Property remains sought after in Melbourne’s inner eastern suburbs, which boast large parks, excellent amenities and leafy tree-lined streets. But families in particular are looking beyond these features, flocking to the inner east predominantly for its esteemed schools and the opportunity to create their dream family home. 

Balwyn North in particular is thriving, with clearance rates sitting above 86.4 percent for this quarter. The popularity of Balwyn North is evident in the rise of house prices over the past few years. Not long ago, Balwyn North rarely made the REIV “million dollar suburb” list – today it has a median house price of $1,690,000. For instance, an old red-brick home in 93 Maud St sold for almost $900,000 above reserve a few weeks ago. Some years ago this would be unheard of. The property’s location near the freeway, tram lines, primary and secondary schools exemplifies how land is highly sought after in North Balwyn. 

To add, young parents look to Balwyn North because it is in the highly reputed public school Balwyn High’s catchment area. Demand for Balwyn High has grown even more in recent years, as the costs of sending a child to a private school has sky rocketed. For families, children’s education is a major factor behind their final purchasing decision.

Besides the critical school zone placement, land is also a desired asset. The area is home to traditional, older properties that often don’t suit a modern family’s needs. Many buyers are prepared to pay more for this land, knock down the house and start from scratch. A-grade land in Balwyn is fetching roughly $3000 per square metre as evidenced by a recent sale at Henley St. This particular block of land measured approximately 817 square metres and sold at auction for an astounding $2.65 million. Evidently, buyers are attracted to the idea of creating their own dream home. 

However if the two to three million price tag is out of your budget, Kew East and Mont Albert North are two inner-eastern suburbs that still offer value. Mont Albert North has one of the lowest median house prices in the area of $1.140 million and is close to primary schools, transport and the Box Hill shopping precinct. While Kew East is within six kilometres of the city and is serviced by freeways and bike paths. hockingstuart research shows there are more than 125 streets with properties that have renovation potential in Kew East too, so it’s teeming with opportunity if you’re prepared to do a little DIY. 

The popularity of the inner east is a textbook example of what drives demand in a particular area. Anywhere with quality schools, cafes and restaurants and public transport will be popular – and buyers will be prepared to pay for land.