Get a property report and suburb profile for any property in Essendon

Essendon is a leafy, established suburb in Melbourne’s inner-northwest, with Victorian, Edwardian and interwar cottages alongside pockets of modern infill and low-rise apartments. That mix makes it popular with families, professionals and downsizers. The Keilor Road shopping strip puts cafes, bakeries and local shops within walking distance, Essendon station provides direct rail into the city, and sporting life centres on Windy Hill and local ovals. Essendon Fields and nearby parks add commercial and open-space balance to the neighbourhood.

Families make up the core of the community, with couple families with children the largest single group at 48.7%. About two in three homes are owner-occupied (33.2% owned outright and 30.4% with a mortgage) while 36.5% are rented. Several local projects are under way or planned, including a redevelopment at Essendon Fields into a health and wellbeing destination and a $3.2 million transformation at Windy Hill, and an interim kindergarten currently operates while a permanent site is under consideration. Whether Essendon suits you comes down to what you want in a suburb.

On these figures, buying in Essendon looks stretched for houses but closer for units when measured against local incomes at the last Census. The median house price of $1,657,500 is about 15 times a typical local household's annual income at the last Census (weekly household income $2,132, annual $110,864). The median unit price of $530,000 is about 4.8 times that annual income.

Renting tells a similar story: a house rent of $735 a week would take about 34.5% of a typical local household's weekly income at the last Census, a sizeable share, while a unit rent of $500 a week would take about 23.5%, a moderate share. Whether that feels expensive will depend on your personal situation.

Everyone's financial situation is different, so it's important to consider your own circumstances when deciding which suburb is right for you.

House values in Essendon climbed a strong 12.0% over the past 12 months, while house rents rose a solid 8.1% in the same period. Units moved differently: unit values fell by 3.2% (a modest decline) while unit rents rose 4.6% (a modest gain).

Put simply, the data for Essendon this year shows stronger capital growth on the house side, with house rents also growing more than unit rents, while unit values eased back modestly. Whether that balance fits your investment goals and circumstances is for you to decide.

This information has been prepared without taking your objectives, needs and overall financial situation into account. It is not meant to be a substitute for professional financial advice. For this reason, you should consider the appropriateness of the information and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice.