Blackburn South vs Carlton

The median house price is $1.4M in Blackburn South and $1.4M in Carlton, so Blackburn South is the cheaper entry point, with Carlton houses about 1% dearer.

Over the past year house prices moved -2.7% in Blackburn South and -1.5% in Carlton, so recent momentum favours Carlton, while Blackburn South went backwards.

Looking back three years, Blackburn South houses are +1.0% and Carlton houses -15.8%, so Blackburn South has compounded faster than Carlton over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 1.1% in Carlton and 1.6% in Blackburn South, so landlords in Carlton face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Carlton is the bigger suburb, with a population of 16,055 against 10,939, larger than Blackburn South; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

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