We Bought 131 Houses in Melbourne Last Year. Here Is Every Number.

At the beginning of 2025, I put my reputation on the line. While every second content creator was screaming about Brisbane momentum and Perth mining booms, I said publicly: Melbourne is the play. Bottom of cycle. Compressed yields about to snap back. Established land with no new supply.

Twelve months on, I owe you a scorecard. Not a vague "we did well" update with cherry-picked examples. The actual numbers across every single transaction our team executed in calendar year 2025.

Here they are: 131 houses purchased across Melbourne. Every single one sitting on 500 square metres or more of land. Average block size: 660 square metres. Average capital appreciation: 12.75 per cent. Average rental yield: 5 per cent 1.

Some of those properties — particularly in Frankston, the far southeast corridor, the northwest, and Geelong — didn't just match Brisbane and Perth averages. They beat them.

So if you spent 2025 chasing Adelaide heat or gambling on Darwin and Hobart, I genuinely feel for you. Because while those markets delivered short-term headline numbers, the fundamentals underneath are nothing like what Melbourne offers for the next decade.

Let me give you some additional context on why this matters. The median Australian property investor — someone without professional guidance — achieved roughly 7 to 8 per cent capital growth in Melbourne during the same period. Our 12.75 per cent figure means our clients outperformed the market by more than 50 per cent. On a $700,000 property, that is the difference between $49,000 and $89,000 in equity creation in a single year. Forty thousand dollars of additional wealth, per property, per year.

And this was not achieved by taking on more risk. Every property sits on land we verified meets our strict criteria — at least 80 per cent of the purchase price attributable to land value, not building. Every property was inspected in person by our team. Every Section 32 was reviewed by our in-house due diligence process before an offer was made.

The regions that outperformed (and why we picked them)

Our thesis at the start of 2025 was straightforward. We wanted suburbs meeting four criteria: population inflow from the 30-to-40 age demographic, near-zero new land supply, median prices below $750,000, and existing infrastructure that supports families — schools, hospitals, transport, shopping.

That pointed us squarely at Cranbourne, Hampton Park, Narre Warren, Frankston, and pockets of the northwest. It also led us to Geelong's northern suburbs — Norlane, Corio — where entry prices below $500,000 delivered rental yields north of 6 per cent 2.

Frankston and surrounds were the standout performers. Several properties we purchased for clients in the $650,000 to $750,000 range showed 15 per cent or greater appreciation within twelve months. One Frankston property purchased at $720,000 delivered $850 per week in rent — a gross yield of 6.1 per cent — while the bank valuation lifted to $750,000 within three months of settlement 3.

The far southeast corridor — Hampton Park, Cranbourne, Narre Warren — continued its relentless grind upward. A Hampton Park property purchased for $590,000 is now returning $850 per week after light renovation, with a bank valuation of $670,000. That is 13.5 per cent capital growth and a 7.5 per cent gross yield on purchase price 4.

These are not theoretical projections. They are bank-verified desktop valuations and signed lease agreements sitting in our property management system.

The northwest corridor also deserves mention. Properties in suburbs like Craigieburn, Sunbury, and Melton that met our land-size criteria delivered consistent 10 to 12 per cent growth. These suburbs benefit from the same dynamics as the southeast — young professional families priced out of inner-ring suburbs, migrating outward to find affordable family homes on decent-sized blocks.

What none of these suburbs have is significant new land release. That is the critical variable. When a suburb has no more greenfield land to develop, every property sale is a transfer between existing owners. New supply cannot dilute demand. This is the mechanism behind sustained price growth in established areas, and it is the single most important factor in our suburb selection model.

The Geelong numbers are worth examining separately. Our Geelong purchases — concentrated in Norlane and Corio — were in the $400,000 to $500,000 range. These delivered 8 to 10 per cent capital growth and yields of 6 to 7 per cent. For clients with smaller deposits or those using self-managed super fund structures, Geelong offers an entry point that allows portfolio building without the $150,000-plus deposits required in Melbourne's middle ring.

Why the yield number dropped from 6 per cent to 5 per cent (and why that is actually good news)

Sharp-eyed followers will notice our average yield dropped from 6 per cent in 2024 to 5 per cent in 2025. That looks like a step backward until you understand what drove it.

