The Mentone Pocket Everyone Missed, and Why Rezoning Could Change That Fast

Mentone's southern fringe, specifically the low-rise residential corridor running between Balcombe Road and the foreshore reserve, west of the Mentone train station precinct, is quietly moving up every serious investor's shortlist. A rezoning proposal currently lodged with the relevant planning authority would reclassify a stretch of this area from its existing Neighbourhood Residential Zone to a General Residential Zone, opening the door to medium-density development that has been effectively blocked there for the better part of a decade.

The timing matters. Planning documents indicate a formal panel review is scheduled for the third quarter of 2026, meaning any decision could land before the end of the year. That compresses the window for buyers who want to get in ahead of a formal uplift in permissible density, and ahead of the price adjustment that typically follows such decisions.

Why This Pocket Has Stayed Quiet

Part of what has kept this strip overlooked is its geography. Pinched between the Mentone Foreshore Reserve to the south and the heavier commercial activity along Como Parade West to the north, the blocks here, mostly 600-to-700-square-metre allotments carrying post-war brick homes, have never attracted the developer attention that the Mentone station precinct proper has seen. The Mentone Activity Centre Structure Plan, which guides development policy in the broader suburb, largely focused its medium-density ambitions on parcels within 400 metres of the station. This foreshore-adjacent strip sat just outside that boundary.

Balcombe Road itself acts as both a barrier and a marker. Buyers on the eastern side of that road have watched townhouse projects proceed for several years. On the western side, toward the beach, those same buyers have faced a near-total development freeze. The pending rezoning, if confirmed, would effectively redraw that line.

Two local institutions have become reference points for what the area already offers at ground level. The Mentone Life Saving Club, operating from its beachfront premises just south of the reserve, anchors community activity at the foreshore edge. The Mentone station itself, on the Frankston line, puts the CBD within practical commuting range. Both function as amenity anchors that planners and buyers alike use to justify density increases.

What the Numbers Are Saying

Median house prices in Mentone's established market have been tracking above $1.4 million for standard residential stock, based on reported sales figures from mid-2025 through early 2026. The foreshore-adjacent blocks in question have sold at a modest discount to that median, partly because their zoning has constrained the buyer pool to owner-occupiers and land-bankers rather than developers who could bid on a per-apartment-yield basis.

If the rezoning proceeds as proposed, comparable sites in other higher-density Mentone precincts have traded at premiums of between 15 and 25 per cent over equivalent land in restricted zones. That differential is the gap investors are attempting to capture by moving now, before a panel decision formalises what many planning watchers already consider a foregone conclusion given the state government's broader push for housing density near coastal public transport corridors.

Sites on Mentone's Rennick Street and the western end of Lakeview Avenue have already attracted preliminary inquiry from development groups, though no transactions have been publicly confirmed. Due diligence timelines in the current market suggest any purchase contracted before September would comfortably clear settlement before the panel's expected ruling.

For buyers considering this pocket, the practical advice is straightforward: commission an independent planning lawyer to review the specific land parcels against the draft rezoning documents before signing anything. Rezoning proposals do not always proceed on their stated timelines, and individual allotments within the proposed zone sometimes carry overlays, flooding, heritage, or vegetation, that can complicate development ambitions even after a favourable zoning decision. Mentone's foreshore proximity in particular raises questions about coastal hazard overlays on some of the southernmost blocks. Do the title search first. The opportunity is real, but so are the traps for the unprepared.

This article is general information only and is not personal financial or investment advice. Consider your own circumstances and seek licensed professional advice before making financial decisions.