Canberra Apartment Investment: Why Melbourne Buyers Are Switching

Melbourne apartment investors navigating an uneven market in 2026 — where oversupply in several inner corridors has compressed yields and extended vacancy — are increasingly looking at the ACT, where the conditions run in the opposite direction.

The Canberra fundamentals

Canberra's rental vacancy rate has held below 1.5 per cent across most of the past 18 months. New apartment supply in the ACT is constrained by a planning environment that limits how quickly projects can enter the market — the inverse of Melbourne's recent experience in suburbs like Docklands, Southbank and Box Hill, where supply has outpaced absorption.

Quality two-bedroom Canberra apartments are returning gross yields of 4.5 to 6 per cent, with entry prices from $500,000. That positions new ACT stock competitively against Melbourne CBD-fringe product on both yield and capital deployed.

Depreciation and stamp duty

New apartments attract full ATO depreciation schedules, reducing taxable income materially in early ownership years — an advantage that disappears on established apartments built before 2017. Off the plan buyers in the ACT also pay stamp duty at exchange on the land component only, not the completed dwelling value, reducing entry costs compared to equivalent Victorian purchases.

The project attracting Melbourne attention

The Lawson in Belconnen is a 244-apartment development beside Lake Ginninderra designed by Fender Katsalidis — a firm Melbourne investors associate with Australia 108. Club Lawson, the residents-only wellness facility, includes a pool, sauna, gym, yoga studio and meditation rooms.

Gaurav Pahwa of Apartment Collective, handling sales for the project, said Melbourne buyers had been drawn by the yield comparison and the relative scarcity of comparable product in the ACT. "There's nothing else in Canberra with this level of architect and this level of amenity," Pahwa said. "Melbourne investors recognise the combination."

Two and three-bedroom apartments from under $500,000 in the Haven release. Remote purchase supported. Contact: 1800 311 975 or hello@apartmentcollective.com.au.

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