Alderley vs Runaway Bay

The median house price is $1.7M in Alderley and $1.6M in Runaway Bay, so Runaway Bay is the cheaper entry point, with Alderley houses about 2% dearer.

For units, Alderley sits at a median of $855K against $1.0M in Runaway Bay, which makes Alderley the more affordable unit market and Runaway Bay the pricier one.

Over the past year house prices moved +12.7% in Alderley and +16.3% in Runaway Bay, so recent momentum favours Runaway Bay, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Looking back three years, Alderley houses are +35.9% and Runaway Bay houses +18.2%, so Alderley has compounded faster than Runaway Bay over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 1.8% in Alderley and 1.9% in Runaway Bay, so landlords in Alderley face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Runaway Bay is the bigger suburb, with a population of 9,308 against 6,748, larger than Alderley; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

In short: Runaway Bay for a lower purchase price, Runaway Bay for recent price momentum, Alderley for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.