First, properties appreciated faster than rents. When your $600,000 purchase is suddenly worth $680,000 but the rent stays at $700 per week, the yield percentage compresses even though nothing went wrong. Your asset is worth more. That is a good problem.

Second, we deliberately diversified service offerings in 2025. We added subdivision projects, granny flat construction, full-house-rent negative gearing strategies, and other approaches that intentionally accept lower rent in exchange for higher total returns through tax advantages or development upside 5.

Not every client wants maximum rent. Some are high-income earners who benefit enormously from negative gearing. Others want to subdivide and sell the rear lot. The right strategy depends on the client's tax position, existing portfolio, and long-term objectives.

Our granny flat program expanded to include 18, 24, 30, and 60 square metre options. Average yield on granny flat conversions sits at roughly 5 per cent. The rooming house conversions remain our yield champions at approximately 6 per cent 6.

The point is this: a 5 per cent average yield in a market where Melbourne's median sits at 3.5 per cent is still a 43 per cent premium over what a typical buyer achieves. And that 5 per cent is accompanied by 12.75 per cent capital growth. Find me another buyer's agent in Australia publishing those numbers with a 131-property sample size.

There is a broader strategic point here that I want to make explicitly. Our service model evolved substantially during 2025. At the start of the year, we were primarily a buy-and-rent operation. By year end, we had added subdivision capability, granny flat construction in four different size formats, rooming house conversion expertise, and negative gearing optimisation.

Why? Because we realised that a one-size-fits-all approach to investment property is intellectually lazy. A client earning $200,000 per year with two existing properties has fundamentally different needs from a first-time investor earning $90,000. The high earner might benefit more from a negatively geared property in a high-growth suburb that maximises tax deductions. The first-timer needs immediate positive cash flow to prove the model works and build confidence.

Our granny flat program is a good example of this evolution. We now offer 18-square-metre studio units (suitable for single occupancy), 24-square-metre one-bedroom units, 30-square-metre units with a small living area, and 60-square-metre full two-bedroom granny flats. The construction cost for a 24-square-metre unit is approximately $110,000 installed, and it adds $350 to $400 per week in additional rental income. That is an 18 per cent return on investment from the construction alone, paid back in under six years through rental income 5.

The 2026 strategy: what has changed and what stays the same

Nothing fundamental changes. The macro thesis is identical. Melbourne remains the most undervalued major capital city market in Australia, and the recovery has further to run.

Specifically, our 2026 suburb selection criteria stay constant:

• Target suburbs with 30-to-40-year-old working professional inflow. These are the people who need family homes, have dual incomes, and will pay premium rent.
• Land supply must be near exhausted. We will not touch major development corridors where thousands of lots are being released annually. If you do not understand what a "major development area" is and why it kills your returns, you should not be buying without professional guidance.
• Street-level selection requires 80 per cent or greater owner-occupier density. We want our investment properties sitting on streets where neighbours maintain their homes, report crime, and care about the streetscape [7].
• Individual property assessment remains non-negotiable. Even two houses next door to each other can have vastly different investment profiles. Different soil conditions, different easement locations, different zoning overlays. Anyone telling you that in a rising market "everything goes up" is either naive or selling you something [8].

Our team grew from 11 people to 35 during 2025. We now span data analytics, property sourcing, renovation project management, and tenancy management. We are the only operation in the market offering genuine end-to-end buy-renovate-rent-manage service under one roof. That vertical integration is our structural advantage, and we intend to widen it further in 2026.

One point I want to expand on: the street-level selection criterion. When I say 80 per cent owner-occupier density, I am not being arbitrary. There is robust research showing that streets with high owner-occupier ratios have better-maintained properties, lower crime, stronger community bonds, and more stable property values. Renters are transient by nature — they have less incentive to maintain the property or invest in the streetscape. Owner-occupiers maintain gardens, report issues, and create the kind of neighbourhood that attracts premium tenants and higher rents.

We verify this for every property using council rate records and tenancy data. If a street has more than 20 per cent rental properties, we pass. This eliminates some otherwise attractive properties, but it protects our clients from the gradual degradation that occurs when a street tips into majority-renter territory.

