Mitcham is where a lot of eastern-suburbs families find the budget finally works. Trains, parkland, solid schools and the strongest price growth of the suburbs I cover — without the Surrey Hills premium.
Mitcham sits about 20 kilometres east of the city on the Belgrave and Lilydale lines, with a rebuilt station following the level crossing removal and the 907 bus running through to Doncaster and the CBD. House prices grew 5.9% over the past year, the strongest of the four suburbs I work across, while the median remains around $1.25 million. The stock is varied: post-war family homes, a steady stream of new townhouses, and pockets of genuine bushland at Yarran Dheran. That variety is both the opportunity and the risk.
Mitcham is where a lot of families find the budget finally works. The trick is knowing which pocket you are in, and what the build quality is actually like. — Justin Valentine
Mitcham has absorbed a lot of townhouse development and the standard varies enormously. I look at the builder's track record, party wall acoustics, ceiling heights, and whether the courtyard is genuinely usable or just the setback dressed up with pavers.
Single dwelling covenants, easements and Whitehorse neighbourhood character controls all sit on titles around here, and any one of them can quietly rule out a second storey or a subdivision. I check the title and the planning report on every shortlisted property.
The rebuilt Mitcham station and the removed level crossing lifted the walk-up catchment. Backing onto the corridor is a different proposition. School zoning is unusually messy here too, with pockets falling to Antonio Park or Vermont Secondary rather than Mullauna, so I verify every address.
Check current auction clearance rates before you negotiate. They give you useful context on the level of buyer competition and whether conditions are favouring buyers or sellers. Rates move considerably through the year and across market conditions, so the number that matters is the one for the weekend you are bidding, not an annual average.
Figures for the 12 months to June 2026. Mitcham has had the strongest growth of the suburbs I cover while remaining the most accessible on price, which is an unusual combination. I refresh these each quarter.
12 months to June 2026
A large and well-supplied townhouse market
The strongest growth of the suburbs I cover
Houses, from listing to sale
Belgrave and Lilydale lines, plus the 907 bus
Affordability, mostly. At a median around $1.25 million, Mitcham sits roughly $350,000 below Blackburn and nearly a million below Surrey Hills, while still offering trains, parkland and solid schools.
Buyers priced out of those suburbs have been moving east, and that demand showed up as 5.9% growth over the past year.
Treat them as a temperature check rather than a feature of the suburb. Clearance rates tell you how much competition is in the market right now, and whether conditions are favouring buyers or sellers. They move considerably through the year and across different market conditions.
Check the current rate before you negotiate rather than relying on an annual average. And if a property passes in and you are the highest bidder, you will usually get the first opportunity to negotiate with the vendor. That can be valuable, but it is not always the position you want. Sometimes waiting and putting the pressure back on the vendor is the stronger play.
It can be, but the range in quality is wide. The median for units and townhouses is around $858,000 and supply is healthy, which means you can afford to be selective.
I look hard at the builder's track record, the owners corporation finances, the acoustic separation between dwellings and whether the outdoor space is genuinely usable. Plenty fail at least one of those tests.
Mitcham Primary, Rangeview Primary and Mullauna College cover most of the suburb, though some pockets zone to Antonio Park Primary or Vermont Secondary College instead.
The boundaries here are more complicated than in neighbouring suburbs, so I verify each shortlisted address on Find My School before you make a decision.
The walk-up catchment around the rebuilt station carries a clear premium, and the level crossing removal improved both amenity and traffic. Homes directly adjoining the rail corridor are a different matter and should be priced accordingly.
I will always take you back to a shortlisted property while a train is passing, because that is information you cannot get from a floor plan.
Then we keep looking. I work with owner-occupiers only and I do not have a volume target to hit, so there is never pressure to settle for something that is not right.
Missing out on a property is normal, and occasionally it is the correct outcome. My job is to make sure that when we do commit, it is the right home at a fair price.
You'll always know what's happening next. Here's how we move from first conversation to the keys in your hand.
The words that come up most often are calm, informed, supported and protected. That's exactly how buying a home should feel.
We needed help with finding a new home. We tried doing it ourselves but it became so challenging. Justin was exceptional from start to finish. From the first phone call, he navigated the entire purchase of our new home with absolute confidence and calm, making what could have been a stressful process feel seamless. From managing conversations with real estate agents to handling negotiations and due diligence, he took ALL the stress off our shoulders. We always felt informed, protected and one step ahead. It was such a relief to have him in our corner! Justin's professionalism, strategic approach and steady guidance gave us total confidence in every decision and ultimately secured a fantastic result at an online Auction. Nothing was ever too hard for Justin, you can ask him anything and that's the difference. We couldn’t recommend Justin more highly.
