Bell Post Hill
Detached houses make up 92.0% of dwellings here, one of the most house-dominated profiles you will find in Geelong, and that shapes nearly everything else. The median house price of $670,000 has climbed 104.3% from $328,000 in 2013, a 5.2% compound annual rate over 14 years, yet it dipped 2.2% from the $685,000 peak in early 2024. Household income sits in the 35.4th percentile nationally, well below midpoint, while the median age of 42 runs 2.0 years above the national figure. Owners dominate, with 44.2% holding their homes outright, and the renting share is just 25.1%, low for a metropolitan suburb.
Population
5,083
Median Age
42.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$1,368/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
5
Median House
$670K
Apr-Jun 2024
At a $670,000 median, Bell Post Hill prices below much of metropolitan Melbourne, and the stock suits families because 92.0% are separate houses and 60.4% have three bedrooms, with another 28.2% offering four or more. Buyers compete in a settled market: prices rose from $611,500 in late 2023 to a $685,000 peak in early 2024 before easing 2.2% to the current level, so the recent trend is flat rather than surging. Monthly mortgage repayments average $1,600, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 27.0%, below the 30% stress threshold despite household incomes in only the 35.4th percentile, which means the entry-level pricing keeps repayments manageable. Outright owners at 44.2% outnumber mortgage holders at 30.7%, signalling an established, low-churn ownership base rather than recent buyers.
For Buyers
At a $670,000 median, Bell Post Hill prices below much of metropolitan Melbourne, and the stock suits families because 92.0% are separate houses and 60.4% have three bedrooms, with another 28.2% offering four or more. Buyers compete in a settled market: prices rose from $611,500 in late 2023 to a $685,000 peak in early 2024 before easing 2.2% to the current level, so the recent trend is flat rather than surging. Monthly mortgage repayments average $1,600, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 27.0%, below the 30% stress threshold despite household incomes in only the 35.4th percentile, which means the entry-level pricing keeps repayments manageable. Outright owners at 44.2% outnumber mortgage holders at 30.7%, signalling an established, low-churn ownership base rather than recent buyers.
For Investors
Renters make up 25.1% of households, a thinner tenant pool than inner-Melbourne suburbs, and weekly rent of $350 against the $670,000 median implies a gross yield near 2.7%, modest but higher than premium markets. The vacancy rate of 5.5% sits above the tight sub-2% levels landlords prefer, pointing to limited rental pressure. Rent-to-income runs at 25.6%, below the stress threshold, so tenants have headroom but rents face a ceiling tied to the 35.4th-percentile local incomes. New supply is scarce, with just 3 development applications lodged in 12 months, which constrains future stock and supports existing values. With apartments only 6.5% of dwellings, the investment case rests on detached-house capital growth, where the 5.2% long-run CAGR has outpaced the recent flat patch.
Development Activity
Total DAs
8
Last 12 Months
5
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
+150.0%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Bell Post Hill iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
Kardinia International College
Prep-12 · 1925 students
Covenant College
Prep-12 · 735 students
Rollins Primary School
Prep-6 · 326 students
Demographics
The median age of 42 is 2.0 years above national, and overseas-born residents reach 29.0%, which is 7.4 points higher than the national figure, reflecting a long migrant settlement history. University qualifications sit at 23.4%, 6.7 points below national, consistent with a workforce weighted toward trades, healthcare and personal services rather than knowledge sectors. Ancestry leans European, led by English (1,250), Scottish (422), Irish (403) and a notably large Croatian community (400), and the top non-English languages are Macedonian (111), Croatian (108) and Italian (55). Average household size is 2.4, marginally below the national 2.5, and couples with children (1,306) slightly outnumber couples without (1,227), a family-oriented mix that aligns with the three-bedroom-dominant housing stock.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
92.0%
Houses
1.5%
Townhouse
6.5%
Apartment
Tenure
Tenure tilts heavily toward ownership: 44.2% own outright, 30.7% carry a mortgage and only 25.1% rent, so outright owners alone outnumber every other group, a marker of long-held, debt-free housing. The stock is 92.0% separate houses with apartments at just 6.5% and semi-detached at 1.5%, and three-bedroom homes dominate at 60.4% with four-plus at 28.2%. The median house price rose from $328,000 in 2013 to $670,000 by mid-2024, a 104.3% gain at 5.2% CAGR, though it slipped 2.2% from the $685,000 early-2024 peak. Mortgage-to-income at 27.0% and rent-to-income at 25.6% both stay below the 30% stress line, a comfort that comes because entry-level prices offset household incomes sitting in the 35.4th percentile nationally.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$1,600
Rent / wk
$350
HH Size
2.4
Personal Income / wk
$674
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
5.5%
Unoccupied
119
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
25.6%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
27.0%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
30.3%
Couples, no children
4,043
Total families
Economy & Employment
The local workforce concentrates in services and trades rather than corporate sectors: Healthcare leads at 19.6% (288 workers), Construction follows at 13.6% (199) and Education at 12.2% (179), with Retail at 9.3% and Public Admin at 7.3%. By occupation, Professionals (365) edge ahead of Community and Personal Service workers (336) and Labourers (285), a spread that explains why university qualifications run 6.7 points below national. Unemployment sits at 5.6% with a full-time employment rate of 61.8%, while participation reads a low 52.1% because 1,632 residents are not in the labour force, consistent with the older median age of 42. Personal income averages $674 a week, leaving household income in the 35.4th percentile, below the national midpoint.
