Brighton East
VICBrighton East is a stable suburb in VIC with 16,757 residents.
- SAL code
- 20338
- SA2
- 208011170
- Population
- 16,757
Brighton East, VIC had 16,757 residents at the 2021 Census, with the broader statistical area showing a 2.8% growth over the last five years. The predominant age group is 45-54 years, and the median age sits at 45. Households are most often couples with children, and those with a mortgage repay a median of $3,300 a month. Around 74.8% of homes are owner-occupied, with the largest single tenure being owned outright at 40.6%. Most dwellings are separate houses, making up 68.1% of the suburb's housing stock. The suburb has 10 parks and reserves mapped within its boundary. Source: ABS Census 2021 and Estimated Resident Population, with amenity counts from state Open Data and OpenStreetMap.
Suburb analysis
Brighton East, VIC at a glance
Brighton East is an established, high-income bayside suburb ~12 km south-east of Melbourne CBD in the City of Bayside. Predominantly detached family houses on quiet residential streets between Brighton proper and Bentleigh, with character interwar and post-war stock plus a growing layer of architect-designed rebuilds. The data tiles below cover the demographic baseline; this card adds the live market, lifestyle and council context.
For homebuyers
Brighton East trades the beach frontage for bigger blocks, quieter streets, and easier price entry than Brighton proper while keeping the same school catchments. Dendy Park (one of Victoria's largest urban parks), Hurlingham Park and Landcox Park anchor recreation; the Brighton East Village strip on Hawthorn Road handles daily errands, with Church Street and Bay Street ~5 minutes west for a fuller shop. The beach is a 10-15 minute walk from the western edge. Gardenvale and North Brighton stations sit on either side of the suburb (Sandringham line, ~25 min to Flinders Street), with Nepean Highway trams adding a second route. Schooling is the main draw — Brighton Secondary College (zoned), Gardenvale Primary, St Finbar's, plus private heavyweights Haileybury Brighton and Firbank within a few minutes' drive. In short: a settled, school-driven family suburb that buys you Bayside prestige without paying the absolute beachfront premium.
For investors
Brighton East is a capital-growth play, not a yield play. Median house ~$2.17M with average house rent around $1,200/wk gives a ~2.7% gross yield; units median ~$942/wk rent at ~3.6% yield (htag April 2026, Your Investment Property May 2026). Houses spent ~32-45 days on market over the past year; vacancy ~1.56%. Sales volume was deep for a premium market — 206 house and 83 unit sales in the 12 months to January 2026 — but 12-month house price growth was -4.9% as the top end repriced.
Strengths
- Premier Bayside school catchments (Brighton Secondary College zoned; Haileybury, Firbank, St Leonard's nearby) underpin enduring family demand.
- Deep transaction market for a prestige suburb (~289 sales/yr across houses + units) makes entry and exit easier than most $2M+ markets.
- Tight-ish vacancy (~1.56%) and ~32-45 day selling cycles indicate underlying demand remains intact despite the price reset.
- Bigger-than-Brighton blocks and ongoing teardown-and-rebuild cycle support long-run land-value compounding.
Trade-offs
- Yields are thin — ~2.7% house, ~3.6% unit (htag/YIP April-May 2026); negative gearing is structural at this price point.
- 12-month house growth -4.93% (htag April 2026) — the prestige Melbourne segment has been the soft end of the cycle.
- Median ticket of ~$2.17M (houses) restricts the buyer pool and lengthens days-on-market vs middle-ring suburbs.
- No train station inside the suburb — buyers using PT rely on Gardenvale or North Brighton on the perimeter.
What's coming
Bayside City Council's 2025-26 budget commits $58.6M to capital works across the LGA, including a streetscape upgrade refreshing the look and feel of Brighton East Village on Hawthorn Road, plus Dendy Park playground works as part of a multi-year fast-tracked playground program. Council adopted a 0% rate increase for 2025-26 and the 2026-27 budget signals continued infrastructure focus over expansion.
Bottom line
For homebuyers: a school-anchored Bayside family suburb that costs less than Brighton proper while sharing its catchments and parks. For investors: a long-horizon capital-growth + land-banking play, not a cashflow one.
