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Suburb Insights · VIC 3450

Castlemaine, VIC 3450 Property Profile

ABS 2021 Census · Updated 21 May 2026

Suburb Overview

Castlemaine is a regional centre in Victoria, Australia, with a population of approximately 7,506, making it a smaller community. Located approximately 107 km from the Melbourne CBD, Castlemaine is a regional area in Victoria. The median household income is $57,512 per year.

Investment Score

36 / 100 Weak

Castlemaine's income profile suggests a value-oriented market with competitive purchase prices. As a regional location, growth prospects depend on local economic conditions and infrastructure investment.

Location

Melbourne
Castlemaine
Victoria · 3450
107 km from Melbourne CBD
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Key Indicators

Postcode
3450

Official Australia Post postcode for Castlemaine. A postcode may cover multiple suburbs.

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Population
7,506

Usual resident population at the most recent census.

Median weekly rent
$300/wk

Weekly median rent for occupied homes. Live rental data integration coming soon.

Median household income
$57,512/yr

Annual median household income (before tax) across all households.

Distance to CBD
107 km

Straight-line distance from the suburb centroid to the nearest capital city CBD. Actual driving distance will be longer.

Lifestyle & Amenities

Schools nearby
2

Estimated 2 schools within or near this suburb.

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Parks & green spaces
3

Estimated 3 parks and green spaces near this suburb.

Median monthly mortgage
$1,362/mo

Monthly median mortgage repayment for households currently paying off a mortgage.

Home type
83% houses

Proportion of separate houses versus units, townhouses, and other home types. Useful for investors assessing rental demand mix.

Why People Like Living in Castlemaine

Who Castlemaine Suits

👨‍👩‍👧FamiliesSchool count or dwelling mix is lighter here.
📊InvestorsRent covers a solid share of the median mortgage.
🏡First-home buyersEntry costs sit at or below the Victoria median.
💼ProfessionalsLonger commute to the CBD.

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Rent sits within an affordable share of local incomes, supporting tenant demand.
  • Mortgage costs are lower than the Victoria median, improving cash-flow margins.
  • Local parks and reserves (around 3) add to liveability.
  • Solid transport links into employment hubs.

Cons

  • Long distance to the CBD (107 km) — plan for commute time or local employment.
  • Traffic can build during peak hours, especially on arterial roads.

Investment Insight

7,506 residents places Castlemaine squarely in the middle of the Victoria suburb size distribution (state median 7,416), with market depth comparable to most VIC localities. Castlemaine's median household income of $57,512/year is 40% below the Victoria suburb median ($95,160) — this is an affordability play where returns lean on yield and patient capital growth rather than demographic premium. Median weekly rent of $300 equates to $1,300/month — about 95% of the median mortgage repayment of $1,362/month — meaning rental income covers most of a typical owner's repayment and this is a genuine cash-flow suburb before tax benefits. Castlemaine is 107 km from Melbourne, so the local market tracks regional employment and lifestyle drivers more than CBD-driven commuter demand.

Investment Tip

Regional property can deliver strong cash-flow yields but liquidity is tighter — plan for longer hold periods and verify local employment stability. Local rents consume roughly 27% of household income — a useful sanity check on tenant affordability.

Castlemaine vs Victoria Median

How Castlemaine stacks up against the median of all Victoria suburbs in our dataset. Positive values mean Castlemaine sits above the state median; negative means below.

MetricCastlemaineVIC medianΔ vs state
Population7,5067,416+1%
Median household income$57,512/yr$95,160/yr-40%
Median rent (weekly)$300$380-21%
Median mortgage (monthly)$1,362$1,950-30%
Distance to CBD107 km32 km+234%
Separate houses83%78%+5pp

Investor Checklist

Pre-inspection briefing for Castlemaine — every item is derived from public datasets, with full citations in our data sources page.

Investment Strategy

Buy & Hold

Limited buy-and-hold upside: household incomes 40% below the VIC median ($57,512 vs $95,160) means liquidity is thin and capital growth tends to lag the wider Victoria market over full cycles.