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What a pleasure to have dealt with Justin! We appreciated his insight, guidance and feedback on properties we considered to buy. Having someone in your corner like Justin with his calm demeanour that you could trust and have open honest communication with, was priceless during the stressful time of finding and buying a house during these competitive times. Especially during making offers and negotiations he assisted us with such ease. Thank you Justin! You definitely helped us find and secure our dream home faster and with less stress than if we were to do it on our own. Can't help but feel a bit sad that we won't continue our regular check-ins and chats on our house hunting sessions! Just reach out to Justin and ask your questions, I have no doubt you'll see what I mean
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A trusted friend suggested a Buyers Advocate who I spoke with initially, but as he worked outside metro Melbourne, referred me onto trusted friend and colleague. He confirmed that Justin had capacity to work with me. I had bought numerous times on my own in Melbourne but was living several hours out of the city, under intense time pressures, and alarmed by the v high numbers at Opens I had attended. Justin clarified the tasks I wanted him to undertake, promptly researched and inspected two properties on my shortlist, and proceeded to make offers within my limits. I/we succeeded on yet another property, to my delight, which also required multiple offers to succeed. Justin's work saved me many hours time and travel; the increase of his his offers were much lower than I would have expected, so saving me significantly; and he established good rapport with vendors agents so he was able to indirectly "read" expectations of vendors. Justin attended the final inspection with me, checking functional state of house fittings, and liaised with my legal conveyancer. He was happy to provide phone consultation with another family member in a complex auction situation. I move in today! Thank you, Justin.
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We recently worked with Justin on a property that we were selling that he successfully secured for his clients. As an agent, it was refreshing to deal with a buyer advocate who communicated so well and I strongly felt that he had his clients best interest in mind. Would highly recommend him to any buyers needing an advocate!
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Working with Justin was fantastic! His communication skills second to none. Reliable, helpful and dedicated to his clients needs. Looking forward to working with him again. Thank you Justin!
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Initially, we resented having to resort to engaging a buyer’s advocate due to the difficulties we experienced trying to deal with real estate agents, shadowy practices in terms of pricing and always being beaten out by deeper pockets and games being played, but having engaged Justin , we soon had real leads that hooked us up with a genuine and honest real estate agent and managed to purchase a property within a month! Justin’s contacts managed to give us access to off market properties,which gave us a chance to compete and eventually secure the property of our dreams. Justin passed our initial quizzing with flying colours , his patience and understanding, and more importantly his ability to listen to us and transpose that into our home was really appreciated. We would highly recommend Justin as a calm, unassuming presence to help lead anyone through this stressful process! Thank you Justin!
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Justin is an excellent buyers advocate who truly cares about his clients and really invests in getting the best outcomes for them. He’s genuine, supportive, and just a great person to deal with — someone you can trust to guide you through the process and deliver great results. Highly recommend Justin to anyone looking to buy a home in Melbourne East.
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I recently had the pleasure of working with Justin for the first time to secure a home. From the outset, the process showed signs of being a bit complex, and I knew I didn’t want to navigate it alone. Justin was absolutely fantastic—attentive, thoughtful, and incredibly supportive throughout. He offered valuable advice and truly partnered with me every step of the way, never once trying to push or override my decisions. I highly recommend Justin to anyone looking for a knowledgeable, respectful, and genuinely caring professional.
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Justin is an absolute professional. His knowledge is First Class, he is honest and gives 100% effort to everything he does. Highly recommended.
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Justin is very professional, and patient agent. He helps his clients to sort out all the issues, and provides the relative resource when there is a problem. Would recommend him if you are looking for a buyers agent
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Absolute pleasure working with Justin throughout a very successful auction campaign. Always extremely thorough and prompt with communication always thinking from the clients perspective and with their best interest at heart. Would not hesitate to recommend Justin to help navigate through the buying/selling process of property.
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Justin is amazing and has saved me lots of time and effort in the process of purchasing my property. He went above and beyond to make the purchase seamless for me, including local market research, buyer due diligence and negotiations with the selling agent. I have been so impressed with Justin that I've also engaged his services as a Selling Advocate for the sale of my current property. I'd highly recommend Justin's services - both as a buyer's agent and also as a seller's advocate.
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