Off-Market Properties Melbourne

Off-Market Properties
in Melbourne

Melbourne is still 6.8% below its March 2022 peak. A lot of vendors would rather not spend $3,000 to $8,000 on a campaign to test their price in public. So the agent offers the house to a few buyers they know first. It saves the vendor the campaign and gives the buyer some room on price.

Book a Free Discovery Call

Off-Market in a Buyer’s Market

Melbourne's median dwelling value was $786,718 at 31 August 2026, the lowest of the five mainland state capitals. Values fell 4.7% over the year, and listings were up 22% on a year earlier. In August, 38.4% of them had sat unsold for more than 90 days.

With houses sitting that long, more vendors skip the campaign altogether and have the agent shop the house to a short list of buyers first.

We've bought 300+ investment properties for clients, 86% of them off-market. Across our six main Melbourne suburbs, houses still sold in 14 to 30 days over the year to 30 June 2026. Buying off-market gives us a few days to a week to check the comparable sales before we commit.

Melbourne CBD skyline seen across the trees of Yarra Bend Park on a clear day
The Melbourne CBD skyline from Yarra Bend Park. Photo: -wuppertaler, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What Off-Market Looks Like in Melbourne

01

Quiet Listings That Test the Price

A quiet listing is for sale but only marketed through the agency's database, not the portals. Vendors often use one to test interest before paying for a full campaign. A buyer on the agent's list sees it first.

02

Pre-Market in Pakenham and Frankston

Pre-market means the agent offers the house to their database before the campaign, which gives a known buyer a head start of about a week. Pakenham houses sold in 14 days and Frankston in 15 over the year to 30 June 2026.

03

Vacancy From 1.11% to 4.64% Across Eight Postcodes

Postcode vacancy ran from 1.11% in Frankston's 3199 to 4.64% in Melton South's 3338 in August 2026. Tenants are much easier to find in Frankston.

Where We Buy Off-Market in Melbourne

We measured twelve house markets across Melbourne's western, northern and south-eastern corridors.

Melton

Melton has the lowest median of the twelve markets and grew the most over the year, at 16.49%. Its five-year average growth is also the best of the twelve.

  • Median house: $565,000
  • Gross yield: 3.77% at $410/wk
  • Sales: 177, selling in 22 days
  • Vacancy: 2.68% in postcode 3337

Pakenham

Pakenham has the best gross yield of the twelve markets.

  • Median house: $720,000
  • Gross yield: 4.12% at $570/wk
  • Sales: 980, selling in 14 days
  • Vacancy: 1.41% in postcode 3810

Frankston

Houses in Frankston grew 13.16% over the year. Postcode 3199 has the lowest vacancy of the postcodes we track. It's also the dearest of the twelve markets, with the lowest yield.

  • Median house: $860,000
  • Gross yield: 3.63% at $600/wk
  • Sales: 611, selling in 15 days
  • Vacancy: 1.11% in postcode 3199

Werribee and Craigieburn had the most sales of the twelve, at 1,056 and 1,033. All twelve are on the Melbourne buyers agent page. Our guide to the best suburbs to invest in Melbourne has ten postcodes with their numbers.

Medians, growth, sales and days on market are CoreLogic to 30 June 2026, via Your Investment Property. Rents are to 31 August 2026. Gross yield is weekly rent times 52, divided by the median. Vacancy is SQM Research for August 2026, by postcode.

How We Find Off-Market Properties in Melbourne

Selling agents call us first because we buy constantly. We're based in Sydney. Our buyers agents attend Melbourne inspections for you and carry each deal through to settlement.

Melbourne values fell 1.1% in August and 3.9% over the three months to August. We price every purchase off recent comparable sales, private or listed.

In Melbourne we pass on off-the-plan stock and anything sold through a project marketer. We also won't pick a corridor on yield alone.

Book a Free Discovery Call

Related Resources

Buyers Agent Melbourne
All twelve corridor markets, fees and the process.
Off-Market Properties in Australia
The national guide to how quiet sales work.
Melbourne Property Market 2026
Where Melbourne values sit in 2026.
Best Suburbs to Invest in Melbourne
Ten postcodes with the numbers behind each.

Get Started

Book Your Free
Discovery Call

A 15 minute call to understand your goals, your budget, and whether Melbourne is the right market for what you're trying to build.

Off-Market in Melbourne: Questions

Can I see a list of off-market properties in Melbourne? +

No. An off-market property is offered by the selling agent to a few buyers before it is advertised, so there is no public list to browse. Australian Property Experts shows clients the Melbourne properties that fit their brief, with the comparable sales, the rental appraisal and the postcode vacancy alongside.

How do I find off-market properties in Melbourne? +

Off-market properties in Melbourne come through selling agents, who offer quiet sales to the buyers they know will settle. That includes pre-market stock and quiet listings worked through an agency's database rather than advertised. Australian Property Experts buys across the western, northern and south-eastern corridors and sources 86% of client purchases off-market.

Are off-market properties in Melbourne a good deal in a falling market? +

They can be. Melbourne values fell 4.7% over the year to 31 August 2026 and sit 6.8% below the March 2022 peak. The price on any private sale has to be tested against recent comparable sales rather than last year's. On average, Australian Property Experts clients have paid $22k below market value.

Which Melbourne suburbs does Australian Property Experts buy off-market in? +

Twelve house markets across Melbourne's western, northern and south-eastern corridors. Melton, Melton South, Werribee, Pakenham, Craigieburn and Frankston have their own card on the Melbourne page, with Sunbury, Cranbourne, Broadmeadows, Wyndham Vale, Dandenong and Deer Park measured alongside them. Dandenong units are tracked too.

What is a quiet listing? +

A property that's for sale but marketed only through the selling agency's database rather than the portals. Vendors often use it to test interest before committing to a full campaign. It sits between an off-market sale, which never lists at all, and a pre-market offer, which gives the agent's database a head start of about a week before the campaign.

Do developers or selling agents pay Australian Property Experts? +

No. The buyer pays one flat fee, and no developer, project marketer or selling agent pays the agency anything.

How long does an off-market purchase in Melbourne take? +

Clients typically secure a property 1 to 8 weeks after engaging Australian Property Experts. Engagement to settlement usually takes 6 to 12 weeks, and it can be quicker when a suitable property is already available off-market.

Can an interstate investor buy off-market in Melbourne? +

Yes. Australian Property Experts is based in Sydney and buys Melbourne property for clients who live interstate and overseas. The agency's buyers agents attend inspections and manage the contract through to settlement. The investor gets the reasons behind every property the agency recommends or passes on.

Book a Free Discovery Call