Alice River vs Bahrs Scrub

The median house price is $1M in Alice River and $995K in Bahrs Scrub, so Bahrs Scrub is the cheaper entry point, with Alice River houses about 1% dearer.

For units, Alice River sits at a median of $520K against $890K in Bahrs Scrub, which makes Alice River the more affordable unit market and Bahrs Scrub the pricier one.

Gross rental yield on houses is effectively level, at 3.73% in Alice River and 3.70% in Bahrs Scrub, so neither suburb has a cash flow edge on houses.

Over the past year house prices moved +19.8% in Alice River and +19.7% in Bahrs Scrub, so recent momentum favours Alice River, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Looking back three years, Alice River houses are +39.3% and Bahrs Scrub houses +48.5%, so Bahrs Scrub has compounded faster than Alice River over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 1.0% in Bahrs Scrub and 2.4% in Alice River, so landlords in Bahrs Scrub face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Bahrs Scrub is the bigger suburb, with a population of 4,508 against 2,685, larger than Alice River; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

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