Suburb snapshot – Leopold

The size of Leopold is about 26.9 square kilometres and has 17 parks covering nearly 2.7 per cent of total area.

The population of Leopold in 2016 was 12,810 and by the 2021 Census the population was 13,272 showing a population growth of 4 per cent in the area during that time.

Market activity in Leopold has remained strong with over 220 home sales in the last twelve months year as young families flock to this very convenient suburb.

This is also reflected in the median age for Leopold which has continued its downward trend and now sits at 41 years of age.

Leopold was originally named Kensington, it was renamed Leopold in 1892 after Queen Victoria’s son, the Duke of Albany.

Confusion with the Melbourne suburb of Kensington was a reason for the change.

In 1852, 526 hectares of land was subdivided and offered for sale as the “Princely Domain of Kensington”.

While the subdivision did not create a village, it provided a name and settlers depended on the Anglican church and school in Hays Road, Point Henry, established in 1849-50.

Leopold continued as a rural community until the 1960s, when industrial development at Moolap and Point Henry made Leopold a convenient dormitory suburb.

CoreLogic data indicates that the predominant age group in Leopold is 0-9 years with households in Leopold being primarily couples with children and are likely to be repaying $1,400-$1799 per month on mortgage repayments. In general, people in Leopold work in a trades occupation.

AGENT PERSPECTIVE:

“The Leopold market, much like the overall market, has corrected over the past few months, although as has been the case in any market, properties are still moving so long as they are priced accordingly.

“Decreased volume in the past 12 months has been a contributing factor, as has the number of buyers in the market place.

“The established areas are attractive for their larger land holdings and potential, whilst the newer estates are encouraging the younger families, couples and retirees to move into the area.

“The ever increasing infrastructure including quality schools, the Gateway Plaza and local sporting clubs make Leopold an excellent, value for money destination.

“All that said, those selling in the current market need to understand that they have had expediential growth over the past two years and any corrections now are going to be significantly less than this growth, ultimately their nett gain is still very significant.”

John Brodie – director, RT Edgar Bellarine

TIDBIT:

By 1865, Leopold had the short-lived Bellarine Hotel and a community of 300 persons, mostly engaged in agriculture.