Train lines, both campuses, and the schools worth knowing about. Click a suburb for the detail.
Suburb and pocket calls are ours, from buying in the north east every week.6 School positions and commute times are approximate: peak, station to campus, check the PTV journey planner. School zones change, confirm every address on findmyschool.vic.gov.au.
Our call out of 10 on each factor. Drag the weights to whatever matters most and the order moves.
| Rank | Suburb | Schools | Uni commute | Budget fit | Family feel | Match score |
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What counts as a good secondary school up north. Short answer first, then the 2025 VCE numbers behind it.
Viewbank College is the pick (median 31), and its zone takes in a big chunk of Rosanna. Montmorency Secondary is next. Macleod College and Greensborough Secondary trail.
The better options sit on the Hurstbridge line: Ivanhoe Girls' Grammar (35), OLMC Heidelberg (33) and Catholic Ladies' College Eltham (33) all outscore every northern government school.
If either girl is going into Year 9 and academic, MacRobertson Girls' (37) is selective entry and open to every suburb on this list.
Median VCE study score and state rank out of 658 schools, 2025 results, VCAA data via TopScores.4 Median is one lens only: ask about pathways, wellbeing and subject range at tours.
Every 4 bed, 2 bath house listed at or under $1.6M, live as at 20 September.2 Development sites, uninhabitable stock and rooming houses removed.7
Best all rounder
Viewbank College zone for much of the suburb, two strong girls' schools a few stops down the line, and the quickest northern commute. Budget works, but good 4 bed homes sit at $1.3M to $1.55M, so be ready to move quickly.
Most choice for the money
14 live options, every one priced from under $1.3M, on big blocks with a train station. Pair it with Catholic Ladies' College or OLMC and the price gap to Rosanna pays for years of fees.
If schools are the non negotiable
The strongest government school on the list, but the median house is $1.76M. A $1.6M budget buys an older home, so zone checking on every address is essential.
| What | Where it comes from | As at | How to read it |
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Nothing here is modelled or guessed at. Prices, listings, zoning, land size and school results come straight from the sources above, as published. Where a number is our judgement rather than data, it says so.