Population
?16,757
Suburb · Census 2021
5-Year Growth
+2.8%
3yr: +4.7% · 10yr: +5.4%
SA2 · 5yr
Household Income
$2,544/wk
Suburb · Census 2021 median
Median Age
45
Suburb · Census 2021
Socio-Economic Index
?10/10
SA2 · least disadvantaged
Unemployment
?2.6%
SA2 · Q4 2025
Schools
4
3 primary, 2 secondary
Hospitals
No data for this suburb
Childcare services
?13
5 long day, 4 OSHC
Parks & green space
?10
Parks, reserves
Transport stops
?51
GTFS stops
Dwelling approvals
No data for this suburb
Median Weekly Rent
Based on rental bond lodgements recorded by the state government.
Median House Sale Price
Source: Valuer-General Victoria (suburb-level quarterly medians).
→ Calculate stamp duty on this suburb's median price→ Estimate mortgage repayments→ Calculate rental yield (price + median rent)
Safety & Crime
2025 Q4Reported incidents from VIC police. Offence rates may not reflect all crime.
Population over time — Brighton East (SA2)
ABS publishes annual estimates only at SA2; Brighton East suburb alone is ~16,757 (Census 2021).
Source: ABS ERP (latest release · 2025) · Census 2021. Numbers refreshed quarterly.
Growth at a Glance
Population grew from 14,355 to 17,486 over 24 years, averaging 0.8% per year.
Schools
4 in suburbSector
2 public · 2 private
Type
2 primary · 1 secondary · 1 K-12
Total enrolment
3,417
Avg per school
854
Government school catchment
Catchment data is not yet available for VIC.
Source when available: Victorian Department of Education / Vicmap School Zones.
Profile
Census snapshot
Housing
Public housing 0.6%Predominantly detached houses (68.1%), owner-occupied (74.8%).
Dwelling mix
Tenure
VIC 29%
Number of bedrooms
Bushfire risk
This suburb falls outside every bushfire polygon mapped by the relevant authority. Always confirm at the property address — local conditions and unmapped overlays can still apply.
Overlap is the percentage of the suburb's land area inside the mapped bushfire polygons. Always verify the exact property address with the relevant authority before making decisions. Source when available: Vicmap Planning — Bushfire Prone Area + Vicmap flood overlays.
Flood risk
Source: VIC DTP Vicmap Planning Overlay (flood codes)
As of Apr 2026
Overlap is the percentage of the suburb's land area inside the mapped flood polygons. Always verify the exact property address with the relevant authority before making decisions.
Planning zones
12 zones in suburb| Code | Zone | % covered | Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| NRZ3 | Neighbourhood Residential Zone Schedule 3Residential | 67.4% | 3.82 km² |
| PPRZ | Public Park and Recreation ZoneRecreation | 13.3% | 0.76 km² |
| HCTZ2 | HCTZ2Other | 7.2% | 0.41 km² |
| TRZ2 | TRZ2Special use | 6.2% | 0.35 km² |
| NRZ1 | Neighbourhood Residential Zone Schedule 1Residential | 1.4% | 0.08 km² |
| PUZ2 | Public Use Zone Schedule 2Special use | 1.2% | 0.07 km² |
| C1Z | Commercial 1 ZoneBusiness | 1.0% | 0.06 km² |
| TRZ3 | TRZ3Special use | 0.8% | 0.05 km² |
| ACZ1 | Activity Centre Zone Schedule 1Business | 0.7% | 0.04 km² |
| TRZ1 | TRZ1Special use | 0.5% | 0.03 km² |
| PUZ1 | Public Use Zone Schedule 1Special use | 0.2% | 9,875 m² |
| GRZ7 | General Residential Zone Schedule 7Residential | 0.1% | 6,560 m² |
Source: VIC DTP Vicmap Planning Zones (ZONE_VIC/2026-04-29/08783d2926383881) · As of Apr 2026. Zone boundaries are amended periodically; verify the exact property with the relevant council before relying on permitted use.