Castlemaine Property Market Update 1st Half 2026
Surrounded by beautiful bushland and close to Melbourne, Castlemaine offers a relaxed country lifestyle with easy access to nature, walking tracks, and a direct train line to the city for convenient commuting.
Property Trends
In Q4 2025, Castlemaine recorded a median house price of $751,250 and a median unit price of $600,000. This represents an annual (Q4 2024 – Q4 2025) median price growth of 0.8% for houses, alongside a 75.0% increase in the number of houses sold (to 98 sales in Q4 2025). This indicates an ideal time for owners to capitalise on their investment. Median unit price did slightly soften in the past 12 months, by -3.2%. That said, the unit market is small; with only 7 unit sales in Q4 2025. Houses is a dominant property type in Castlemaine and continue to attract strong buyer demand. Combined with lower cash rates in 2025, this has supported price growth. With limited new ready-to-sell housing stock planned, buyers must act fast before prices increases even further.
Project Development
Castlemaine plans to see approximately $37.9M of new projects to commence construction from 2026 onwards. There are only two residential projects planned, delivering a total of 43 dwellings. Given there were 98 house sales in Q4 2025 alone, the current number of new dwellings will not be enough to meet ongoing market demand. This is expected to place upward pressure on house and unit prices.
Rental Market & Growth
House rental yield in Castlemaine was 3.7% as of December 2025, which is higher than Mount Alexander Shire (3.4%) and Melbourne Metro (3.0%). This is paired with a 24.4% growth of median house rental price in the past 12 months to Q4 2025, to $560 per week, along with a 31.8% surge in the number of houses rented (to 29 rentals). This confirms a highly demanded and competitive house rental in Castlemaine. This is beneficial for investors, especially those seeking an affordable option to Melbourne.
Vacancy Rates & Property Investment
Castlemaine recorded a vacancy rate of 0.6% in December 2025, on par with Mount Alexander Shire’s average 0.5% but below Melbourne Metro’s average of 2.0%. Vacancy rates increased in the past 12 months to December 2025, due to investors re-entering the market. However, a 0.6% vacancy rate is significantly below the Real Estate Institution of Australia’s healthy benchmark of 3.0%, indicating quicker occupancy of rental homes in Castlemaine. This is an ideal environment for investors, even with a higher house sales price (thus, entry price) in the past 12 months to Q4 2025.
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