West Footscray, VIC 3012
Maribyrnong City, Victoria
Good to Know
West Footscray, VIC 3012 is a high-value house market in the Maribyrnong City Council area, currently positioned as a balanced growth-and-income submarket. Located about 7 km west of Melbourne CBD, it is home to roughly 11,729 adults across 6,295 dwellings and has a vacancy rate of 1.69%.
According to HtAG Analytics, West Footscray is exhibiting tight listings with balanced short-term inventory. Stock on Market sits at 0.36% and Inventory at 2.14 months — just inside the balanced band versus the ~3‑month threshold — driving +1.5% YoY price growth and +3.3% YoY rent growth.
What the market data is signalling
West Footscray shows modest capital gains alongside stronger rental growth: prices are up 1.5% over 12 months while rents are up 3.3%. That divergence, together with a gross yield of 3.34% (above the 3% benchmark), suggests rental demand is underpinning returns more than recent capital appreciation.
Supply-side readings reinforce that picture: Stock on Market is an opportune 0.36% and days on market are a quick 26 days, signalling constrained listings and brisk transactions. For a live visual of short-term momentum see the Markets in the Moment (MiM™) heatmap.
Who lives in West Footscray — and why it matters for investors
West Footscray scores 1031 on the IRSAD index, above the recommended minimum and indicating relatively strong socio‑economic capacity and buyer affordability. The renter/owner split is a neutral 40.0% and the units/houses mix is neutral at 46.0%, suggesting a balanced demand profile that typically reduces extreme volatility. See our IRSAD Crossover study for how socio‑economic change feeds into long‑run market behaviour.
Why suburb-level data matters for West Footscray
Suburb-level metrics reveal the real pocket-level story: West Footscray’s typical house price is $1,036,560, with a gross yield of 3.34%, Stock on Market at 0.36%, Inventory at 2.14 months and a median DOM of 26 days. Council or LGA averages can mask these local signals; decisions should rest on the suburb’s own metrics. Read more in our LGA vs Suburb research.
Download the full West Footscray data guide.
What's behind the RCS™ score of 74
HtAG’s RCS™ bundles three independent dimensions — risk minimisation, capital‑growth potential and cashflow resilience — into a single composite to help match markets to strategy. A score of 74 signals a relatively strong overall profile, but the sub‑score breakdown matters when choosing between yield, growth or low‑risk objectives; dig into how the RCS™ is built to interpret the components.
To test scenarios and filters, open West Footscray in HtAG Copilot.
Forward signals to watch
vacancy rate — currently 1.69%: sustained balanced vacancy (around 1–3.5%) over 12–24 months typically supports stable rents but limits upside from tightening; watch for falls below 1% for rent acceleration.
building approvals ratio — currently 0.27%: this low/opportune reading implies a limited near‑term pipeline of new homes, which reinforces existing supply pressure and can protect values from oversupply risk.
Melbourne cycle phase: a shift in the Melbourne cycle toward expansion would typically boost local capital momentum and listing activity; a city‑wide slowdown would likely temper West Footscray’s short‑term growth despite local rental strength.
Does this area meet your investment goals?
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RCS Breakdown
West Footscray's RCS™ headline is an overall signal — but it doesn't tell you why. The three sub-scores below reveal whether that score is earned through risk minimisation, capital growth, or cashflow — and which portfolio brief it fits.
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Market Trends
West Footscray's headline values — $1,036K to buy and $663PW to rent, a 3.32% gross yield. Over the past decade, prices have moved 29.10% and rents 63.79% — the Yield series shows whether that gap is widening (price outpacing rent, yield compressing) or closing.
$1,036K is today. The 10-year trajectory reveals whether that's the top of a run, the start of a new leg, or somewhere mid-cycle. Sign up to unlock the entire trend line.
$663PW today, with rent growth at (+3.26% YoY) compared to price growth (+1.46%). That spread determines yield is expanding or compressing across the next cycle. Sign up to unlock the entire trend line.
Where is West Footscray in its cycle - and is the 3.32% yield holding?
