Castlemaine vs Mernda

The median house price is $745K in Castlemaine and $750K in Mernda, so Castlemaine is the cheaper entry point, with Mernda houses about 1% dearer.

For units, Castlemaine sits at a median of $570K against $500K in Mernda, which makes Mernda the more affordable unit market and Castlemaine the pricier one.

Over the past year house prices moved +2.0% in Castlemaine and +4.9% in Mernda (an estimate), so recent momentum favours Mernda, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Rental vacancy is 0.8% in Castlemaine and 2.0% in Mernda, so landlords in Castlemaine face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Mernda is the bigger suburb, with a population of 23,369 against 7,506, roughly 3.1 times the size of Castlemaine; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

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