Best Geelong suburbs for property investors

The suburb of Geelong tops the list, with 45% of its occupied dwellings rented. Across the ranking, rental shares run from 23.6% to 56.7%. These 15 suburbs came from a field of 45 eligible Geelong suburbs.

This ranking scores every eligible Geelong suburb on the share of occupied dwellings that are rented, from the ABS 2021 census, blended with population and dwelling growth and a composite safety score. A deep rental market means a wider tenant pool and easier re-letting — what a buy-to-let investor weighs before yield.

Rental share leads the score but doesn't rule it: a raw sort on percent-rented would surface high-density CBD cores and student pockets, so growth (2016→2021 population and dwelling change) and safety are blended in to keep the list to genuinely investable neighbourhoods. The percentile that drives the score is computed within Geelong, so each suburb ranks against its own metro. For the return side of the equation, see the companion rental-yield ranking — a deep rental market and a strong gross yield together are the classic buy-to-let signal.

Geelong suburbs with the deepest rental markets

Ranked on the share of occupied dwellings that are rented (ABS 2021 census tenure), blended with population and dwelling growth and a composite safety score. A deep rental market means a larger tenant pool and easier re-letting — the signal a buy-to-let investor scans for.

1

Geelong

VIC 3220 · 5,811 residents

45% renting · 55% owner-occupied · 55/100 safety

B 78.1
2

Curlewis

VIC 3222 · 4,175 residents

31% renting · 69% owner-occupied · 86/100 safety

C 75.4
3

North Geelong

VIC 3215 · 3,225 residents

42% renting · 58% owner-occupied · 59/100 safety

B 73.7
4

Norlane

VIC 3214 · 8,682 residents

57% renting · 43% owner-occupied · 60/100 safety

C 72.8
5

Thomson

VIC 3219 · 1,606 residents

54% renting · 46% owner-occupied · 67/100 safety

B 69.9
6

Geelong West

VIC 3218 · 7,345 residents

41% renting · 59% owner-occupied · 59/100 safety

B 69.5
7

Armstrong Creek

VIC 3217 · 11,247 residents

35% renting · 65% owner-occupied · 34/100 safety

C 69.5
8

Bell Park

VIC 3215 · 5,602 residents

32% renting · 68% owner-occupied · 73/100 safety

B 68.6
9

Whittington

VIC 3219 · 3,990 residents

46% renting · 54% owner-occupied · 49/100 safety

C 68.6
10

Newcomb

VIC 3219 · 4,704 residents

42% renting · 58% owner-occupied · 41/100 safety

D 66.2
11

Charlemont

VIC 3217 · 2,612 residents

29% renting · 71% owner-occupied · 42/100 safety

C 64.7
12

Herne Hill

VIC 3218 · 3,507 residents

39% renting · 61% owner-occupied · 77/100 safety

B 62.6
13

Marshall

VIC 3216 · 2,299 residents

29% renting · 71% owner-occupied · 62/100 safety

C 61.6
14

Belmont

VIC 3216 · 15,066 residents

36% renting · 64% owner-occupied · 45/100 safety

B 61.0
15

Mount Duneed

VIC 3217 · 6,182 residents

24% renting · 76% owner-occupied · 59/100 safety

B 60.7

Ranked from 45 qualifying suburbs.

How we ranked these

55% rental share (percentile within Geelong) · 25% growth (2016→2021 population + dwelling change) · 20% safety (bushfire, crime, flood combined). Rental share comes from ABS 2021 census tenure — the share of occupied dwellings that are rented. Percentiles are computed within Geelong's candidate pool. A raw percent-rented sort would surface high-density cores, so growth and safety keep the list investable. See how we calculate for the full methodology.

Common questions about this ranking

What are the best Geelong suburbs for property investors?

The suburb of Geelong tops the list, with 45% of its occupied dwellings rented. Across the ranking, rental shares run from 23.6% to 56.7%. These 15 suburbs came from a field of 45 eligible Geelong suburbs.

How is this ranking scored?

Each eligible Geelong suburb is scored on three factors: 55% rental share (the share of occupied dwellings that are rented, from the ABS 2021 census, ranked as a percentile within Geelong), 25% growth (2016→2021 population and dwelling change combined), and 20% safety (bushfire, crime and flood risks combined).

Does a deep rental market mean a good investment?

Not on its own. A high rental share means the tenant pool is large and re-letting is easier — a genuine convenience — but it says nothing about the return. Pair this with the gross rental yield ranking for the return side, and bear in mind that the highest-rental suburbs are often high-density areas where capital growth can lag detached housing.

Which suburbs are eligible?

A suburb needs a resident population of at least 1,000 and a 2021 census tenure record. Suburbs below the threshold or missing census tenure data are excluded, not penalised, so the ranking isn't dominated by tiny outliers.

How often is this list updated?

The top 15 is recomputed whenever the underlying data refreshes. Tenure comes from the ABS census (every five years); the growth and safety inputs refresh alongside their own datasets.

Same list in other cities

Related

Rankings last computed 12 October 2026. Recomputed after each ACARA schools data refresh.

Was the information on this page useful to you?

Save this page for later

We'll email you a link to this page so you can finish reading it on any device. We use your address once to send it and don't keep it.

or