Melbourne’s top investment spots have been revealed as a surprising list of some of its most affordable areas.
Investors are making a comeback in Melbourne and Victoria, and they’re going head to head with first-home buyers.
A new PropTrack Westpac Investor Report released today has revealed investor loans in Victoria rose to 36 per cent of the state’s total home lending last year — increasing from prior years.
The report has also found 12 of the 20 areas with the biggest increase in investor inquiries across the country in the past year were in Melbourne.
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Top suburbs listed for investors included Coolaroo, Carrum and Meadow Heights for houses, as well as Notting Hill, Burwood East and Cremorne for units and apartments.
They were named based on their blend of above average price growth, rental returns and short timelines needed to lock in a tenant.
Almost half of the investor inquiries were for homes priced at $700,000 or less — a bracket that attracts 45 per cent of the nation’s first-home buyers.
The report also found that despite challenging housing market conditions in Victoria in recent years, the vast majority of investors who have sold up were making a profit.
57 Shankland Blvd, Meadow Heights, is in one of the top spots for investors on a variety of stats, and the six-bedroom residence has an $840,000-$880,000 asking price.
12 Lewellin Grove, Carrum, is on the market for $1.44m-$1.53m.
In Melbourne, 84 per cent of those who sold up in the final three months of 2025 made a profit. About 96 per cent of investor sales in regional Victoria were also in the black.
Nationwide, 93 per cent of investors got more selling their property than they paid to purchase it.
PropTrack senior economist Angus Moore said Melbourne was a “bit lower” than other major capitals for investors making a profit, and that this reflected a generally weaker growth market in the Victorian capital over the past six years.
Mr Moore said the city had notched an about 20 per cent uplift since the turn of the decade, compared to gains of 110-120 per cent in Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane.
TOP INVESTMENT SPOTS (HOUSES)
Coolaroo: $625,000
Carrum: $1.063m
Meadow Heights: $670,000
Deanside: $705,000
Frankston North: $690,000
Delahey: $720,000
Frankston: $825,000
Westmeadows: $741,000
Kurunjang: $588,000
Gladstone Park: $802,000
Source: PropTrack Westpac Investor Report
The economist added that while it was difficult to know how interest rate hikes, global conflict, oil prices and the rising cost of living would impact the property market in the year ahead, it was clear that a number of key factors would remain attractive in Melbourne.
“In terms of investor specific drivers, they remain quite firm, with vacancy rates still low and rents still growing — though not as strongly as they were,” Mr Moore said.
“And homes are still leasing quickly.”
The PropTrack data shows that along with Queensland, Victoria has the most investors eyeing its homes from outside of the state.
412/154 Cremorne St, Cremorne, has a $650,000-$700,000 asking price for its two-bedroom floorplan.
20/5 Delacombe Drive, Mill Park, is in one of the best areas for investors looking for a unit and is seeking $550,000-$600,000.
However, Victorian investors are among the most likely of the nation’s biggest states to look for an investment in other jurisdictions, with 16 per cent choosing to purchase properties in areas not controlled by the Allan government.
A quarter of NSW-based investors looked outside of their state, compared to just 12 per cent of Western Australians, Queenslanders and South Australians.
Melbourne-based Wakelin Property Advisory’s Jarrod McCabe said his firm had watched investor demand swap from a higher share based interstate to more local groups in the past few months, but that it was already starting to revert back since the Iran crisis and rate hikes commenced.
TOP INVESTMENT SPOTS (UNITS)
Notting Hill: $395,000
Burwood East: $644,000
Cremorne: $620,000
Mill Park: $598,000
Elsternwick: $845,000
Craigieburn: $457,000
Fawkner: $630,000
Williamstown: $930,000
Carnegie: $710,000
Blackburn: $801,000
Source: PropTrack Westpac Investor Report
He said that could be a response to cost of living, fuel pressures, concerns about global conflict or rate hikes, and all of these would continue to impact investor appetites for long enough that he believed investors’ share of the market was unlikely to grow further in 2026.
“But I think the interstate investors will have a greater capacity have had a better experience with property values, particularly in the past three or four years, than those in Victoria,” Mr McCabe said.
He noted the preference for most investors was still for houses above units, if they could afford them, with many worried that apartment values could struggle as governments worked to increase their supply across the city.
“But, overall, I think first-home buyers will have the upper hand for most of the year — though they are quite sensitive to interest rate rises,” Mr McCabe said.
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