Essendon - East

Essendon - East has seen population growth performance typically on par with national averages when looking at short and medium term trends

Essendon - East's population is around 13,012 as of November 2025. This reflects an increase of 821 people since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 12,191. The change was inferred from the estimated resident population of 12,946 in June 2024 and an additional 198 validated new addresses since the Census date. This level of population equates to a density ratio of 3,665 persons per square kilometer, placing it in the upper quartile relative to national locations assessed by AreaSearch. Over the past decade, Essendon - East had a compound annual growth rate of 1.1%, outpacing the SA3 area. Population growth was primarily driven by overseas migration contributing approximately 89.8% of overall population gains during recent periods.

AreaSearch is adopting ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, released in 2024 with a base year of 2022. For areas not covered by this data, AreaSearch utilises 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 are applied across all areas for years 2032 to 2041. Based on demographic trends and the latest annual ERP population numbers, Essendon - East is expected to grow by 1,113 persons to 2041, reflecting an increase of 8.1% in total over the 17 years.

AreaSearch analysis of residential development drivers sees Essendon - East recording a relatively average level of approval activity when compared to local markets analysed countrywide

Essendon - East has recorded approximately 60 residential properties granted approval annually over the past five financial years, totalling 302 homes. As of FY-26, 28 approvals have been recorded. On average, 0.8 people per year have moved to the area for each dwelling built between FY-21 and FY-25, indicating that new supply is meeting or exceeding demand. The average construction cost value of new homes is $445,000, slightly above the regional average.

In FY-26, $1.7 million in commercial approvals have been registered, reflecting the area's residential nature. Compared to Greater Melbourne, Essendon - East has roughly half the building activity per person and ranks among the 65th percentile nationally. New building activity comprises 24.0% standalone homes and 76.0% townhouses or apartments, demonstrating a focus on higher-density living which creates more affordable entry points for downsizers, investors, and first-home buyers. This represents a significant shift from the current housing mix of 40.0% houses, likely due to reduced availability of development sites and changing lifestyle demands and affordability requirements. The area has approximately 282 people per dwelling approval, suggesting room for growth.

By 2041, Essendon - East is projected to grow by 1,047 residents (AreaSearch quarterly estimate). Given current development patterns, new housing supply should readily meet demand, providing favourable conditions for buyers and potentially facilitating population growth beyond current projections.

Essendon - East has emerging levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the 38thth percentile nationally

Changes to local infrastructure significantly impact an area's performance. AreaSearch has identified 14 projects that could affect the region. Notable ones include LUMA Sunshine North, Moonee Valley Racing Club Grandstand & Clubhouse Redevelopment, 881 Mt Alexander Road in Essendon, and Moonee Valley Park. The following list details those most likely to be relevant.

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

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AreaSearch assessment positions Essendon - East ahead of most Australian regions for employment performance

Essendon - East has a highly educated workforce with professional services well represented. The unemployment rate was 4.0% as of an unspecified past year. Between September 2024 and September 2025, employment grew by 4.4%.

As of September 2025, 8,250 residents were employed, with an unemployment rate of 0.7% lower than Greater Melbourne's rate of 4.7%. Workforce participation was 75.9%, slightly higher than Greater Melbourne's 71.0%. Census data showed that 40.8% of residents worked from home, potentially influenced by Covid-19 lockdowns. Key industries for employment were health care & social assistance, professional & technical services, and education & training.

Public administration & safety had notable concentration with levels at 1.4 times the regional average. Conversely, manufacturing showed lower representation at 4.7% compared to the regional average of 7.2%. The area appeared to offer limited local employment opportunities based on Census data. Between September 2024 and September 2025, employment increased by 4.4%, labour force grew by 4.8%, resulting in an unemployment rise of 0.4 percentage points. Greater Melbourne recorded employment growth of 3.0% during the same period. Jobs and Skills Australia's national employment forecasts from May-25 suggest that Essendon - East's employment should increase by 6.9% over five years and 14.1% over ten years, based on a simple weighting extrapolation of industry-specific projections against the local employment mix. These projections do not account for localised population changes.

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

Essendon - East SA2 has an exceptionally high income level nationally according to latest ATO data aggregated by AreaSearch for financial year 2023. The median income among taxpayers is $67,311 and the average income stands at $96,507. These figures compare to Greater Melbourne's of $57,688 and $75,164 respectively. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 8.25% since financial year 2023, current estimates would be approximately $72,864 (median) and $104,469 (average) as of September 2025. According to 2021 Census figures, individual earnings stand out at the 86th percentile nationally ($1,111 weekly). Distribution data shows the $1,500 - 2,999 bracket dominates with 32.3% of residents (4,202 people), mirroring regional levels where 32.8% occupy this bracket. Essendon - East demonstrates considerable affluence with 32.0% earning over $3,000 per week. Housing accounts for 14.8% of income while strong earnings rank residents within the 71st percentile for disposable income. The area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 8th decile.