Our team growth during 2025 — from 11 to 35 people — was not accidental. We hit capacity constraints in mid-2025 where we were physically unable to service the volume of client demand. Our property management division now operates on a strict 1:50 ratio — each property manager handles a maximum of fifty properties. The industry average is 1:170. That ratio difference is the reason our average vacancy period is under two weeks, compared to the Melbourne average of three to four weeks. Every week of vacancy on a $700-per-week property costs the client $700. Multiply that by the industry-average excess vacancy across a twenty-property portfolio, and the cost of poor management becomes staggering.

What the sceptics get wrong about Melbourne

I hear the same objections constantly. Melbourne has oversupply. Melbourne has population problems. Melbourne property taxes are punitive.

Let me address each one with data rather than opinion.

Oversupply: Melbourne's apartment market has supply issues in certain CBD postcodes. The established house market — which is where we exclusively operate — has the opposite problem. There is a structural shortage of family-sized homes on 500-plus square metre blocks within 40 kilometres of the CBD. You cannot manufacture more 660-square-metre blocks in Cranbourne or Hampton Park. The land is used. Every house that sells is simply transferred from one owner to another 9.

Population: Victoria recorded the highest interstate and overseas migration numbers in Australia through 2024-25. Melbourne absorbs the overwhelming majority of that growth. Population creates housing demand. Housing demand in supply-constrained suburbs creates price pressure. This is not complicated 10.

Taxes: Yes, Victoria has higher land tax thresholds than some states. But land tax is a holding cost, not a barrier to returns. When your property appreciates 12.75 per cent in twelve months and yields 5 per cent gross, the land tax bill — typically $1,500 to $3,000 annually for a sub-$800,000 property — is noise, not signal.

The sceptics are looking at Melbourne through a 2022 lens. The market has moved. Those of us who were buying at the bottom know that firsthand, because our bank valuations prove it.

Let me address the population argument with more specificity. Victoria's population grew by approximately 180,000 people in the 2024-25 financial year. That is a mid-sized Australian city's worth of people added to the state in a single year. The overwhelming majority settled in metropolitan Melbourne. At an average household size of 2.5 people, that is 72,000 new households requiring accommodation. Melbourne's annual dwelling completion rate is approximately 40,000 to 45,000. The deficit — roughly 27,000 to 32,000 dwellings — accumulates every single year.

This structural deficit has existed for over a decade and is widening. Planning approvals for new housing have decreased as councils impose tighter restrictions on density. Construction costs have increased, making new builds less viable. And the rental market remains historically tight, with vacancy rates in our target suburbs sitting below 1.5 per cent.

The people citing Melbourne "oversupply" are looking at the CBD apartment market — a tiny, specific segment that has genuinely suffered from excessive development. They are not looking at the established house market in middle-ring and outer-ring suburbs, where supply is physically constrained and demand is demographically driven. These are fundamentally different markets that happen to share a city name.

Accountability and what comes next

I will keep producing these reviews because accountability matters. Any buyer's agent can share a single cherry-picked success story. Sharing portfolio-wide data across 131 transactions is a different exercise entirely. It exposes the average, the median, and the range — not just the highlight reel.

For 2026, I will continue publishing video content, hosting live Q&A sessions, and occasionally sharing insights that my business partner would prefer I kept quiet. The knowledge gap between professional investors and everyday buyers is enormous, and I consider it part of my job to narrow it.

If you purchased in Melbourne during 2025, I would genuinely like to hear your results. Post your numbers in the comments — purchase price, current valuation, weekly rent. Let us build a public dataset that helps everyone make better decisions.

And if you bought in Adelaide, Darwin, or Hobart during the hype cycle and things have not worked out the way the spruiker promised, do not feel embarrassed. Feel motivated. The best time to correct course is right now, and Melbourne's window will not stay open permanently 1112.

I want to end with a point about data integrity. When I say 12.75 per cent average growth, that number is calculated using bank desktop valuations where available, and comparable sales analysis where bank valuations have not yet been obtained. We exclude properties settled within the last six months, as insufficient time has elapsed for a meaningful growth measurement.

This is not a cherry-picked number. It is the arithmetic mean across 131 transactions. Some properties grew 20 per cent. Some grew 6 per cent. The average is 12.75 per cent. We are in the process of building a public dashboard where every data point — purchase price, current valuation, weekly rent — will be visible. Because accountability without transparency is just words.

I will continue publishing these annual reviews for as long as I operate in this industry. The data speaks louder than any marketing campaign. And the data, right now, says Melbourne.