Glenelg is a beachside suburb of Adelaide and lies 9km west of the CBD. It is within the City of Holdfast Bay Local Government Area and is one of Adelaide's most well known locations for it's main street, beaches and pier. Glenelg is the oldest European settlement in South Australia, dating back to 1836, and was previously home to large oyster reefs prior to settlement.
Today, Glenelg is best known for its beautiful pier, beachfront culture and restaurants lining Jetty Street and the beachfront. It one of the best known suburbs of South Australia and has drawn many comparisons to St Kilda in Melbourne.
Being in a prime location, Glenelg is one of Adelaide's most expensive suburbs, significantly gentrifying over recent decades, reaching above $1.7 million in 2021 as per CoreLogic and Real Estate.
Lifestyle
Glenelg is known as one of Adelaide's best suburbs for multiple reasons: It has a beautiful beachfront with fantastic restaurants, is very accessible by public transport, has great schools close by and is home to a lot of open free space.
On the beachside, many residents enjoy swimming, running, sailing and relaxing on the beach or on the main grass area before the pier. This is a very well known and photographed location, one of South Australia's most popular.
Wigley & Colley Reserves are common parks used for outdoor and sporting activities in Glenelg, though largely many residents play closer into the CBD who are more competitive. General healthy activities are very common in Glenelg, a large portion of the resident population can be seen in early mornings and late afternoons walking towards Brighton and back. There are a few swim, run and yoga clubs that are also present within the suburb.
School Zones
Glenelg Primary School and St Leonards Primary School are the two main junior public schools in Glenelg. St Mary's Memorial School services catholic education and is located in the southern part of the suburb.
Brighton Secondary School and Immanuel College are the most common schools for an adolescent education, and are both within 5 minutes of Glenelg.
Walford Anglican School For Girls, Pembroke School & Scotch College are all common places for the wealthier families to send their children to school for a private or boarding school education. All schools lie within the southern and eastern part of Adelaide.
Sundeen Specialist School lies in Mitchell Park, about 10 minutes south of Glenelg and services students of special needs.
Demographics
Despite the high demand and well known status, Glenelg is not known for being an overly wealthy suburb of Adelaide, however things are changing dramatically. Historically, the Inner Southern & Western parts of Adelaide are well known as the 'old money suburbs', particularly Medindie and Unley.
The beaches, particularly Glenelg and Henley Beach are now gentrifying rapidly, with a significant proportion of new money entering. This saw an increase of close to 50% in median household income over the 15 years between 2006 to 2021 from $985 to $1,430 per week as per Census ABS data.
Glenelg has a particularly strong older population, with over 26% of the population being 65 or older. Many of these residents are retirees, who reside in the original dwellings or the newer apartments that have been bought to downsize.
Employment
Close to 50%, above the state average of 35% of residents either hold managerial or professional working positions in Glenelg. This is increasing steadily over the past decade and likely to continue. Healthcare and Education are the two most common employers in Glenelg for the graduated residents, where many of the younger residents work within the cafe's that line Jetty Street and the beachfront.
It should be noted that the personal income of individuals in Glenelg is close to 25% higher than the state average.
Transport
Glenelg is the terminus of the Glenelg train line, which has regularly services into the CBD. Residents from all over Adelaide often travel into Glenelg by this method of transport.
Buses also can be found throughout Glenelg, particularly towards Jetty Road and Anzac Highway. These services run north and south along the coast, and also in towards the city and west.
Private transport is fairly common amongst families in Glenelg, who often live in the quieter back streets.
It should be noted that the local council runs some free tram services in this area, one of such is is the area between the South Terrace stop, Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Festival Plaza and the Botanic Gardens.
Shopping Centre's, Restaurants & Facilities
Glenelg is known for having one of the best strips of restaurants in all of Adelaide. Along Jetty Street, fine dining, ethnic cuisine and general food stores can be found in abundance. Many of these restaurants are opened late, a theme not common in Adelaide.
Glenelg also hosts many smaller events such as kids days, where the Ferris wheel is often present and operating. Glenelg is also a common place for a beachside day for many residents and other visiting tourists.
There are many smaller boutique stores along Jetty street, however the main shopping centre can be found at the intersection of Jetty Street & Brighton Road - Bayside Village Shopping Centre. For other shopping and retail experience, residents often travel into town - the CBD.
Gyms and fitness clubs are common throughout Glenelg, along all of the main roads. Glenelg has two key sports clubs; the Glenelg Tigers and the Glenelg Seahorses in Aussie Rules and Cricket respectively.
Development
Glenelg is a suburb of mixed high, commercial and low density development. Along Jetty Street, it is almost entirely commercial, with a few shop top apartments present.
Most of the freestanding homes and terraces exist in the quieter streets of the suburb, north and south of Jetty Steet. To the southern side of the pier, some very large freestanding homes can be found.
Townhouses and apartments are very common towards the beachfront. There are a few hotels that exist too, Oaks and Stamford Grand most notably.
A high quality fixtures and fittings are common amongst many of the newer dwellings, as is existing heritage amongst the older dwellings.
Development stock is generally extremely scarce in Glenelg, as it has almost entirely been built, but otherwise hits the market as extremely hot stock and often will go well over reserve.
Capital Growth
Glenelg is regularly one of South Australia's highest performing capital growth suburbs for houses, averaging between 7-8% year on year according to CoreLogic and Aussie Home Loans.
Many of the best performing properties are within the quieter streets, or the beachfront and primarily do not come to market very often - sometimes not at all in an entire year period.
Townhouses and apartments generally perform at 6% and 4% respectively, largely due to the oversupply in some parts of the beachfront, and the high level of holiday letting airbnb's that exist in the area.
Cash Flow
Houses generally yield close to 3.5%, which has come down since COVID due to the extraordinary capital growth which the suburb achieved during that period.
Units and townhouses average between 4.5-5%, generally due to a significantly lower price than houses but strong demand.
It should be noted that Glenelg is one of South Australia's few suburbs that has steadily increasing or stagnant rent throughout market downturns, unlike many others that saw falls.
Rental Demand
Presently in February 2024, Glenelg has a critical shortage of houses with a vacancy rate of 0.4%, meaning homes are leased mostly within the first few days of coming to market. This is an incredible market however, and houses generally average 2% vacancy rates, still undersupplied but not at present levels..
Units and townhouses tend to average 2.5-3% vacancy rates, this is largely due to the presence of young lifestyle based residents who are often on the move.
Glenelg's vacancy rate down consistently decrease significantly leading up to the summer months, largely due to the appeal of the suburb.
Why You Require a Buyers Agent in Glenelg
Glenelg was once a ignored suburb before the 2000s, with stock readily available and little competition, though this has changed over the course of the last 20 years and homes are regularly seen with over 20 registered buyers.
A large increase in competition is largely due to the increase in services to the area, updated department stores and beautiful improvements and maintenance to the beachfront village.
Older downsizers and wealthy lifestyle upgraders are extremely common buyers in Glenelg, and often can be seen bidding incredible sums for the right dwellings, sometimes above 20%.
The biggest risk in not having a buyers agent in Glenelg is simply stock levels; they have more than halved in the past 10 years, and demand has doubled. Going through the process on your own is a sure way to ensure you will not get the best purchase.
Having a buyers agent with the experience and access of bidding in your corner will also ensure that you are in the market for the best stock, sometimes performing above 10% year on year, saving you thousands on the way in and making you potentially millions in the future.
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