Melbourne’s best suburbs revealed

Melbourne’s top 10 suburbs to ‘live, work and play’ have been ranked in a new report by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The PwC CityPulse report reveals that inner suburbs and middle suburbs in the East and South-East of Melbourne remain great places to live and work. Liveability in areas outside the inner-ring is dependent on increased services and amenities.

There are suburbs in this list that would be very familiar to Ironfish investors, as a number of our selected developments are located within these areas. And, according to the head of our Melbourne Property Management team, Christina Tao, rental demand in these areas is strong.

“Just last week we had the first inspection for Kings Domain, a new apartment development in the inner suburb of South Melbourne.  We had 225 people queuing out the front gate, and over 40 applications received. However, so far, only 8 properties have settled in the building, so unfortunately most of those tenants will miss out,” she said.

Prospective tenants queue out the front gate at the first inspection at “Kings Domain” in the inner suburb of South Melbourne.

How each suburb was scored

PwC’s ‘live’ ranking was based on the overall amenity of a locality based on factors such as housing affordability, low crime rates and access to services such as health care and schools.

The ‘work’ category assessed suburbs against a range of economic factors such as business activity, employment rates, access to jobs and economic performance.

‘Play’ measured aspects of the locality that make it an appealing place for leisure activities such as entertainment, dining and cultural or sporting activities.

Data for CityPulse was extracted from multiple sources, including government departments and authorities, such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Pwc CityPulse Rankings:

Melbourne’s best suburbs to live

Melbourne’s best suburbs to work

Melbourne’s best suburbs to play

Tips for tenants

If you’re like many renters finding the competition a little intense in these sought-after areas, Ms Tao has the following advice.

“I would suggest renters submit their applications as quickly as possible, and provide as much personal information as possible. This will help property managers to easily and quickly identify your advantages as a potential tenant during the review process. Tenants who provide incomplete information will certainly find it difficult to compete within the current market,” she said.

“What we’re also seeing now is that students and other renters, who don’t have a strong tenant history compared to professional tenants, are being more creative and coming up with strategies to make their application more attractive – like offering higher than asking rent or offering a longer lease term in order to make their application stand out to landlords,” Ms Tao said.

Tips for investors

The rental market in Melbourne is incredibly strong and is certainly recognised as a “landlord’s market.” In order to benefit the most from this market and maximise rental returns, investors should target areas that are well serviced by public transport, local retail and amenity, as well as excellent accessibility to major employment hubs.

“The majority of these suburbs are well and truly on our ‘watch-list’” said Ironfish National Apartments Manager, William Mitchell.

“Given most of these suburbs have excellent public transport links and good local amenity, it makes them very attractive locations for tenants, owner occupiers and investors. One x-factor that investors should keep a keen eye on is infrastructure projects that will further increase the appeal of certain suburbs in future. The $11 billion Melbourne Metro is one such example, and when complete will greatly increase the appeal of areas within walking distance of the new stations.”

Looking to invest in one of Melbourne’s best suburbs? Register to access our selected properties list.

Are you a tenant looking to rent in Melbourne’s inner suburbs? Contact our Melbourne Property Management team.