Looking to buy a property in Newcastle? These are the top six suburbs in the Greater Newcastle area to look out for in 2025.
As mortgage brokers in Cooks Hill, we like to think we know the area pretty well. These are places that we’ve seen grow in popularity, the ones where we see major construction happening and some that we’ve even lived in ourselves.
So straight up, if anyone just wants the top six suburbs so they can disappear:
- Adamstown Heights
- Charlestown
- Eleebana
- Macquarie Hills
- Merewether Heights
- New Lambton Heights
But if you stick around, you’ll find out why we think these suburbs show promise and we’ll even add in three extra suburbs that didn’t quite make the cut.
Adamstown Heights
Adamstown Heights is a very family-friendly location. It’s about eight kilometres from the CBD and a really nice place to live with sweeping views over Adamstown and Kotara – which means it’s close to the Westfield, the Homemaker Centre and some great smaller businesses (we’re thinking Cupcake Espresso and Hungry Wolf’s pizza).
The demographic is shifting here rapidly. We’re seeing a big transition of an older demographic in older properties to younger families who are renovating these places into modern family homes. The average house on the market in Adamstown Heights hasn’t been renovated in decades giving huge opportunities for people willing to put in the work. That’s where we’re seeing that massive increase in value; not only the market growth solely, but putting some equity into it and manufacturing some growth.
Charlestown
Charlestown is a really, really good price point for a lot of first time home buyers in Newcastle. Technically part of Lake Macquarie, Charlestown is only 10 kilometres from Newcastle CBD.
However, Charlestown has a lot of the amenities of the city centre – some think of it as a mini-CBD – and in some cases perhaps even more attractions. It’s got cinemas, for starters.
As well as that it’s got Charlestown Square, the biggest shopping centre in the area. There are also a of medical centres and everything else you’d need within walking distance. There’s been a big focus on commercial investment in Charlestown recently so expect to see plenty of new developments soon.
There’s also a big increase in units, with Newcastle’s tallest building – Macquarie Tower – opening recently.
As well as the attractions in Charlestown itself, it’s also very well placed. It’s a hub for public transport and it’s just a short drive out to the beaches at Dudley and Redhead, as well as Warners Bay and other lakeside suburbs.
From a growth perspective, Charlestown property values have gone up 93% over a 10-year period. Part of that growth is because of the spillover potential from more expensive neighbouring markets like Dudley and Kahibah with buyers making their way to Charlestown for a nearby bargain.
Eleebana
So again, even though we’ve said Newcastle in the headline, this is another Lake Macquarie suburb.
The big attraction to Eleebana is that it’s lakeside, just south of Warners Bay. And, again, it’s a really green leafy suburb with lots of family appeal. A lot of people with money make the move from central Newcastle suburbs out to this part of the lake.
It’s also very popular with downsizers who appreciate Eleebana’s slower lifestyle, water views and better value for money than some other lakeside spots.
Macquarie Hills
Macquarie Hills, again in Lake Macquarie, but closer to the Newcastle boundary. It’s between Cardiff and Warners Bay, which are both nice areas in themselves.
Macquarie Hills is very popular with young families, but there’s also interest from downsizers, investors and first time buyers. As a guide, a three-bedroom house is likely to be around $900k.
Future growth is likely too with local developments. The transport hub at Glendale, for example, which is going to boost demand in that area well. With councils spending money in that area, it’s likely to be reflected in property prices in the next five or ten years.
Merewether Heights
Merewether and Merewether Heights have always been known Newcastle’s affluent suburbs – it’s where the likes of Silverchair’s Daniel Johns move to.
Obviously found at the top of Merewether, this suburb is green, leafy and – if you buy the right property – has stunning views over the area.
Building approvals are a bit stricter here with almost no vacant lots available. If you want your dream home in Merewether Heights, you’ll either need to undertake major renovations, buy a knockdown rebuild or get vey lucky.
It’s very similar in nature to the Adamstown Heights market, but comes with the Merewether postcode. It’s closer to town, closer to the beach and it comes with a bit of status as well.
There’s also been huge growth in this area. Over the past 10 years, it’s seen 135% growth. Compared with 65% in Newcastle itself, it’s somewhere that’s done very well for investors.
Now you’re talking about doubling your money over a 10 year period compared to a poorer investment. The drawback of course is that the average purchase price in that area is higher than average – around $1.7m for a four bedroom house and the rental yield is quite low, so it’s really somewhere for long-term capital growth.
Vacancy rates sit slightly higher than average and that’s because you typically see, say, a $2.5 million property in Merewether Heights go to market for $1,500 per week. There’s very few people in Newcastle who pay $1,500 per week. The big majority of properties here are owner-occupied.
New Lambton Heights
New Lambton Heights is very close to the John Hunter Hospital, arguably one of the best hospitals in Australia, so it draws doctor and specialists who want to be close to work and who can afford the high purchase prices. You can probably imagine the area: green, leafy and very well manicured. It feels luxurious when you’re driving through it.
The biggest thing with the New Lambton Heights market is that it neighbours New Lambton. A typical value for New Lambton sits at around $1.8m while a similar house in New Lambton Heights is around $1.2m.
That’s a massive gap between those two price points – and they’re neighbouring suburbs.
This area is going to do really well because you’ve got people with very high incomes competing for these blocks. Vacancy rates are very low here. Demand for properties is likely to grow as The John is undergoing a huge redevelopment at the moment – $835 million worth to be precise – which will mean more staff and more demand for hyperlocal properties.
There’s also a bypass being built there at the moment which means the traffic is going to get better too – probably in early 2026 when it’s likely to open.
Other high performing suburbs in Newcastle
We tried to keep the list to six to match the headline, but it feels like we’ve missed out too many great suburbs. Here are a few more areas in Newy that only just missed the cut.
The Junction
It was very hard to narrow it down to these six markets because we’ve taken a very broad approach – we’re not talking to sub-$800k investors or first home buyers.
There are other markets like The Junction that we could very easily have included. The Junction grew by 160% and was the top performer over the past 10 years. The Junction will still continue to perform – it’s got shops, it’s close to the beach and it has a great public school – but it’s got a typical price point of $2.5m
And then you’ve got big renovated $3.5m family homes or four bedroom, luxury townhouses which aren’t in everyone’s budget.
Williamtown
Another area to really look out for is around the airport because there’s a lot of investment around there. Plus, international routes have been announced for late 2025 which will help the area significantly.
There’s also huge industry there. The government announced that they’re building a missile factory next to the RAAF base in Williamtown which again brings skilled workers into the area. Like we said above, this is going to attract more workers who, ideally, would want to live close to the factory.
Raymond Terrace
There’s a lot of mixed opinions about Raymond Terrace. It’s a lower socioeconomic area but you can still buy investments in Raymond Terrace for $600-650k.
It saw 130% growth over the past decade and there’s lots of investment in the area at the moment. Currently there’s a multi-billion dollar freeway extension that’ll serve Raymond Terrace soon. That’ll make it the last stop on the way to Sydney and it’s also close to the airport, which as we saw above could bring in lots of demand soon.
Buying in Newcastle
Obviously we’re quite biased. We live in Newcastle. Some of us were raised in Newcastle and have seen it transform literally over the last 40 years from an industrial town to what it is today.
We don’t have a crystal ball, but we’d be surprised it there wasn’t even more growth over the next 40 years and, on top of that, it’s a great place to live – somewhere we’ve all chosen to be, to raise our families.
If you’re thinking about buying around here, there’s a lot to love. And if you want help on your journey, our team of mortgage brokers in Newcastle are perfectly positioned to do so.
