Sale
A 10.0% vacancy rate and a $485000 median house price put Sale in a very different lane from tighter coastal or Melbourne fringe markets. It functions as a major Wellington service centre, more self-contained than nearby Maffra or Stratford, with 14,296 residents across 43.76 sq km. Housing is 84.8% separate houses, while household income sits at the 33.3 percentile, below average. The trade-off is clear: affordability and space are strong, but crime at 186.6 per 1000 and slow growth need careful due diligence.
Population
14,296
Median Age
42.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$1,327/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
28
Median House
$485K
Apr-Jun 2024
Sale suits buyers prioritising detached homes and lower entry prices over rapid capital growth. The $485000 median house price is 6.7% below the Jul-Sep 2023 peak of $520000, giving buyers more leverage than during the 2023 high. Separate houses make up 84.8% of stock, and 46.4% of dwellings have 3 bedrooms, so family-sized options are common. Mortgage costs at 22.6% of income sit below stress settings, but the 33.3 income percentile means budgets can still feel tight for local earners.
For Buyers
Sale suits buyers prioritising detached homes and lower entry prices over rapid capital growth. The $485000 median house price is 6.7% below the Jul-Sep 2023 peak of $520000, giving buyers more leverage than during the 2023 high. Separate houses make up 84.8% of stock, and 46.4% of dwellings have 3 bedrooms, so family-sized options are common. Mortgage costs at 22.6% of income sit below stress settings, but the 33.3 income percentile means budgets can still feel tight for local earners.
For Investors
Investors get a relatively low purchase price, but Sale is not a simple yield story because vacancy is high at 10.0%. Renting households make up 33.7% of tenure and the median rent is $280 a week, below many larger Victorian centres. That can support steady demand from local workers, yet a high vacancy rate weakens pricing power. Development is active, with 21 applications in 12 months, so added supply and 2 lot subdivisions should be compared against tenant demand before assuming rent growth continues.
Development Activity
Total DAs
47
Last 12 Months
28
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
+211.1%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Sale iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
Gippsland Grammar
Prep-12 · 1039 students
St Mary's Primary School
Prep-6 · 180 students
St Thomas' School
Prep-6 · 289 students
Catholic College Sale
7-12 · 872 students
Sale Primary School
Prep-6 · 465 students
Demographics
Sale is older and less internationally mixed than the national profile. The median age is 42, which is 2.0 years above national, while 13.6% of residents were born overseas, 8.0 percentage points below national. University attainment is 25.7%, sitting 4.4 points below national, which fits a regional workforce weighted to services, health and public administration. English, Irish and Scottish ancestries dominate, with English ancestry recorded for 5847 people and household size at 2.3, slightly lower than national by 0.2.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
84.8%
Houses
7.7%
Townhouse
6.9%
Apartment
Tenure
The housing market is detached and owner-heavy compared with denser suburbs. Separate houses account for 84.8% of dwellings, apartments just 6.9%, and 36.3% of homes are owned outright. The $485000 latest median is well above the 2013 trough of $290000, a 67.2% rise over 14 years, but it remains 6.7% below the $520000 peak. With 29.9% mortgaged and 33.7% renting, Sale has a mixed tenure base; affordability is helped by mortgage costs at 22.6% of income and rent at 21.1%.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$1,300
Rent / wk
$280
HH Size
2.3
Personal Income / wk
$701
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
10.0%
Unoccupied
644
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
21.1%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
22.6%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
30.8%
Couples, no children
10,414
Total families
Economy & Employment
Sale's economy is anchored by public-facing services rather than high-income corporate sectors. Healthcare employs 942 people, or 23.1%, followed by Public Admin at 16.1%, Education at 12.5%, Construction at 9.0% and Retail at 5.9%. Professionals are the largest occupation group with 1361 workers, yet household income is only at the 33.3 percentile. That mismatch is reflected in SEIFA: IEO decile 4, IER decile 3, IRSD decile 3 and IRSAD decile 3, below average because participation is 51.6% and 4537 residents are not in the labour force.
Unemployment
5.6%
Labour Force
7,631
Unemployed
424
Quarterly Trend
Source: SALM Dec-25
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
61.2%
Part-time
33.4%
Participation
51.6%
Employed
5,720
Occupations
Top Industries
University
25.7%
Postgraduate
5.4%
Born Overseas
13.6%
Dwellings
5,768
Transport to Work
Sale is car-based, with 85.3% driving to work, 7.9% walking or cycling and only 0.3% using public transport, so convenience depends heavily on local access and parking. Education choice is a clear strength: 8 schools span Independent, Catholic and Government sectors, with ICSEA scores from 943 to 1096. Gippsland Grammar leads at 1096 with 1039 enrolments, while St Mary's Primary at 1045 and Sale Primary at 1003 broaden the mix. Safety is the main caution, with crime at 186.6 per 1000 and IRSAD decile 3 below average.
Drive
85.3%
Public Transport
0.3%
Walk / Cycle
7.9%
Work from Home
N/A
Population Forecast
+0.42%/yr
(+64 people/yr)
EstablishedSale's growth outlook is modest compared with faster regional corridors. The trend forecast is 0.42% annual growth, or about 64 people a year, with the medium path reaching 15768 residents by 2031. Migration is finely balanced: overseas migration adds an average of 95 people a year, while internal migration subtracts 94, making overseas migration the primary driver. The suburb is aging, with senior share up 5.7 and young share down 2.2. The gentrification score is 0 and the stage is Not gentrifying, so price uplift is more likely to follow local services than reinvention.
Historical + Forecast
Hamilton-Perry + Holt smoothing on ERP 2001-2025
Age Cohort Forecast
Primary Driver
Overseas Migration
Net Overseas / yr
+95
Net Internal / yr
-94
Gentrification Signal
Not gentrifying
Safety & Crime
Total Offences
2,667
Year ending June 2024
Rate per 1,000 People
186.6
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 Sale compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Sale a good suburb to live in?
Sale can be a good fit for buyers wanting space and services at a $485000 median house price. It has 8 local schools and 84.8% separate houses, but the 186.6 crimes per 1000 rate means street-level checks matter.
What is the median house price in Sale?
The median house price in Sale is $485000 for Apr-Jun 2024. That is 6.7% below the $520000 peak in Jul-Sep 2023, but still 67.2% higher than the 2013 median of $290000.
What schools are in Sale?
Sale has 8 schools across Independent, Catholic and Government sectors. Gippsland Grammar has ICSEA 1096 and 1039 enrolments, while Catholic College Sale has 872 enrolments and Sale College has 782.
Is Sale safe?
Sale records 2667 offences, equal to 186.6 per 1000 residents. The largest categories are justice procedures offences at 937, property and deception offences at 887, and crimes against the person at 519.
Is Sale good for property investment?
Sale has accessible pricing at a $485000 median and 33.7% of households rent, but vacancy is high at 10.0%. Investors should test tenant demand carefully, especially with 21 development applications in 12 months.
How is Sale's population changing?
Sale is forecast to grow slowly at 0.42% a year, or about 64 people annually. The medium forecast reaches 15768 by 2031, with overseas migration adding 95 people a year and internal migration subtracting 94.
What development is happening in Sale?
There were 21 development applications in the past 12 months, including multiple 2 lot subdivision proposals. That level of activity points to incremental infill rather than a major apartment-led reshaping.
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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