Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert

An assessment of population growth drivers in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert reveals an overall ranking slightly below national averages considering recent, and medium term trends

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert's population is around 10,812 as of February 2026. This reflects an increase of 646 people since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 10,166 people. The change is inferred from the estimated resident population of 10,765 in June 2024 and an additional 28 validated new addresses since the Census date. This level of population equates to a density ratio of 3,246 persons per square kilometer, placing it in the upper quartile relative to national locations assessed by AreaSearch. Population growth for the area was primarily driven by overseas migration that contributed approximately 96.2% 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 any SA2 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 from these aggregations are also applied across all areas for years 2032 to 2041. Anticipating future population dynamics, the area is expected to expand by 1,217 persons to 2041 based on the latest annual ERP population numbers, reflecting a gain of 10.8% in total over the 17 years.

AreaSearch assessment of residential development drivers sees a low level of activity in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert, placing the area among the bottom 25% of areas assessed nationally

Surrey Hills East Mont Albert has approved approximately 32 residential properties annually. Between financial years FY-21 and FY-25, a total of 163 homes were approved, with an additional 14 approved in FY-26 so far. Over these five years, the average population growth per dwelling built was 0.1 people annually.

This indicates that new construction is meeting or exceeding demand, providing more options for buyers and potentially driving population growth beyond current expectations. The average expected construction cost value of new properties is $586,000, suggesting a focus on the premium segment with upmarket properties. In FY-26, $7.5 million in commercial development approvals have been recorded, highlighting the area's primarily residential nature compared to Greater Melbourne, where development activity is 64.0% higher per person. This scarcity of new homes typically strengthens demand and prices for existing properties. The development activity in Surrey Hills East Mont Albert is also lower than the national average, reflecting market maturity and possible development constraints.

New development consists of 63.0% detached dwellings and 37.0% medium to high-density housing, with a growing mix of townhouses and apartments offering options across different price points, from family homes to more affordable compact living. The area has approximately 568 people per approval, indicating a mature, established population. Future projections estimate that Surrey Hills East Mont Albert will add around 1,170 residents by 2041, according to the latest AreaSearch quarterly estimate. Building activity is currently keeping pace with growth projections, though heightened competition among buyers is expected as the population grows.

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert has strong levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the top 40% nationally

Changes to local infrastructure significantly affect an area's performance. AreaSearch has identified 32 projects that may impact the area. Notable projects include Tunstall Village, Whitehorse Activity Centres Program, Havenwood Townhouses, and Wembley Hill Townhomes. The following list details these projects in order of relevance.

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

Denotes AI-based impression for illustrative purposes only, not to be taken as definitive under any circumstances. Please follow links and conduct other investigations from the project's source for actual imagery. Developers and project owners wishing us to use original imagery please Contact Us and we will do so.

Employment conditions in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert demonstrate strong performance, ranking among the top 35% of areas assessed nationally

Surrey Hills East - Mont Albert has a highly educated workforce with professional services being strongly represented. The unemployment rate was 2.9% as of September 2025, which is below Greater Melbourne's rate of 4.7%. Employment growth over the past year was estimated at 2.8%.

There were 6,300 residents in work, with workforce participation similar to Greater Melbourne's 71.0%. A significant 48.8% of residents worked from home, potentially influenced by Covid-19 lockdowns. Key industries include health care & social assistance, professional & technical services, and education & training. The area has a notably high concentration in professional & technical jobs, at 1.6 times the regional average, but limited employment opportunities locally as indicated by Census data.

Over the past year, employment increased by 2.8% while labour force grew by 2.5%, leading to a decrease in unemployment of 0.3 percentage points. In comparison, Greater Melbourne saw employment growth of 3.0% and unemployment rise by 0.3 percentage points. National employment forecasts from Jobs and Skills Australia, issued in May-25, project national employment growth of 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years. Applying these projections to Surrey Hills East - Mont Albert's employment mix suggests local employment should increase by 7.4% over five years and 14.9% over ten years, though these are simple extrapolations for illustrative purposes only.

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

AreaSearch's latest postcode level ATO data for financial year 2023 shows that income in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert SA2 is exceptionally high nationally. The median income is assessed at $63,786 while the average income stands at $104,227. This contrasts with Greater Melbourne's figures of a median income of $57,688 and an average income of $75,164. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 8.25% since financial year 2023, current estimates would be approximately $69,048 (median) and $112,826 (average) as of September 2025. Census 2021 income data shows household, family and personal incomes all rank highly in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert, between the 84th and 87th percentiles nationally. Income analysis reveals that the $4000+ earnings band captures 28.8% of the community (3,113 individuals), differing from patterns across the surrounding region where $1,500 - 2,999 dominates with 32.8%. Economic strength emerges through 41.0% of households achieving high weekly earnings exceeding $3,000, supporting elevated consumer spending. After housing costs, residents retain 86.7% of income, reflecting strong purchasing power and the area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 10th decile.