Cycle phase tells you whether you're buying near the bottom (room to run) or top (compression ahead). Yield trajectory tells you whether cashflow is durable or being eroded — the single most important question for a long-hold thesis.
Cycle Phase
Cycle Position
Yield Trajectory
Rent vs Price Spread
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Area Risks
Property data alone won't flag the structural risks that can erode a long-hold position. Bushfire overlays, flood-zone exposure, and economic concentration sit outside the price feed but determine whether your capital is insurable, defensible, and structurally protected. Unlock to see.
Are there hidden structural risks shaping West Footscray's long-hold story?
Beyond the headline price, West Footscray carries risk signals a median can't show — hazard exposure from bushfire and flood overlays, and how narrowly local employment leans on a handful of sectors (the concentration the EDI score quantifies). Together these separate insurable, defensible long-holds from those carrying tail-risk that never surfaces in the headline number.
MADI Risk
EDI Risk
Bushfire
Flood
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Critical to know
Supply & Demand
West Footscray's headline numbers show where the market is today. The two cards below answer where it's heading. Direction is what separates a buy from a wait.
Is housing supply tightening or building up?
Stock on Market is one number — the trend is what matters. SoM, inventory, building approvals and hold period together reveal whether the market is starving for stock (price pressure up) or quietly building a pipeline (pressure down).
Stock on Market
Inventory
Building Approvals
Hold Period
Is buyer and renter demand heating up or cooling off?
Vacancy is one signal — the real question is whether demand is still building or quietly peaking. Days on market, vacancy, search index and clearance rate are the four pulse-points — when they diverge, they signal a turning point.
Days on Market
Vacancy Rate
Search Index
Clearance Rate
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Fundamentals
West Footscray can look solid on the surface — but the three layers below separate markets that genuinely hold value from ones that only look like they do.
Is West Footscray genuinely stable - or just expensive?
IRSAD hints at affluence, but socio-economic strength alone doesn't guarantee resilience. Combined with the renter-to-owner balance and unit-to-house ratio, you get the three signals that separate a tightly-held submarket from one carrying hidden volatility.
IRSAD
Renter to Owner
Units to Houses
Where do West Footscray prices go over the next 12 months?
Today's headline price is just a snapshot. Projected ROI and the volatility index tell you whether to commit capital now, wait for a softer entry, or rotate into a steadie submarket.
Projected Annual ROI
Volatility Index
Can you actually buy into West Footscray - and exit cleanly?
Tightly-held areas reward long-hold investors but punish anyone who needs liquidity. Annual sales and rental volume reveal whether your capital can reposition — or sits structurally locked in.
Annual Sales Volume
Annual Rental Volume
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Important to know
Education & Infrastructure
West Footscray looks tightly-held and stable on the surface — but the three layers below separate areas that genuinely hold value from ones that only look like they do.
Does West Footscray's school catchment + infrastructure pipeline justify the price?
School ranks anchor family demand and tenant quality. The active infrastructure pipeline shifts a suburb's price ceiling over the next 5–10 years. Together they tell you whether West Footscray has structural support for the next leg of capital growth.
School Rank
Hospitals & Employment
Infrastructure Spend
Transport Projects
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Full HtAG Intelligence
West Footscray shows potential. The platform tells you whether it's the best fit for your portfolio.
Price and yield are only the surface. HtAG reads the forces underneath — supply tightening or loosening, demand heating or cooling, and the risks that move slowly but decide long-term growth. Together they show whether West Footscray has the structural support for its next leg — or whether the numbers are running ahead of the fundamentals.
The total adult population (15 years or older) of West Footscray 3012 VIC is 9,712, with a median age of 35. Of those, 37.83% are married, 10.92% are divorced or separated, 47.92% are single and 3.38% are widowed.
The average household size is 2.4 people per dwelling, and the median household monthly income is estimated to be $10,344. The median monthly mortgage repayment for households in this suburb is $2,129 which is 20.58% of their earnings.
Source: ABS Census Data (2021)