Rental Yield

Strong rental coverage: $300/week (~$1,300/month) covers 95% of the $1,362/month median mortgage repayment, so the shortfall sits at just $62/month. Investors targeting positive cash flow should shortlist this suburb.

⚠️
Renovation / Flip

With 83% houses in a 7,506-person market, renovation margins depend on individual street and aspect rather than any suburb-wide story — do comparable-sales analysis before committing capital.

Risk Factors

Run the numbers on a Castlemaine property

Full Property Analysis

30-year projections for Castlemaine

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2026 Outlook

Growth: Low Rental Demand: Moderate Investor Sentiment: Low

Capital-growth expectations for Castlemaine are modest for 2026 — incomes 40% below the VIC median of $95,160 suggest gains will lag headline metro markets. Rental coverage runs at ~95% of the typical mortgage ($1,300/month rent vs $1,362/month repayment), keeping cash flow in positive or near-neutral territory. The EquitySight investment score of 36/100 places Castlemaine in the lower tier of Australian suburbs we profile, and overall investor sentiment is cautious heading into the second half of 2026.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Castlemaine a good suburb for investment?

Castlemaine scores 36/100 on our EquitySight investment framework — a weak rating. That score is driven by a population of 7,506, median household income of $57,512/year and median weekly rent of $300. Whether it fits your portfolio depends on whether you are targeting cash flow, capital growth, or a value-add renovation — all three are scored with suburb-specific numbers elsewhere on this page.

What drives property demand in Castlemaine?

The main demand drivers in Castlemaine are a median household income of $57,512/year, a dwelling mix that is 83% separate houses, roughly 2 schools and 3 parks within the catchment. Together these shape both owner-occupier and tenant demand and are the factors we weight most heavily in the suburb's investment score.

What is the population of Castlemaine?

Castlemaine has a usual resident population of approximately 7,506, compared with a Victoria suburb median of 7,416 — placing it in the upper half of the state's suburbs by size. Population is the clearest proxy for market depth: more residents mean more transactions and typically a shorter average days-on-market on resale.

How far is Castlemaine from the Melbourne CBD?

Castlemaine sits 107 km straight-line from the Melbourne CBD. This is a regional market where CBD distance is only indicative — local industry diversity and commute alternatives matter more.

What is the median rent in Castlemaine?

The most recent census recorded a median weekly rent of $300 in Castlemaine, equating to approximately $15,600/year in gross rental income (state median $380/week). Market rents have typically drifted above the recorded figure — verify against current listings on realestate.com.au and Domain before making an offer.

What is the typical mortgage repayment in Castlemaine?

The median monthly mortgage repayment in Castlemaine is $1,362, or approximately $16,344/year (vs $1,950/month state median). Stress-test your own borrowing at rates 1–2 percentage points above today's to make sure you can still service the loan through an RBA tightening cycle.

Is Castlemaine cash-flow positive for investors?

A median weekly rent of $300 works out to $1,300/month, covering 95% of the median mortgage repayment of $1,362/month. That leaves a $62/month shortfall (around $744/year before tax benefits), so a typical owner-occupier-priced property here is negatively geared. Actual cash flow depends on your deposit, loan terms, ownership costs and marginal tax rate — run the full numbers in our rental yield calculator.

What are the main risks of investing in Castlemaine?

The main risks are interest-rate sensitivity on the $1,362 median mortgage, below-median household incomes ($57,512 vs $95,160 state median), the broader Victoria market cycle. Each of these is covered in the Risk Factors section above with suburb-specific numbers rather than generic warnings.

How we built this Castlemaine profile

Every number on this page comes from the ABS 2021 Census of Population and Housing, Australia Post postcode reference data, and OpenStreetMap amenity tiles. The investment score, strategy verdicts, and comparison table are computed deterministically from those inputs — no opinion, no estimation. See our full methodology and the data sources and licences for the formulas we use.

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