Herston vs Mackenzie

The median house price is $1.8M in Herston and $1.8M in Mackenzie, so Mackenzie is the cheaper entry point, with Herston houses about 1% dearer.

For units, Herston sits at a median of $795K against $920K in Mackenzie, which makes Herston the more affordable unit market and Mackenzie the pricier one.

Over the past year house prices moved +6.7% in Herston and +11.8% in Mackenzie, so recent momentum favours Mackenzie, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Looking back three years, Herston houses are +32.3% and Mackenzie houses +34.6%, so Mackenzie has compounded faster than Herston over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 1.4% in Herston and 3.6% in Mackenzie, so landlords in Herston face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Mackenzie is the bigger suburb, with a population of 2,336 against 2,311, larger than Herston; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

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