Highett

Lifestyle & dining

Highett's small but well-loved retail strip along Highett Road has become a genuine drawcard, with a cluster of cafes, bakeries and casual eateries that give the suburb a distinct local feel. It's the kind of place where weekend mornings revolve around a coffee run and a chat with neighbours rather than a trip to a big shopping centre, though those options aren't far away either.

The bay itself is only a short drive or ride away via Hampton, and the flat, leafy streets make Highett an easy suburb for walking and cycling, whether that's to the shops, to a neighbouring park, or simply around the block.

Shopping

For day-to-day needs, the Highett Road strip covers the essentials, while more comprehensive shopping is close at hand in Moorabbin and Cheltenham, both known for their bulky goods and homemaker precincts. Bentleigh, just to the north, adds another well-regarded strip of shops, cafes and restaurants for those happy to travel a few minutes further.

Getting around

Highett has its own railway station on the Frankston line, putting the city within reasonable reach without a car and making it a practical choice for commuters. Moorabbin station on the same line is another nearby option, and the suburb's grid of quiet residential streets makes local trips by bike or on foot straightforward.

Road connections are equally convenient, with easy access to South Road and Nepean Highway linking Highett to the wider bayside area, the Monash Freeway and beyond.

Schools & families

Families are well catered for locally, with St Agnes' School serving the area, alongside further primary and secondary options in the surrounding suburbs of Bentleigh, Cheltenham and Hampton. The suburb's mix of established houses and newer townhouse developments has increasingly attracted young families looking for more space than the inner bayside suburbs typically offer.

The property market

Highett's median house price currently sits at $1.31 million, having recorded growth of 4.0% recently, while units and apartments offer a more accessible entry point at a median of $673,000. Median rent across the suburb is $810 a week, reflecting solid ongoing demand from both owner-occupiers and tenants.

The current mix of listings tells the story of a suburb in transition: 45% apartments or units, 27% houses, 27% townhouses and a small 1% of land, pointing to a steady shift toward higher-density living alongside its traditional single-family housing stock. That variety gives buyers and renters genuine choice, from character weatherboards to newer townhouse developments and low-rise apartment blocks, all within a suburb still small enough to feel like a community.