Bentleigh - McKinnon

Bentleigh - McKinnon lies within the top quartile of areas nationally for population growth performance according to AreaSearch analysis of recent, and medium to long-term trends

Based on AreaSearch's analysis, Bentleigh - McKinnon's population is around 26,942 as of Feb 2026. This reflects an increase of 2,046 people (8.2%) since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 24,896 people. The change is inferred from the estimated resident population of 26,825 from the ABS as of June 2024 and an additional 318 validated new addresses since the Census date. This population level equates to a density ratio of 4,331 persons per square kilometer, which lies in the top 10% of national locations assessed by AreaSearch, making land in the area a highly sought resource. Over the past decade, Bentleigh - McKinnon has demonstrated resilient growth patterns with a 1.5% compound annual growth rate, outpacing the SA3 area. Population growth for the area was primarily driven by overseas migration, which contributed approximately 87.9% of overall population gains during recent periods.

AreaSearch is adopting ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, as released in 2024 with 2022 as the base year. For any SA2 areas not covered by this data, AreaSearch is utilising the VIC State Government's Regional/LGA projections released in 2023 with adjustments made employing a method of weighted aggregation of population growth from LGA to SA2 levels. Growth rates by age group from these aggregations are also applied across all areas for years 2032 to 2041. Looking at population projections moving forward, an above-median population growth of statistical areas across the nation is projected, with the area expected to expand by 6,406 persons to 2041 based on the latest annual ERP population numbers, reflecting a gain of 23.3% in total over the 17 years.

AreaSearch assessment of residential development activity positions Bentleigh - McKinnon among the top 25% of areas assessed nationwide

Bentleigh - McKinnon has experienced around 146 dwellings receiving development approval per year, with 734 homes approved over the past 5 financial years (between FY-21 and FY-25) and 66 so far in FY-26. With an average of 2.2 new residents per year gained for each dwelling built over the past 5 financial years (between FY-21 and FY-25), suggesting solid demand that supports property values, new homes are being built at an average construction cost of $448,000—moderately above regional levels—indicating an emphasis on quality construction. Additionally, $14.3 million in commercial approvals have been registered this financial year, demonstrating moderate levels of commercial development.

Relative to Greater Melbourne, Bentleigh - McKinnon records 10.0% less building activity (per person) while it places among the 59th percentile of areas assessed nationally. New development consists of 30.0% detached houses and 70.0% attached dwellings. This focus on higher-density living creates more affordable entry points and suits downsizers, investors, and first-home buyers. This marks a significant departure from existing housing patterns (currently 58.0% houses), suggesting diminishing developable land availability and responding to evolving lifestyle preferences and housing affordability needs. With around 252 people per dwelling approval, Bentleigh - McKinnon shows a developing market.

Looking ahead, Bentleigh - McKinnon is expected to grow by 6,289 residents through to 2041 (from the latest AreaSearch quarterly estimate). Should current construction levels persist, housing supply could lag population growth, likely intensifying buyer competition and underpinning price growth.

Bentleigh - McKinnon has strong levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the top 30% nationally

Nothing can influence an area's performance as much as changes to local infrastructure, major projects, and planning initiatives. In total 51 projects have been identified by AreaSearch that are likely to have an impact on the area. Key projects include East Village Strategic Site - Assemble Build-to-Rent Precinct, Laurel, Bentleigh (Bentleigh Club Redevelopment), Ormond Station Development (Ormond Place), and The Aston, with the list below detailing those likely to be of most relevance.

Professional plan users can use the search below to filter and access additional projects.

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The employment environment in Bentleigh - McKinnon shows above-average strength when compared nationally

Bentleigh - McKinnon possesses a highly educated workforce, with professional services showing strong representation, an unemployment rate of only 3.5%, and relative employment stability over the past year. As of December 2025, 15,080 residents are in work while the unemployment rate is 1.2% below Greater Melbourne's rate of 4.8%, and workforce participation is broadly similar to Greater Melbourne's 71.3%. Based on Census responses, a high 45.7% of residents were found to work from home, though Covid-19 lockdown impacts should be considered.

