Question 1

Is North Melbourne a nice place to live?

Accepted Answer

North Melbourne sits just northwest of the Melbourne CBD. Its tight grid of tree-lined streets, rows of Victorian terraces, converted warehouses and low-rise apartment pockets create a compact, walkable inner-city neighbourhood. The population mixes long-standing local households with young professionals and students who value the café and pub scene along Errol Street and the close access to Queen Victoria Market, while small parks and recreation reserves punctuate the area.

Transport is convenient with North Melbourne station, several tram routes and good cycling links, and the suburb has 14,953 people with a median age of 31 and a median household income of $1,717 a week. Most homes are renter-occupied (65.8%), so renters outnumber owner-occupiers by roughly two to one. Significant urban renewal is planned for the Arden precinct, and the council is progressing a replacement community hub and consulting on upgrades to Chapman Street Reserve. Whether it suits you depends on whether inner-city living with close transport links and proximity to cafes, pubs and the market fits your needs.

Question 2

Is it expensive to live in North Melbourne?

Accepted Answer

On the figures for North Melbourne, rent takes a large share of what a typical local household earned at the last Census. A house rent of $780 a week is about 45.4% of a $1,717 weekly household income and a unit rent of $600 a week is about 35.0% of that weekly income, so both sit as sizeable-to-large shares of local household earnings recorded at the last Census.

Looking at buying, the median house price of $1,160,000 is about 13.0 times a typical local annual household income at the last Census, while the median unit price of $525,000 is about 5.9 times that annual income. On these figures, buying a house sits well above local incomes and buying a unit sits somewhat above them; whether that feels expensive depends on your own income and circumstances.

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

Question 3

Is North Melbourne a good place to invest?

Accepted Answer

The past year has been very different for houses and units. Unit values in North Melbourne rose 18.1% over the 12 months, a strong increase, and unit rents climbed 10.5%, also a strong gain, so both the price and the rent for units moved up substantially. By comparison, median house values fell 1.7% over the year, a slight decline, while house rents increased 4.0%, a modest rise. In short, units outperformed houses on both capital growth and rental income over the past year; which of those outcomes matters to you depends on whether you are focused on capital growth or on rental income and your own circumstances.

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.

	Houses	Units
Median price Past 3 months	$1.16M	$525K
Change in value Past 12 months	-1.7%	18.1%
Sold Past 3 months	25	76
Median days on market Past 12 months	42	34
Average rent Past 12 months	$780	$600
Change in rent Past 12 months	4.0%	10.5%

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