburb’s mesh blocks. Source: Urban Heat Islands and Urban Vegetation 2018 (DataVic)
Worth checking in Melbourne
Public Acquisition Overlay
Part of Melbourne is reserved for a future public work (e.g. a road or rail project) under a Public Acquisition Overlay — land it covers can be compulsorily acquired by the authority. Check whether this specific property is affected before you commit.
Potentially contaminated land (EAO)
An Environmental Audit Overlay applies to part of Melbourne — usually former industrial or commercial land. A satisfactory environmental audit can be required before it’s used for a home; confirm whether the property sits within it.
Large apartment pipeline
About 6,810 new apartments are in the development pipeline across Melbourne. A big incoming supply of similar stock can weigh on unit prices and rents — scrutinise the building’s owners-corporation and how it compares with the other new projects nearby.
Heritage Overlay likely
About 52% of Melbourne sits under a Heritage Overlay — a high-heritage suburb. Check whether one applies to this property: it can restrict demolition, extensions and even exterior paint colours, and a permit is needed for changes. Confirm it’s disclosed in the planning section.
Flood / inundation overlay risk
Roughly 18% of Melbourne carries a flood-related overlay. Confirm the land isn’t in a Land Subject to Inundation Overlay (LSIO) or Special Building Overlay (SBO) — both affect insurance, build height and what you can construct.
Zoning mix and building controls
Land use across the suburb (planning zones)
- Zoning
- Public / Parks
- mostly Public Park And Recreation Zone (PPRZ) · 37% of the suburb
Planning overlays that can affect building, renovating or removing vegetation somewhere in Melbourne — confirm whether any apply to the specific address.
- Design & Development Overlay — height, setback or design rules on new building
- Environmental Significance Overlay — environmental values that constrain development
Planning changes in Melbourne: 3 recorded since 2017
Planning controls on land in Melbourne have changed since 2017. Each row below is one gazetted amendment — a batch of parcels changed together in the same notice, not a single lot — the kind of thing that moves land value and that portals don’t show.
Source: Vicmap Planning Scheme History (2017–present); parcel-level zone & overlay changes grouped by suburb, zone transition and gazettal batch. A suburb-level record — confirm the specific parcel. See how Melbourne’s zoning changed over the decade →
- Suburb
- Heritage
- Flood
Layers on this map, as a table
| Layer | Share of suburb | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Suburb boundary | The whole suburb | ABS SAL 2021 |
| Heritage overlay | 52% | Vicmap Planning |
| Flood overlay | 18% | Vicmap Planning |
Overlay colours reflect how much of the suburb an overlay covers — green under ~8%, amber ~8–20%, red above 20%. Public-acquisition, contamination (EAO) and floodway overlays are listed above under "Worth checking" wherever they apply, because even a small area can include a specific property. Source: Vicmap Planning. What do these terms mean? · How to verify planning controls for an address
Cost and market in Melbourne
Market pulse: is Melbourne busier or quieter than a year ago?
VGV sales to Mar 2026 · ABS approvals to Aug 2026
| Measure | Change | What it's based on |
|---|---|---|
| Unit prices | −9.3% · mixed | Median unit $490,000 in the Jan–Mar 2026 quarter (577 sales), against $540,000 a year earlier (653 sales). The quarter before: −1.5%. |
| New homes approved (council) | +51.1% · more | 4,741 dwellings approved across the council Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, against 3,137 in the 12 months before. |
What sales volume tells you → Reading rental demand →
Among the 8 other Melbourne suburbs with a comparable units figure for that quarter, 3 changed less and 5 changed more. Across the 137 Victorian suburbs on Delora with a comparable figure, the middle change was +3.9%. Over 5 years the calendar-year median unit price went from $591,000 (2020) to $545,000 (2025), −7.8% or about −1.6% a year.
Checking an asking price in Melbourne
A suburb median is the middle sale, not the value of any one home. Here, the middle unit sale in the Jan–Mar 2026 quarter was $490,000 (577 sales): half sold for more, half for less, so a price above it isn't overpaying on its own. It's a gap the comparable sales should explain, through land size, condition or position.
- Ask the agent for the Property Price Statement (a listing from before the change may still carry a Statement of Information (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 27 Sep 2026)). It gives an indicative price and the three most comparable sales (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026), and since it replaced the Statement of Information in the 2026 underquoting reform it also lists the bedrooms, bathrooms, floor area and land size of each comparable home (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 27 Sep 2026).
- Check those sales really are comparable: a similar standard of home, sold within 2 km in the last 6 months in metropolitan Melbourne, or within 5 km in the last 18 months elsewhere (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026).
- An advertised price is a guide only, and a home selling above it isn't by itself proof of underquoting (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026).
What open data can't tell you
Auction clearance rates, days on market, the number of homes for sale and how far sellers drop their price are not published as open government data. They come from private listing and data companies under paid licences, so Delora doesn't show them. For a home you're looking at, ask the agent how long it has been listed, whether it was passed in at auction, and what its first price guide was.
How the market pulse is worked out
Prices compare the latest quarterly median with the same quarter a year earlier, using only quarters with at least 20 sales and no thin-market flag from the Valuer-General. A direction is called only when the quarter before agrees: both changes at least +3% is rising, both at most −3% is falling, both within 3% is about the same, anything else is mixed. Sales compare the latest four quarters with the four before (a change of 10% or more counts as more or fewer). Sales are counted when they settle (Valuer-General Victoria / Land Use Victoria, verified 29 Jul 2026), so these figures trail contracts signed in the last few months.
Rents are the Rental Report's moving-annual median for all homes, from new lettings only (Homes Victoria / Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, verified 29 Jul 2026), compared with the same quarter a year earlier (3% band); new leases use a 10% band. Dwelling approvals are the ABS count for the whole council, not this suburb; an approval is the permit to start building, not a finished home (Australian Bureau of Statistics, verified 27 Sep 2026) (10% band). The reading at the top uses the price direction and sales count of houses, or of units where houses have no comparable figure.
Sources: Victorian Property Sales Report (data.vic), Rental Report (data.vic), ABS Building Approvals (all CC BY 4.0).
| Median unit price (Mar qtr 2026) | $490,000 |
|---|---|
| Stamp duty | $21,370 |
| Stamp duty if you qualify as a first home buyer | $0 |
| Land Use Victoria transfer and mortgage fees | $1,380.20 |
| Government costs on top of the price | |
| Owner-occupier | $22,750.20 |
| First home buyer | $1,380.20 |
Work out your own figure in the stamp duty calculator →
How Melbourne compares
Where Melbourne ranks against other Greater Melbourne suburbs Delora covers, on the measures buyers ask about — a higher bar isn’t always “better”, it’s just where this suburb sits.
Show recorded crime and amenity-density comparisons
New development pipeline: ~6,810 new dwellings · 24 major projects · 100% apartments
Major residential redevelopment tracked by the Victorian Government (UDP 2025) — infill and apartment/townhouse sites, not greenfield house-and-land estates.
City of Melbourne tracks a fuller, building-by-building picture here — 405 development sites, ~48,263 dwellings (including smaller projects).
Schools
Parts of Melbourne fall within 10 primary and 7 secondary government school catchments. 7 schools are located within the suburb (2 government, 5 independent).
Government schools have address-based catchment zones; Catholic and independent schools set their own enrolment processes.
| Zone | Covers | Boundary | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary school zones | |||
| Carlton Gardens Primary School | 47% | — | |
| Docklands Primary School | 32% | — | |
| South Yarra Primary School | 11% | — | |
| North Melbourne Primary School | 4% | — | |
| Windsor Primary School | 3% | — | |
| Secondary school zones | |||
| University High School | 76% | — | |
| Prahran High School | 16% | — | |
| Collingwood College | 7% | — | |
| Collingwood College | 7% | — | |
Getting around from Melbourne
222 train, 121 tram and 58 bus stop points sit inside the suburb (PTV timetable data).