Employment among residents is concentrated in professional & technical, health care & social assistance, and education & training. The area demonstrates a particularly notable concentration in professional & technical, with employment levels at 1.4 times the regional average. Conversely, construction shows lower representation at 7.2% versus the regional average of 9.7%. The predominantly residential area appears to offer limited employment opportunities locally, as indicated by the count of Census working population vs resident population.

Based on AreaSearch analysis of SALM and ABS data, the 12-month period saw the labour force decreasing by 0.3% while employment declined by 0.2%, causing the unemployment rate to fall by 0.1 percentage points. This contrasts with Greater Melbourne, where employment rose by 2.4%, the labour force grew by 2.8%, and unemployment rose 0.3 percentage points. Jobs and Skills Australia's national employment forecasts from May-25 can offer further insight into potential future demand within Bentleigh - McKinnon. These projections, covering five and ten-year periods, have been mapped against the local employment profile to estimate growth patterns. While national employment is forecast to expand by 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years, growth rates differ significantly between industry sectors. Applying these industry-specific projections to Bentleigh - McKinnon's employment mix suggests local employment should increase by 7.0% over five years and 14.2% over ten years (please note this is a simple weighting extrapolation for illustrative purposes and does not take into account localised population projections).

Income metrics indicate excellent economic conditions, with the area achieving higher performance than 75% of national locations assessed by AreaSearch

As per AreaSearch's latest postcode level ATO data released for FY-23, the Bentleigh - McKinnon SA2's median income among taxpayers is $64,205, with an average of $89,035. This is extremely high nationally, compared to Greater Melbourne's median of $57,688 and average of $75,164. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 8.25% since FY-23, current estimates would be approximately $69,502 (median) and $96,380 (average) as of September 2025. Census data reveals household, family and personal incomes all rank highly in Bentleigh - McKinnon, between the 75th and 80th percentiles nationally. The data shows the largest segment comprises 27.2% earning $1,500 - 2,999 weekly (7,328 residents), aligning with the region where this cohort likewise represents 32.8%. Higher earners represent a substantial presence with 37.5% exceeding $3,000 weekly, indicating strong purchasing power within the community. High housing costs consume 15.7% of income, though strong earnings still place disposable income at the 79th percentile and the area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 9th decile.

Bentleigh - McKinnon displays a diverse mix of dwelling types, with above-average rates of outright home ownership

Dwelling structure within Bentleigh - McKinnon, as evaluated at the latest Census, comprised 58.0% houses and 42.0% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings), in comparison to Melbourne metro's 67.9% houses and 32.1% other dwellings. Meanwhile, the level of home ownership within Bentleigh - McKinnon was well beyond that of Melbourne metro, at 34.8%, with the remainder of dwellings either mortgaged (35.4%) or rented (29.8%). The median monthly mortgage repayment in the area was well above the Melbourne metro average at $2,500, while the median weekly rent figure was recorded at $491, compared to Melbourne metro's $2,000 and $390. Nationally, Bentleigh - McKinnon's mortgage repayments are significantly higher than the Australian average of $1,863, while rents are substantially above the national figure of $375.

Bentleigh - McKinnon has a typical household mix, with a fairly typical median household size

Family households dominate at 72.8% of all households, comprising 38.1% couples with children, 22.8% couples without children, and 10.9% single parent families. Non-family households make up the remaining 27.2%, with lone person households at 24.1% and group households comprising 3.0% of the total. The median household size of 2.6 people matches the Greater Melbourne average.

Bentleigh - McKinnon demonstrates exceptional educational outcomes, ranking among the top 5% of areas nationally based on AreaSearch's comprehensive analysis of qualification and performance metrics

Educational attainment in Bentleigh - McKinnon significantly surpasses broader benchmarks, with 48.1% of residents aged 15+ holding university qualifications compared to 30.4% in Australia and 33.4% in VIC. This substantial educational advantage positions the area strongly for knowledge-based opportunities. Bachelor degrees lead at 30.7%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (13.0%) and graduate diplomas (4.4%). Vocational pathways account for 22.5% of qualifications among those aged 15+ – advanced diplomas (11.1%) and certificates (11.4%).