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert displays a diverse mix of dwelling types, with above-average rates of outright home ownership

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert's dwelling structure, as per the latest Census, consisted of 60.9% houses and 39.1% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings). This compares to Melbourne metro's 67.9% houses and 32.1% other dwellings. Home ownership in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert stood at 41.1%, with mortgaged dwellings at 33.0% and rented ones at 25.9%. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $2,600, higher than Melbourne metro's average of $2,000. The median weekly rent figure was recorded as $462, compared to Melbourne metro's $390. Nationally, Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert's mortgage repayments were significantly higher than the Australian average of $1,863, while rents were substantially above the national figure of $375.

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert has a typical household mix, with a lower-than-average median household size

Family households comprise 73.1% of all households, including 36.0% couples with children, 27.2% couples without children, and 8.5% single parent families. Non-family households account for 26.9%, with lone person households at 23.8% and group households comprising 3.2%. The median household size is 2.5 people, which is smaller than the Greater Melbourne average of 2.6.

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert 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 Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert is notably higher than broader benchmarks. As of 2016, 55.7% of residents aged 15 years and over held university qualifications, compared to 30.4% nationally and 33.4% in Victoria. Bachelor degrees were the most common at 33.6%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (16.5%) and graduate diplomas (5.6%). Vocational pathways accounted for 18.5% of qualifications among those aged 15 years and over, with advanced diplomas making up 10.5% and certificates 8.0%.

Educational participation was high, with 30.8% of residents enrolled in formal education as of 2016. This included 9.1% in tertiary education, 8.4% in primary education, and 8.3% pursuing secondary education.

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

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert has 34 active public transport stops offering a mix of light rail and buses. These stops are served by 8 different routes, collectively facilitating 5,527 weekly passenger trips. Transport accessibility is rated as good, with residents typically located 243 meters from the nearest stop. Most residents commute outward due to its residential nature. Cars remain the dominant mode of transport at 80%, while 11% use trains. On average, there are 1.3 vehicles per dwelling.

According to the 2021 Census, a high 48.8% of residents work from home, which may be influenced by COVID-19 conditions. Service frequency averages 789 trips per day across all routes, equating to approximately 162 weekly trips per individual stop.

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert's residents boast exceedingly positive health performance metrics with very low prevalence of common health conditions across all age groups

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert shows excellent health outcomes based on AreaSearch's assessment of mortality rates and chronic condition prevalence, with very low prevalence across all age groups. The area has a high rate of private health cover at approximately 73% of its total population of 10,826 people, compared to 56.7% in Greater Melbourne and the national average of 55.7%. Asthma and mental health issues are the most common conditions, affecting 7.1% and 7.0% of residents respectively, while 73.0% report no medical ailments, slightly higher than Greater Melbourne's 72.6%.

The area has a higher proportion of seniors aged 65 and over at 20.9%, or 2,258 people, compared to Greater Melbourne's 15.1%. Health outcomes among seniors are strong and align with the general population nationally.

The level of cultural diversity witnessed in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert was found to be above average when compared nationally for a number of language and cultural background related metrics

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert had a higher cultural diversity than most local areas, with 30.8% of its population born overseas and 25.0% speaking languages other than English at home. Christianity was the predominant religion in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert, comprising 44.6% of its population. Judaism, however, showed a notable overrepresentation at 0.2%, compared to 1.0% across Greater Melbourne.

In terms of ancestry, the top three groups were English (24.5%), Australian (19.6%), and Chinese (13.3%), which was significantly higher than the regional average of 6.5%. There were also notable differences in the representation of certain ethnic groups: Sri Lankan at 0.6% (vs 0.8% regionally), Greek at 1.8% (vs 2.7%), and Scottish at 8.4% (vs 5.6%).

Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert's median age exceeds the national pattern

The median age in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert is 42 years, which is significantly higher than Greater Melbourne's average of 37 years and Australia's national average of 38 years. The 65-74 age group comprises 10.5% of the population compared to Greater Melbourne, while the 25-34 cohort makes up 11.2%. Post-2021 Census data shows that the 75 to 84 age group has grown from 5.3% to 7.6%, and the 15 to 24 cohort has increased from 13.3% to 15.1%. Conversely, the 45 to 54 cohort has decreased from 14.0% to 13.2%. Population forecasts for 2041 indicate substantial demographic changes in Surrey Hills (East) - Mont Albert. The 45 to 54 age group is projected to grow by 22%, adding 314 people, reaching a total of 1,746 from the previous figure of 1,431. Conversely, the 0 to 4 and 35 to 44 cohorts are expected to experience population declines.