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
61.8%
Part-time
32.6%
Participation
52.1%
Employed
2,118
Occupations
Top Industries
University
23.4%
Postgraduate
4.7%
Born Overseas
29.0%
Dwellings
2,034
Transport to Work
Car dependence is near-total, with 88.9% driving to work and only 2.2% using public transport and 2.5% walking or cycling, well below inner-suburban transit shares, a function of the suburb's outer-Geelong position and 851.3 residents per km2 spread across 5.97 km2. No schools are recorded inside the boundary in this dataset, so families rely on institutions in neighbouring suburbs. Crime totals 308 offences, a rate of 60.6 per 1,000 residents, with property and deception offences the largest share at 163, ahead of justice procedures (57) and crimes against the person (52). Need for daily assistance affects 8.3% of residents (402 people), above what a younger suburb would show, reflecting the median age of 42 running 2.0 years over national.
Drive
88.9%
Public Transport
2.2%
Walk / Cycle
2.5%
Work from Home
N/A
Safety & Crime
Total Offences
308
Year ending June 2024
Rate per 1,000 People
60.6
Offence Categories
Source: Crime Statistics Agency Victoria / SA Police
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How Bell Post Hill compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bell Post Hill a good suburb to live in?
Bell Post Hill suits owner-occupier families, with 92.0% separate houses and 60.4% three-bedroom homes, plus 44.2% of owners holding their homes outright. The median age is 42, two years above national, and the $670,000 median house price sits below much of Melbourne. The main trade-offs are 88.9% car dependence and limited public transport at 2.2%.
What is the median house price in Bell Post Hill?
The median house price is $670,000 as of the Apr-Jun 2024 quarter, up 104.3% from $328,000 in 2013, a 5.2% compound annual growth rate. Prices eased 2.2% from the $685,000 peak in early 2024. Weekly rent averages $350 and monthly mortgage repayments run about $1,600.
What schools are in Bell Post Hill?
No schools are recorded inside the Bell Post Hill boundary in this dataset, so families rely on schools in neighbouring Geelong suburbs. The area is family-oriented, with 60.4% of homes having three bedrooms and couples with children numbering 1,306, slightly above the 1,227 couples without children.
Is Bell Post Hill safe?
Bell Post Hill recorded 308 offences, a crime rate of 60.6 per 1,000 residents. The largest category is property and deception offences at 163, followed by justice procedures at 57 and crimes against the person at 52. Property offences outnumber person-related crimes by more than three to one.
Is Bell Post Hill good for property investment?
Weekly rent of $350 against a $670,000 median gives a gross yield near 2.7%, modest but above premium markets. The vacancy rate is 5.5% and renters are just 25.1% of households, a thinner pool. With only 3 development applications in 12 months, scarce new supply supports detached-house values that grew 5.2% annually long term.
How is Bell Post Hill's population changing?
Bell Post Hill is a stable, low-turnover suburb where 80.8% of residents stayed put, giving a turnover rate of 19.2%. The current population is 5,083 with a median age of 42, two years above national. Overseas-born residents at 29.0% sit 7.4 points above national, the historic driver of demand against just 3 development applications in 12 months.
What languages are spoken in Bell Post Hill?
About 29.0% of residents were born overseas, 7.4 points above national. English dominates, but the top non-English languages are Macedonian (111 speakers), Croatian (108), Italian (55), Serbian (39) and Arabic (31), reflecting a long-established European migrant community led by Croatian ancestry at 400 residents.
How to read these comparisons
Phrases like "above the national average" reference the unweighted median across Australian suburbs with more than 1,000 residents, not population-weighted national figures. Suburb-level medians are more useful for ranking suburbs against each other; ABS census headlines are population-weighted (so dominated by Sydney and Melbourne) and can read very differently.
Current baseline (refreshed 2026-05-10): median age 40, university-educated 30.1%, born overseas 21.6%, average household size 2.5 people.
Data sources: ABS 2021 Census (demographics, income, tenure), state Valuer-General (house prices), Department of Jobs SALM (unemployment), ACARA (school ICSEA), state Crime Statistics agencies (offences), council DA portals (development applications). Population forecasts use a Hamilton-Perry cohort model calibrated to ABS ERP.
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