The numbers, in plain English
To rent in Brighton without housing stress, a household income of about $118,000/year keeps the rent of $680/week at or below 30% of gross income — the standard affordability benchmark. That rent is the official median for a 2-bedroom unit — the most common new lease here (275 bonds lodged). Check your income →
To buy the median home ($3,350,000) with a 20% deposit of $670k, repayments at 6.2% over 30 years come to about $16,414/month — comfortable on roughly $657,000/year under the same 30% rule. Saving that deposit at $1,500/month takes about 37.2 years, before stamp duty of $198k. Run your own loan →
That price is the real median of 289 house sales in Brighton, published by the state land authority — not an estimate.
Compared to the rest of Victoria, Brighton is more expensive to buy than 100% of the state's suburbs (state median $330k) and pricier to rent than 93% (state median $445/week). It sits roughly 11 km from the Melbourne CBD as the crow flies.
For investors, the median rent against the median price gives a gross rental yield of about 1.1% before costs. Net yield calculator →
Modelled medians, not valuations — every formula above is documented on our methodology page.
Actual rents lodged here
Bonds lodged, September 2025Unlike the modelled figures above, these are the real median rents from every rental bond lodged with the Victorian RTBA in Brighton — a typical 2-bedroom unit rents for $680/week.
| Bedrooms | Type | Median rent | Bonds lodged |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | unit | $680/wk | 275 |
Source: Victoria DFFH Rental Report (CC BY 4.0), moving-annual by suburb with at least 5 lodgements per figure. Updated quarterly — see data sources.
Affordability by income
$60k income
Rent ($680/wk)
Over budget
Budget: $346/wk
Buy ($3.35M)
Repayments are a stretch
$16,068/mo · deposit in ~74.5yr
$90k income
Rent ($680/wk)
Over budget
Budget: $519/wk
Buy ($3.35M)
Repayments are a stretch
$16,068/mo · deposit in ~49.7yr
$120k income
Rent ($680/wk)
Affordable
Budget: $692/wk
Buy ($3.35M)
Repayments are a stretch
$16,068/mo · deposit in ~37.3yr
Based on 30% gross income rule for rent; 6% p.a. / 30-year P&I loan at 20% deposit for purchase; 15% savings rate for deposit timeline.
Upfront buying costs
| Purchase price | $3.35M |
| 20% deposit (no LMI) | $670k |
| Stamp duty (Victoria) | $198k |
| Stamp duty (first home buyer) | Same — check eligibility |
| Conveyancing (est.) | $1,500 – $3,000 |
| Building inspection (est.) | $400 – $700 |
| Total upfront (est.) | $870k |
Who lives here & what's nearby
Real figures for Brighton — measured, not modelled.
How Brighton compares
- Households here earn about 96% more than the typical suburb in Victoria.
Demographics and tenure from the ABS 2021 Census; the socio-economic score is the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative disadvantage, scaled 0–100 against every Australian postcode; distances and school counts from OpenStreetMap. Comparisons are against the median suburb in Victoria. Suburb-level price trends aren't shown because no open source publishes them reliably yet — see our data sources.
What's around Brighton
Real places nearby — the little things that make a suburb feel like home.
- Wilson Reserve200 m
- Brighton Library Gardens400 m
- Cora Lynn Park600 m
- Well Street Neighbourhood Park700 m
- Kevin Wood Centre2.6 km
- Hawkes Sports Centre2.6 km
- Elsternwick Park Tennis Centre2.7 km
- John Marshall Pool2.8 km
- Brighton Library400 m
- Cornish Library2.5 km
- Elsternwick Library2.7 km
- Brighton Bayside Men's Shed2.4 km
Places within about 3 km, from OpenStreetMap contributors — distances as the crow flies. Something missing or moved? Tell us.
Get to know Brighton
Real places to see and hear what living here is actually like.
Neighbourhood at a Glance
Indicative scores based on ABS Census data modelling. Always conduct your own research.
Related reading
Government schemes that may apply
First Home Guarantee (FHBG)
Buy with as little as 5% deposit, no LMI. Up to 35,000 places/year nationwide.
Learn more →First Home Owner Grant (FHOG)
Victoria offers a grant for eligible first home buyers purchasing new builds. Amounts vary.
Learn more →First Home Super Saver (FHSS)
Save up to $50k inside super (taxed at 15% instead of marginal rate), then withdraw for a deposit.
Learn more →Stamp duty concessions
At Brighton's median of $3,350,000, VIC's first home buyer concession has phased out — duty is about $197,750.
Learn more →Nearby suburbs in Victoria
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Rent data for Brighton sourced from the ABS 2021 Census, scaled by rental CPI to current values. Calculations use 30% gross income rule, 20% deposit, 6% p.a. loan rate over 30 years. Not financial advice.