What are the cheapest suburbs to rent in Melbourne?
20 Apr 2023
Looking for an affordable place to rent in Melbourne? We reveal the 20 cheapest suburbs to rent a house or unit.
Melbourne is known as one of the most liveable cities in the world, so it might be surprising to know that, according to CoreLogic’s Quarterly Rental Review for the March quarter of 2023, it is actually the country’s most affordable capital city to rent in. That’s despite the fact that rents increased by 3.7% over the three months to March 2023 – the largest quarterly rental increase of all the capital cities in that period.
It may not stay the most affordable for much longer though. “Weaker rental demand due to extended lockdowns and closed international borders saw Melbourne’s relative rental affordability improve through the first two years of COVID,” noted CoreLogic Economist and report author Kaytlin Ezzy. “However, the return of overseas migrants and international students, who typically choose to rent in Melbourne and Sydney, has seen the gap between Melbourne and the second most affordable rental capital, Adelaide, narrow from $15 per week in December to just $5 per week in March.”
CoreLogic found that rental growth conditions across the capitals were skewed towards the medium to high-density sector, with each city recording a larger quarterly and annual rental increase in unit rents compared to houses. In Melbourne’s case, rental rates increased by 4.3% for units and 3.3% for houses over the March quarter. The growth in unit rents (14.6%) also outpaced the growth in house rents (8.3%) over the year.
Vacancy rates in the Victorian capital have also tightened substantially over the past 12 months – especially for units. In March 2022 the vacancy rate was 1.6% for houses and 2.4% for units. Fast forward to March 2023 and it is 0.9% for houses and 0.6% for units.
There is a substantial difference between the most expensive suburbs to rent in Melbourne and the cheapest. For houses, the most expensive median rent is in Brighton, where it costs $1,294 a week. Meanwhile, in the city’s cheapest suburb, Melton, it costs just $374 a week to rent a house. For units, the most expensive suburb is Beaumaris, at $733 a week, while the cheapest is Melton South, at just $374 a week to rent a unit.
CoreLogic has compiled a list of the suburbs in Melbourne where it’s cheapest to rent a house or unit. Here’s the breakdown.
Top 20 cheapest suburbs to rent a house in Melbourne
It’s possible to rent a house in all of these Melbourne suburbs for $425 or less but in many of the locations, the vacancy rates are very low so it won’t necessarily be easy to secure a property to rent.
Top 20 cheapest suburbs to rent a house in Melbourne
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| Suburb | Avg distance to CBD |
Median weekly rental value |
Vacancy rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melton | 36.7 km | $374 | 2.10% |
| Kurunjang | 36.9 km | $392 | 1.70% |
| Broadmeadows | 14.9 km | $404 | 0.50% |
| Brookfield | 38.5 km | $405 | 1.10% |
| Melton West | 39.2 km | $406 | 0.80% |
| Melton South | 35.7 km | $408 | 2.00% |
| Coolaroo | 17.3 km | $409 | Not available |
| Albanvale | 18.7 km | $410 | 1.00% |
| Ardeer | 14.7 km | $412 | 0.40% |
| Laverton | 17.5 km | $413 | 0.70% |
| Kings Park | 19 km | $414 | 0.80% |
| Dallas | 16.1 km | $414 | 0.30% |
| St Albans | 15.9 km | $416 | 1.50% |
| Deer Park | 18.1 km | $418 | 0.60% |
| Werribee | 29.3 km | $419 | 0.60% |
| Campbellfield | 15.5 km | $420 | 0.60% |
| Meadow Heights | 18.5 km | $422 | 0.30% |
| Wyndham Vale | 31.9 km | $423 | 0.80% |
| Frankston North | 38.1 km | $424 | 1.40% |
| Hoppers Crossing | 24.7 km | $425 | 0.80% |
Source: CoreLogic as at March 2023. Median weekly rental value refers to the 50th percentile of rental valuation observed in the region.
Top 20 cheapest suburbs to rent a unit in Melbourne
Nine of the suburbs in this list also feature in the top 20 cheapest suburbs to rent a house and it’s not that much cheaper to rent a house than a unit. In Broadmeadows, for example, the median weekly rent for a house is just $13 more than that for a unit.
Top 20 cheapest suburbs to rent a unit in Melbourne
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| Suburb | Avg distance to CBD |
Median weekly rental value |
Vacancy rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melton South | 36.2 km | $337 | 2.70% |
| Melton | 36.4 km | $343 | 1.60% |
| Albion | 12.9 km | $345 | 0.20% |
| Melton West | 39.1 km | $355 | 1.30% |
| Werribee | 28.5 km | $355 | 0.30% |
| Hoppers Crossing | 24.7 km | $360 | 0.40% |
| Bacchus Marsh | 48.9 km | $363 | 1.20% |
| Darley | 49.9 km | $370 | 1.60% |
| Wyndham Vale | 31.3 km | $373 | 1.10% |
| St Albans | 16.3 km | $382 | 1.00% |
| Deer Park | 18 km | $386 | 0.20% |
| Tarneit | 26 km | $388 | 0.60% |
| Dandenong | 28.9 km | $389 | 0.70% |
| Thomastown | 15.5 km | $391 | 0.40% |
| Broadmeadows | 14.4 km | $391 | 0.70% |
| Pakenham | 53.5 km | $393 | 0.20% |
| Epping | 20.2 km | $393 | 0.20% |
| Lalor | 16.8 km | $394 | 0.30% |
| Mill Park | 19.3 km | $396 | 0.90% |
| Dandenong North | 27.1 km | $397 | 1.00% |
Source: CoreLogic as at March 2023. Median weekly rental value refers to the 50th percentile of rental valuation observed in the region.
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This article was reviewed by our Editor-at-Large Effie Zahos before it was updated, as part of our fact-checking process.
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