Bayswater vs Footscray

The median house price is $940K in Bayswater and $935K in Footscray, so Footscray is the cheaper entry point, with Bayswater houses about 1% dearer.

For units, Bayswater sits at a median of $705K against $470K in Footscray, which makes Footscray the more affordable unit market and Bayswater the pricier one.

Gross rental yield on houses is effectively level, at 3.54% in Bayswater and 3.49% in Footscray, so neither suburb has a cash flow edge on houses.

Over the past year house prices moved +4.4% in Bayswater and -0.9% in Footscray, so recent momentum favours Bayswater, while Footscray went backwards.

Looking back three years, Bayswater houses are +9.8% and Footscray houses +1.1%, so Bayswater has compounded faster than Footscray over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 1.1% in Bayswater and 1.5% in Footscray, so landlords in Bayswater face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Footscray is the bigger suburb, with a population of 17,131 against 12,262, larger than Bayswater; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

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