By Ewen McRae and Jemimah Clegg
Brimbank properties are among the least likely to be sold in Melbourne, according to new research.
Taylors Lakes, Keilor and Keilor Downs are in the top 10 most tightly-held suburbs, with less than three per cent of residential properties selling in the year to March, 2018, a Domain Group data analysis has shown.
The analysis looked at suburbs with more than 1000 dwellings and excluded public housing.
Domain Group data scientist Nicola Powell said suburbs with a low rate of sales often had high percentages of families with school-aged children.
“It’s the heartland of families – they’re gaining equity on their houses and paying off their mortgages as they bring up children,” Dr Powell said.
She said the other group hanging on to properties in those suburbs were people who might be unable to downsize, particularly as the median house price in most of the suburbs was lower than Melbourne’s median of $914,518.
Noble Park was Melbourne’s most tightly held suburb, with just 2.5 per cent of residential properties sold in the year to March, 2018, with Taylors Lakes coming in at number five at 2.7 per cent.
Keilor Downs (2.8 per cent) and Keilor (2.9 per cent) were sixth and eighth on the list.
Suburbs with the highest percentage of sales included developing areas on the city’s fringe such as Mickleham, Clyde North and Officer, where house and land packages made up the majority of sales. More established areas with a high turnover of properties included Point Cook where 9.9 per cent sold, Cranbourne West (9.8 per cent) and Pakenham (9.2 per cent).
Keilor East Harcourts Vision agent Basil Zoccali said the Brimbank suburbs had many older residents who were struggling to, or did not want to, move out of family homes.
“A lot of them have been there for 40 or 50 years,” Mr Zoccali said.
He said people who bought a decade ago were starting to reap rewards of gentrification, making them more reluctant to sell.
– with Domain