Educational participation is notably high, with 32.1% of residents currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 9.8% in primary education, 9.4% in secondary education, and 7.2% pursuing tertiary education.

Transport servicing is moderate compared to other areas nationally based on assessment of service frequency, route connectivity and accessibility

Public transport analysis reveals 83 active transport stops operating within Bentleigh - McKinnon comprising a mix of buses. These stops are serviced by 15 individual routes, collectively providing 3,494 weekly passenger trips. Transport accessibility is rated as excellent, with residents typically located 191 meters from the nearest transport stop. As a primarily residential area, most residents commute outward - the car remains the dominant mode at 79%, with 12% by train. Vehicle ownership averages 1.2 per dwelling. A high 45.7% of residents work from home (2021 Census; may reflect COVID-19 conditions).

Service frequency averages 499 trips per day across all routes, equating to approximately 42 weekly trips per individual stop.

Bentleigh - McKinnon's residents boast exceedingly positive health performance metrics with younger cohorts in particular seeing very low prevalence of common health conditions

Health outcomes data demonstrates outstanding results across Bentleigh - McKinnon, based on AreaSearch's assessment of mortality rates and chronic condition prevalence. Younger cohorts in particular see very low prevalence of common health conditions, and the rate of private health cover is exceptionally high at approximately 65% of the total population (17,566 people). This compares to 56.7% across Greater Melbourne and a national average of 55.7%.

The most common medical conditions in the area are mental health issues and asthma, impacting 6.7% and 6.6% of residents, respectively, while 74.4% declared themselves as completely clear of medical ailments compared to 72.6% across Greater Melbourne. Working-age residents are notably healthy with low chronic condition prevalence. The area has 17.4% of residents aged 65 and over (4,693 people), which is higher than the 15.1% in Greater Melbourne. Health outcomes among seniors are particularly strong, though they rank lower nationally than the broader population.

Bentleigh - McKinnon was found to be more culturally diverse than the vast majority of local markets in Australia, upon assessment of a range of language and cultural background related metrics

Bentleigh - McKinnon scores highly on cultural diversity, with 32.5% of its population speaking a language other than English at home and 38.0% born overseas. The main religion in Bentleigh - McKinnon is Christianity, which makes up 40.5% of the population. However, the most apparent overrepresentation is in Judaism, which comprises 7.6% of the population, substantially higher than the Greater Melbourne average of 1.0%.

In terms of ancestry (country of birth of parents), the top three represented groups in Bentleigh - McKinnon are English, comprising 20.2% of the population, Australian, comprising 17.8% of the population, and Other, comprising 12.4% of the population. Additionally, there are notable divergences in the representation of certain other ethnic groups: Polish is notably overrepresented at 1.9% of Bentleigh - McKinnon (vs 0.8% regionally), Russian at 1.9% (vs 0.4%) and Greek at 4.2% (vs 2.7%).

Bentleigh - McKinnon's population is slightly older than the national pattern

With a median age of 40, Bentleigh - McKinnon is somewhat higher than the Greater Melbourne figure of 37 and similarly marginally higher than Australia's 38 years. Compared to the Greater Melbourne average, the 45 - 54 cohort is notably over-represented (14.6% locally), while 25 - 34 year-olds are under-represented (10.5%). In the period since 2021, the 15 to 24 age group has grown from 12.7% to 14.1% of the population. Conversely, the 45 to 54 cohort has declined from 15.7% to 14.6% and the 25 to 34 group dropped from 11.5% to 10.5%. Demographic modeling suggests Bentleigh - McKinnon's age profile will evolve significantly by 2041. The 45 to 54 age cohort is projected to see notable expansion, increasing by 1,223 people (31%) from 3,928 to 5,152.