Preston vs St Marys
Property investment comparison - Preston, TAS 7315 vs St Marys, TAS 7215
Head-to-head across core investment metrics: Preston wins 2, St Marys wins 2. The better choice depends on whether you're optimising for cash flow, growth, affordability, or liquidity, the table below highlights the winner on each metric.
| Metric | Preston | St Marys |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $415K | $400K |
| Median unit price | - | $455K |
| Gross rental yield (houses) | 3.96% | 4.99% |
| Gross rental yield (units) | - | 3.44% |
| 1-year house growth | +9.8% | +7.7%estimate |
| 3-year house growth | - | - |
| Vacancy rate | 0.3% | 1.2% |
| Population | 149 | 738 |
Preston vs St Marys: what the numbers say
The median house price is $415K in Preston and $400K in St Marys, so St Marys is the cheaper entry point, with Preston houses about 4% dearer.
On cash flow, St Marys leads: houses there return a gross rental yield of 4.99%, compared with 3.96% in Preston, a gap of 1.03 percentage points.
Over the past year house prices moved +9.8% in Preston and +7.7% in St Marys (an estimate), so recent momentum favours Preston, although both suburbs recorded growth.
Rental vacancy is 0.3% in Preston and 1.2% in St Marys, so landlords in Preston face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.
St Marys is the bigger suburb, with a population of 738 against 149, roughly 5.0 times the size of Preston; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.
In short: St Marys for rental income, St Marys for a lower purchase price, Preston for recent price momentum, Preston for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.
Keep exploring
- National investment guide - top suburbs across every metric
- Take the suburb finder quiz - 5 questions to match your goals
- How our investment score works
- Property investment glossary - every term defined
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