Essendon - East displays a diverse mix of dwelling types, with a higher proportion of rental properties than the broader region

Essendon - East's dwelling structures, as per the latest Census, consisted of 39.9% houses and 60.1% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings), compared to Melbourne metro's 67.9% houses and 32.1% other dwellings. Home ownership in Essendon - East stood at 28.2%, with mortgaged dwellings at 29.3% and rented ones at 42.5%. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $2,167, exceeding Melbourne metro's average of $2,000. Weekly rent in Essendon - East averaged $371, slightly lower than Melbourne metro's $390. Nationally, Essendon - East's mortgage repayments were higher at $2,167 compared to the Australian average of $1,863, while rents were lower at $371 against the national figure of $375.

Essendon - East features high concentrations of lone person households and group households, with a lower-than-average median household size

Family households account for 59.1% of all households, including 26.3% couples with children, 24.0% couples without children, and 7.4% single parent families. Non-family households constitute the remaining 40.9%, with lone person households at 36.0% and group households comprising 4.9%. The median household size is 2.2 people, which is smaller than the Greater Melbourne average of 2.6.

Educational achievement in Essendon - East places it within the top 10% nationally, reflecting strong academic performance and high qualification levels across the community

Educational attainment in Essendon - East shows significant superiority over broader benchmarks. Among residents aged 15 and above, 47.8% possess university qualifications, compared to the national average of 30.4% and the Victorian average of 33.4%. This educational advantage is evident in various qualification types: Bachelor degrees are held by 30.8%, postgraduate qualifications by 12.1%, and graduate diplomas by 4.9%. Vocational pathways account for 23.2% of qualifications, with advanced diplomas at 11.1% and certificates at 12.1%.

Educational participation is notably high in the area, with 28.1% of residents currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 8.3% in tertiary education, 7.6% in primary education, and 6.5% pursuing secondary education.

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

Public transport analysis shows 86 active transport stops operating within Essendon - East. These include train, lightrail, and bus stops serviced by 20 individual routes providing 8,789 weekly passenger trips. Transport accessibility is rated excellent with residents typically located 145 meters from the nearest stop. In this primarily residential area, most residents commute outward using cars at 72%, while 14% use trains. Vehicle ownership averages 1.0 per dwelling, below the regional average. According to the 2021 Census, 40.8% of residents work from home, which may reflect COVID-19 conditions.

Service frequency averages 1,255 trips per day across all routes, equating to approximately 102 weekly trips per stop.

Essendon - East's residents are extremely healthy with both young and old age cohorts seeing low prevalence of common health conditions

Analysis of health metrics shows strong performance throughout Essendon - East. Mortality rates and chronic condition prevalence were low across both young and old age cohorts. Private health cover was found to be exceptionally high at approximately 70% of the total population (9,069 people), compared to 56.7% across Greater Melbourne and 55.7% nationally.

The most common medical conditions were mental health issues impacting 8.4% of residents and asthma impacting 8.1%. A total of 71.8% declared themselves completely clear of medical ailments, compared to 72.6% across Greater Melbourne. Working-age residents had low chronic condition prevalence. The area has 17.8% of residents aged 65 and over (2,316 people), higher than the 14.9% in Greater Melbourne. Health outcomes among seniors were particularly strong, with national rankings broadly in line with the general population.

The level of cultural diversity witnessed in Essendon - East was found to be above average when compared nationally for a number of language and cultural background related metrics

Essendon-East has a higher cultural diversity than most local areas, with 26.8% of its population born overseas and 24.5% speaking languages other than English at home. Christianity is the predominant religion in Essendon-East, comprising 53.4% of the population. Notably, Hinduism is overrepresented compared to Greater Melbourne, making up 4.6% versus 4.4%.

The top three ancestral groups are English (20.6%), Australian (17.3%), and Other (10.9%). Some ethnic groups show significant differences: Italian is overrepresented at 10.2% versus the regional average of 5.2%, Maltese at 1.7% versus 1.1%, and Irish at 10.8% compared to the regional average of 6.5%.

Essendon - East's population is slightly younger than the national pattern

Essendon - East has a median age of 37, which matches Greater Melbourne's figure of 37 and is comparable to Australia's median age of 38 years. The 65-74 age group makes up 10.2% of Essendon - East's population compared to Greater Melbourne, while the 5-14 cohort comprises 9.2%. Between 2021 and present, the 65-74 age group has increased from 9.0% to 10.2%, and the 75-84 cohort has risen from 4.2% to 5.3%. Conversely, the 55-64 cohort has decreased from 11.9% to 10.9%. By 2041, demographic projections indicate significant shifts in Essendon - East's age structure. The 75-84 group is expected to grow by 75%, reaching 1,220 people from 696. Those aged 65 and above are projected to comprise 57% of the population growth. Meanwhile, the 0-4 and 25-34 age cohorts are anticipated to experience population declines.