Sandringham
A $2.0575m median house price and 40.7% outright ownership put Sandringham in a premium Bayside category, while its 47 median age sits 7 years above the national benchmark. The suburb is denser than many beachside pockets at 2942.7 people per sq km, yet 50.2% of dwellings remain separate houses. Compared with nearby Hampton and Black Rock, it reads as long-held wealth rather than rapid renewal: household income is in the 88.4 percentile, university attainment is 54.2%, and recent population momentum is lower at -0.47% a year.
Population
10,926
Median Age
47.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$2,313/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
7
Median House
$2.1M
Apr-Jun 2024
Homebuyers face a high entry price: the median house is $2.0575m in Apr-Jun 2024, despite a 15.0% fall from the 2021 peak of $2.42m. The mix is broader than a pure detached-house market, with 50.2% separate houses, 22.5% semi-detached homes and 26.9% apartments, so downsizers and smaller households have options. Mortgages absorb 27.0% of income on the local measure, below common stress thresholds, because household income sits at the 88.4 percentile. Bedroom supply skews family sized, with 33.1% at 3 bedrooms and 30.2% at 4 plus.
For Buyers
Homebuyers face a high entry price: the median house is $2.0575m in Apr-Jun 2024, despite a 15.0% fall from the 2021 peak of $2.42m. The mix is broader than a pure detached-house market, with 50.2% separate houses, 22.5% semi-detached homes and 26.9% apartments, so downsizers and smaller households have options. Mortgages absorb 27.0% of income on the local measure, below common stress thresholds, because household income sits at the 88.4 percentile. Bedroom supply skews family sized, with 33.1% at 3 bedrooms and 30.2% at 4 plus.
For Investors
Investors should separate prestige from yield. Renters are 26.0% of households and the median rent is $460 a week, but the 10.1% vacancy rate is higher than a tight rental market, limiting near-term pricing power. Only 5 development applications over 12 months point to low new-supply pressure, which supports scarcity. Migration is balanced, adding average net internal migration of 18 people and overseas migration of 10 a year, so demand looks steadier than fast-growing outer suburbs rather than explosive.
Development Activity
Total DAs
15
Last 12 Months
7
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
+75.0%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Sandringham iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
Sandringham Primary School
Prep-6 · 540 students
Sacred Heart School
Prep-6 · 274 students
Sandringham East Primary School
Prep-6 · 432 students
Sandringham College
7-12 · 1079 students
Demographics
Sandringham skews older and highly educated: the median age is 47, which is 7 years above the national figure, and 54.2% of residents hold a university qualification, 24.1 percentage points above national. Overseas-born residents are 27.0%, 5.4 points above national, but ancestry remains strongly Anglo-Celtic, led by English 4575, Irish 1626 and Scottish 1449 responses. Mandarin 74, Greek 60 and Italian 51 speakers show some linguistic variety, while an average household size of 2.4 sits slightly below national.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
50.2%
Houses
22.5%
Townhouse
26.9%
Apartment
Tenure
Housing is expensive but not frothy at the latest point. The median house price is $2.0575m, 70.0% above the 2013 level of $1.21m but 15.0% below the 2021 peak of $2.42m, a 3.9% CAGR over 14 years across 15 quarters. Ownership is unusually entrenched, with 40.7% owned outright, 33.2% mortgaged and 26.0% rented. The price-to-household-income ratio is about 17.1 times, higher than mainstream Melbourne affordability, because weekly household income of $2313 still sits far below the capital value.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$2,708
Rent / wk
$460
HH Size
2.4
Personal Income / wk
$1,090
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
10.1%
Unoccupied
479
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
19.9%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
27.0%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
28.6%
Couples, no children
8,474
Total families
Economy & Employment
The local economy is professional-heavy compared with a service-worker suburb. Professional/Tech employs 747 people, or 18.3%, followed by Healthcare 603, Education 457, Construction 324 and Finance 313. Occupations reinforce the pattern: Professionals 1832 and Managers 1305 sit above clerical/admin 622. Unemployment is 4.2% with 62.6% of employed residents full time, while participation is 58.1% because the age profile is older. SEIFA is top-tier overall: IEO decile 10, IRSD 10 and IRSAD 10, with IER slightly lower at decile 9, reflecting resources below its education and advantage ranks.
Unemployment
9.7%
Labour Force
1,952
Unemployed
190
Quarterly Trend
Source: SALM Dec-25
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
62.6%
Part-time
33.2%
Participation
58.1%
Employed
5,113
Occupations
Top Industries
University
54.2%
Postgraduate
15.3%
Born Overseas
27.0%
Dwellings
4,253
Transport to Work
Livability is strongest for families who value beach access, schools and car convenience more than rail commuting. Four local schools span Government and Catholic sectors with ICSEA scores from 1106 to 1158; Sandringham Primary leads at 1158 with 540 enrolments, followed by Sacred Heart at 1138 and Sandringham East at 1135. Public transport commuting is 6.7%, below car driving at 81.1%, while walking and cycling reach 7.7%. Safety is mixed rather than uniformly low risk: recorded crime is 64.6 per 1000 people, with 461 property and deception offences, but IRSAD decile 10 signals very high area advantage.
Drive
81.1%
Public Transport
6.7%
Walk / Cycle
7.7%
Work from Home
N/A
Population Forecast
-0.47%/yr
(-21 people/yr)
EstablishedGrowth is the quietest signal in Sandringham. The trend is -0.47% a year, or -21 persons annually, and the medium path moves from 4403 in 2026 to 4297 in 2031. Migration is not the problem: the primary driver is Balanced, with average net internal migration of 18 and net overseas migration of 10 a year. The drag comes from an aging trajectory, with senior share up 3.1 points and young share down 1.6 points. Gentrification is lower than renewal markets, at score 0 and stage Not gentrifying.
Historical + Forecast
Hamilton-Perry + Holt smoothing on ERP 2001-2025
Age Cohort Forecast
Primary Driver
Balanced
Net Overseas / yr
+10
Net Internal / yr
+18
Gentrification Signal
Not gentrifying
Safety & Crime
Total Offences
706
Year ending June 2024
Rate per 1,000 People
64.6
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 Sandringham compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Sandringham a good suburb to live in?
Yes, Sandringham suits households wanting a premium Bayside setting with strong education and income signals. The median age is 47, household income is in the 88.4 percentile, and 4 local schools serve a suburb of 10926 residents.
What is the median house price in Sandringham?
The median house price in Sandringham is $2,057,500 for Apr-Jun 2024. That is 15.0% below the 2021 peak of $2,420,000, but still 70.0% above the 2013 level of $1,210,000.
What schools are in Sandringham?
Sandringham has 4 local schools: Sandringham Primary, Sacred Heart School, Sandringham East Primary and Sandringham College. ICSEA scores range from 1106 to 1158, with enrolments from 274 to 1079.
Is Sandringham safe?
Recorded crime is 706 offences, or 64.6 per 1000 residents. Property and deception offences are the largest category at 461, so safety is more about theft and property risk than broad personal crime.
Is Sandringham good for property investment?
Sandringham can work for long-term capital preservation, but yield should be assessed carefully. Renters are 26.0% of households, median rent is $460 a week and vacancy is elevated at 10.1%.
How is Sandringham's population changing?
Population momentum is soft. The annual trend is -0.47%, equal to about -21 persons a year, and the medium path declines from 4403 in 2026 to 4297 in 2031 as the suburb ages.
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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