- Distance to the CBD
- ~1.5 km
- from the suburb centre
- Getting around
- 222 train · 121 tram · 58 bus
- nearest train station ~0.8 km · counts are stop points, not stations (a station is often several)
- Train frequency
- every 60 min
- at the nearest station, weekday AM peak
- Tram frequency
- every 2 min
- at the nearest stop, weekday AM peak
- Schools
- 6
- primary & secondary
- Nearest Centrelink
- ~1.3 km
- outside the suburb
| Job hub | Minutes |
|---|---|
| Southbank | 8 min |
| Melbourne CBD | 12 min |
| South Melbourne | 17 min |
| South Yarra | 18 min |
| Docklands | 19 min |
| Cremorne | 20 min |
Show all 16 job hubs
| Job hub | Minutes |
|---|---|
| Parkville | 21 min |
| East Melbourne | 23 min |
| Port Melbourne Industrial | 40 min |
| Preston | 43 min |
| Laverton | 53 min |
| Clayton (Monash University) | 60 min |
| Dandenong | 60 min |
| Campbellfield | 69 min |
| Mulgrave | 79 min |
| Geelong | 99 min |
Everyday amenity (OpenStreetMap)
- Cafés & amenity density
- 376 cafés
- High café & amenity density — plenty within a stroll
- Restaurants
- 589
- places to eat nearby
- Supermarkets
- 27
- grocery stores nearby
- Pharmacies
- 28
- chemists nearby
- Hospitals
- 8
- in the suburb
- Parks
- 40
- green space nearby
- Childcare
- 1
- centres nearby
- GP & medical centres
- 10
- nearby
Who lives in Melbourne
— 54,941 residents · median age 29 · 26% own their home · SEIFA 5/10
- Population
- 54,941
- usual residents (Census 2021)
- Owner-occupied
- 26%
- 26% own, 62% private rent, 1% social, 11% other or not stated
- Median age
- 29 yrs
- of residents
- Personal income
- $864/wk
- median, per week
- Household income
- $1,448/wk
- median, per week
- Avg household size
- 1.7 people
- people per home · 27% live alone, 20% share housing
- Monthly mortgage
- $1,800/mo
- median repayment
- Taxpayer income
- $53,824/yr
- median taxable income, per year (ATO)
- Population growth
- no data
- Recorded crime
- 281 per 1,000 residents
- a year, across all of Melbourne council, not just Melbourne · higher than most VIC councils
In Melbourne itself: 25,273 recorded offences in the year to 2026 (Crime Statistics Agency, matched by suburb name and postcode — a closer figure than the council-wide band above, though still a count, not a rate per resident).
Offence category mix (Melbourne council's mix, latest year):
- Property and deception offences63%
- Crimes against the person15%
- Justice procedures offences10%
- Public order and security offences6%
- Drug offences6%
- Other offences1%
Recorded offences by year, Melbourne (up 20% since 2019):
| Year | Offences |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 20,992 |
| 2020 | 21,514 |
| 2021 | 20,685 |
| 2022 | 19,083 |
| 2023 | 19,979 |
| 2024 | 21,755 |
| 2025 | 24,678 |
| 2026 | 25,273 |
- Median household incomeup 26%
- Median personal incomeup 62%
- Median weekly rentdown 16%
- Median ageolder by 2 years
How advantaged the area is
Deciles 1–10 vs all Victorian areas — 10 = most advantaged — from the ABS SEIFA index. A demographic measure, not a house-price one. These three don’t always move together — a suburb with lots of renters or students, for example, can score high on education but lower on income and housing costs.
