Melbourne house buyers flock to affordable suburbs as prices surge by six figures

Melbourne house buyers are flocking to the city’s most affordable suburbs from Frankston to Melton and Broadmeadows as the cost-of-living reshapes the city’s home dream.

While they might have once had a reputation for being the wrong side of the tracks, they’re now the property market superstars where prices are surging up to six figures in a year, as the city’s fastest growing suburbs.

Across Melbourne overall, typical house values rose in 378 suburbs and held steady or dipped slightly in 27 areas.

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Median unit prices have grown in 271 suburbs, with those in Wheelers Hill and Frankston South the city’s best performing properties overall.

PropTrack senior economist Anne Flaherty said as interest rate increases and the cost of living impacted upon buyers’ capacity, much of the price growth was being seen in affordable lifestyle areas and regional Victoria.

“I think that for people who do want to live in these lifestyle areas, they are sometimes having to choose between a house and a unit, and maybe the unit is their affordable entry point into these suburbs,” Ms Flaherty said.

PropTrack senior economist Anne Flaherty says that units sometimes serve as an affordable entry point to suburbs and towns sought-after for their lifestyle.

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This three-bedroom house at 3A Bradshaw St, Frankston, is for sale with a $750,000-$825,000 range. The suburb has a $835,093 median house price.

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She noted the Australian government’s 5 per cent Deposit Scheme for first-home buyers would also be boosting demand for units and affordable houses.

In the 12 months to March, Wheelers Hill units hit a $932,971 median price which represented a whopping $292,277 increase.

And Frankston South units stacked on $141,545 to reach a $826,527 median.

For houses, Frankston North’s $680,398 median price hike added $98,196 to owners’ hip pockets and Frankston’s $835,093 equated to a $109,906 gain.

In Frankston North, 3 Norfolk Cres is on the market with a $680,000-$748,000 price tag. The suburb’s typical house price is $680,398.

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The typical house value in Melton, Broadmeadows, Dallas, Coolaroo and Meadow Heights all gained at least $65,000.

Ms Flaherty said there was currently a lot of uncertainty in the market due to interest rate rises, inflation, low consumer sentiment and world events.

“It could lead buyers to be a little bit gung-ho, but on the flip side, it could also make people more hesitant to potentially sell,” she said.

“And if that was to happen, that could impact the supply of properties for sale and support some home price growth there too.”

Greater Melbourne’s median home price – including houses, units and apartments – is $859,000, while the rest of Victoria sits at $600,000, according to PropTrack. Picture: David Caird.

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Melbourne-based Advantage Property Consulting director Frank Valentic said Wheelers Hill and Frankston South units were more affordable than the suburbs’ respective $1,441,220 and $1,154,959 median house prices, which locked out some buyers from families to first-home buyers and downsizers.

Mr Valentic said some families would opt for a unit over a house if it was zoned for a well-regarded school.

“If you’re in Frankston South, you’re pretty well guaranteed to get into the popular high school zone there,” he added.

With a $579,000-$609,000 range, 15 Gladstone Grove, Melton, is for sale in Melbourne’s outer west. The area has a $546,126 typical house value.

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The buyers’ advocate said that one to two decades ago, some of the suburbs now among Melbourne’s top performers for median house prices were viewed as somewhat “daggy” and unsafe due to high rate rates.

“I checked the statistics with a colleague of mine of who works in the security game and he said none of those suburbs now rate in the top 10 crime suburbs,” Mr Valentic said.

“Ten to 20 years ago, Broady and Frankston had really bad reputations as very unsafe, high-crime areas.”

But Mr Valentic said these areas had changed a lot and were now seeing a lot of young families move in.

“I think Frankston’s probably come the furthest way, with the waterfront and all the nice restaurants and cafes, and some of the Frankston properties being so close to the water.” he said

Suburbs including Deepdene, Elwood and Parkville were among the areas to record slight reductions to the their median prices in the year to March 2026. Picture: NewsWire/Andrew Henshaw.

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OBrien Real Estate Frankston’s Mark Burke said Frankston and Frankston North were popular with both owner-occupiers and investors, thanks to their proximity to the coast and freeways, public transport, shops, eateries, sports facilities and schools.

“Some people used to bag these areas and say, ‘You wouldn’t live there, would you?’” Mr Burke said.

“A first-home buyer would go home and say, ‘I bought there’, and their parents would try and get them to call it off. But now the parents say, ‘Oh no, that’s a good one’.”

He said that some Frankston and Frankston North house sellers were earning returns of up to $300,000 on their original purchase price of three to four years ago.

He compared the rise of Frankston and surrounds to the trajectory of suburbs such as Port Melbourne, Williamstown and Newport, which have gentrified – and seen home prices rise as a result – in recent years.

This four-bedroom house at 13 Washington St, Dallas, is for sale with $600,000-$650,000 price hopes. The area, close to Broadmeadows, has a $617,846 typical house value.

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Wealth Effect Mortgage Solutions’ finance broker Alex Fletcher said that many buyers were now willing to look at areas they might not once have considered, as borrowing capacity tightened and there weren’t enough homes being built to meet demand in Victoria.

“Gentrification is a thing that people recognise and I think people are prioritising their need for space, their need for house,” Mr Fletcher said.

The PropTrack report showed that for quarterly median price increases, Toorak houses topped Greater Melbourne, rising to more than $5.33m in March.

Carlton units with a $433,815 typical price, Toorak ($851,879) and Armadale ($677,232) led their respective pack for the quarter.

8 Woorigoleen Rd, Toorak, is for sale with a $5.35m-$5.65m range. The suburb, with a $5,337,686 median house value, topped Greater Melbourne’s house price growth stats for January to March 2026.

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Mr Fletcher said Armadale had long been undervalued, with some inner-city units offering opportunities for capital growth over the medium term.

Large 1970s-era apartments with an outdoor area, such as a balcony, were usually best-placed for this, he advised.

“I often say to clients, particularly first-time buyers, that their first purchase is really important for their next purchase,” he said.

“It’s not to scare them, but it’s to get them thinking more broadly about now to the changes that will come over the next 5 to 10 years.”

MELBOURNE: MEDIAN HOUSE PRICE RISE HOTSPOTS

13 Pearson Cres, Coolaroo, in Melbourne’s north, is for sale at $650,000-$710,000. The suburb has a $617,200 typical house value.

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MELBOURNE: MEDIAN UNIT PRICE RISE HOTSPOTS

Source: PropTrack Automated Valuation Models March 2026. Figures cover the 12 months to March 2026.

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