Hamlyn Terrace vs Islington

Houses cost about the same in both suburbs: the median house price is $1.0M in Hamlyn Terrace and $1.0M in Islington.

For units, Hamlyn Terrace sits at a median of $695K against $810K in Islington, which makes Hamlyn Terrace the more affordable unit market and Islington the pricier one.

On cash flow, Hamlyn Terrace leads: houses there return a gross rental yield of 3.94%, compared with 3.74% in Islington, a gap of 0.20 percentage points.

Over the past year house prices moved +9.3% in Hamlyn Terrace and +6.3% in Islington (an estimate), so recent momentum favours Hamlyn Terrace, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Rental vacancy is 1.1% in Islington and 1.4% in Hamlyn Terrace, so landlords in Islington face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Hamlyn Terrace is the bigger suburb, with a population of 8,761 against 2,026, roughly 4.3 times the size of Islington; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

In short: Hamlyn Terrace for rental income, Hamlyn Terrace for recent price momentum, Islington for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.