- Overall advantage
- 5/10
- Around the Victorian average
- Economic resources
- 1/10
- income, housing costs & wealth
- Education & occupation
- 10/10
- qualifications & skilled jobs
The homes here
Mix of dwelling types across the suburb (Census 2021)
Who owns and rents here (Census 2021)
More detail on building height and bedroom mix (Census 2021)
Apartment building height (share of all dwellings in the suburb, not just apartments):
- Low-rise (1–2 storeys): 1%
- Mid-rise (3–8 storeys): 11%
- High-rise (9+ storeys): 88%
Bedroom mix (share of all occupied dwellings):
- Studio or 1 bedroom: 36%
- 2 bedrooms: 53%
- 3 bedrooms: 9%
Not sure whether a house, townhouse or apartment suits you? Decide what to buy →
Recorded crime is a council-wide rate — every offence police logged over the latest year (theft, property damage, drug and traffic offences and the like, not only violent crime) divided by the council’s residents. A broad area signal, not a figure for this exact street.
All figures are suburb-level indicators, not property-specific — always confirm the exact address on the Section 32. Sources: ABS Census 2021, Valuer-General Victoria, DFFH Rental Report, Crime Statistics Agency Victoria, Vicmap Planning, Victorian Government UDP, Victorian Department of Education (schools & zones, via data.vic, CC BY 4.0), OpenStreetMap.
Suburbs near Melbourne
The 6 closest suburbs with a Delora page, by distance between suburb centres.
Compare with nearby suburbs
Before you buy in Melbourne
Overlay and pipeline checks specific to Melbourne are in the Planning and risk tab. Two checks apply to every purchase.
Easements & covenants
Check Section 3 for easements (e.g. drainage/sewer along a boundary — you usually can’t build over them) and restrictive covenants (single-dwelling, materials, height) that limit your plans.
Owners corporation (if applicable)
Apartments and many townhouses in Melbourne are in an owners corporation. If so, the statement must include its certificate — review annual fees, any special levies, the maintenance fund and insurance.
Already under contract in Melbourne?
Questions about Melbourne
What is the median unit price in Melbourne?
The median unit price in Melbourne was $490,000 in the Jan–Mar 2026 quarter (Valuer-General Victoria), down 9.3% on a year earlier. House sales in Melbourne are too few for Valuer-General Victoria to report a reliable median.
What postcode is Melbourne?
Melbourne is mainly in postcode 3000 (it also spans 3004), in the Melbourne council area, Victoria.
What is the population of Melbourne?
Melbourne had 54,941 usual residents at the 2021 Census (ABS), with a median age of 29.
Is Melbourne in a flood zone?
About 18% of Melbourne's land is under a flood-related planning overlay (LSIO, SBO or floodway), and less than 1% is under the Bushfire Management Overlay (Vicmap Planning). These are suburb-wide shares: whether an overlay applies to one property depends on the address, so check it on VicPlan and in the Section 32.
What should I check in a Section 32 for Melbourne?
For Melbourne, pay particular attention to heritage overlays (about 52% of the suburb is affected), any flood-related overlay (about 18% of the land), easements and restrictive covenants on the title, and — for apartments — the owners-corporation certificate with its fees and any special levies.
Show all 3 more questions
Does Melbourne have heritage overlays?
About 52% of Melbourne sits under a Heritage Overlay — a high-heritage suburb. Confirm whether one applies to this property in the Section 32's planning section; it restricts demolition, extensions and even exterior paint colours, and a permit is needed for changes.
How is Melbourne zoned?
Most of Melbourne (37% of the land) is in the PPRZ (PPRZ), then CCZ1 (28%) and TRZ2 (8%) (Vicmap Planning). The zone and its schedule set what can be built; check the exact zone for an address on VicPlan.
Which school zones cover Melbourne?
Parts of Melbourne are in the government school zones for primary: Carlton Gardens Primary School, Docklands Primary School, North Melbourne Primary School, Richmond Primary School and 6 more; secondary: Albert Park College, Collingwood College, Melbourne Girls College, Port Melbourne Secondary College and 3 more (Victorian Department of Education school zones). A suburb can span several zones: the exact address decides which applies, so confirm it at findmyschool.vic.gov.au.
Guides for buying in Melbourne
The heritage, flood and bushfire figures in Planning and risk are suburb-wide — they tell you how common an overlay is here, not whether it applies to one specific address. Confirm via VicPlan and an in-person inspection before you rely on them.
Thinking of buying in Melbourne?
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