Property Deep-Dive — Shop 5, 387 Station Street, Thornbury VIC 3071

Date: 2026-10-15 · Desk: Eva · Brief: assess this specific shop as an investment (≤$700k target, yield + capital growth) Follows: Richmond & Fairfield study (2026-10-15) — this is the next address in the corridor

🎯 Headline: it fits the budget and is tenanted — but the rent is the whole story

Shop 5 is a ~120 m² lock-up shop, currently partitioned, leased at $18,200 pa. That is the number that decides this deal:

The decisive question is the purchase price, and the listing does not state one. At anything near $500k+, this shop yields less than a unit in the same corridor — with worse liquidity, land tax exposure, and CIPT. The rent, not the address, is the constraint.

1. The specific property

Shop 5, 387 Station Street, Thornbury VIC 3071 — listed by Moss Estate Agents (395 High Street Northcote, 03 9489 6622; agent Tom Moss 0412 330 660)

• ~120 m² lock-up shop, currently partitioned, suited to office or retail
• 1 car space; ample public customer parking at the front of the shop
• Station Street exposure
• Lease: $18,200 pa
• Listing is live with "no inspection times scheduled" — arrange via agent

Occupancy check: the current occupant appears to be "Massage on Station" (a massage business) per multiple public business directories listing 5/387 Station Street. That is consistent with a partitioned tenancy but should be verified against the actual lease — confirm the tenant, term, options, and whether the $18,200 reflects the current passing rent or a historical figure.

2. The building — 387 Station Street

A strata-titled shop complex with at least 7 units. Unit-level evidence:

Read: this is a long-established strip complex, not a new development — units trade individually, which means a small buyer can enter. The 2010 figure for 6/387 ($360–400k) is too old to use as a price anchor but shows the building has strata depth.

Tenancy mix caution: units 2, 3 and 5 in this complex appear to be a cluster of massage businesses (three adjacent). That is a soft-tenant category — high turnover, low covenant strength, and a concentration risk if the strip's character shifts. Confirm what proportion of the complex and the immediate strip is that category before treating the rent as durable.

3. Station Street / Thornbury strip context

The suburb is strong:

• Median house $1,450,000–1,500,000, growth +4.5% to +8.6% depending on source — a growing market, unlike Richmond (−1.44%)
• Median unit $571,000–625,000, growth +4.17% to +9.35% — units here are appreciating
• Unit rental yield ~4.16%; unit rent $641/wk (2-bed)
• Thornbury is 7km from the CBD, Darebin, gentrified with a "foodie scene" and village character
• High Street (the main strip, "voted the World's Coolest Street") is the primary retail spine; Station Street is a secondary strip

Comparable commercial sales in Thornbury (recent):

• 715 High Street — $1,150,000 (21 May 2026), 287 m² mixed-use freehold
• 2/638 High Street — $843,000 (18 Nov 2024)
• 61/337 Station Street — $887,000 (23 Oct 2025)
• 92/337 Station Street — $830,000 (11 Jul 2025)
• 622 High Street — 85 m², sold 7 Sep 2026 (price not disclosed)
• 735 High Street — 269 m², leased at $60,000 pa (sold 8 May 2025)

Note the pattern: the larger, well-leased High Street assets command $830k–$1.15M. The 735 High Street comparable is instructive — 269 m² returning $60,000 pa. That is ~$223/m², still well above Shop 5's ~$152/m².

No documented vacancy crisis on Station Street. Unlike Bridge Road Richmond (18%) or Victoria Street (22.4%), no source flags Station Street Thornbury as a distressed strip. That is a genuine positive versus the previous two locations.

4. Tax & cost overlay (unchanged from the corridor study)

• VIC land tax threshold $50,000 site value (individual) — a strata shop's site value will exceed this, so land tax applies; scale ≈ $600k site value → $2,250, $800k → $3,450
• CIPT — commercial property moved from stamp duty to an annual tax from 1 July 2024. Confirm this property's CIPT status and whether it is already in the CIPT system before buying — it is part of the purchase
• Outgoings: a strata shop carries owners-corporation fees on top of council rates and land tax — request the OC schedule
• New rental laws effective 13 Oct 2026 (affects residential, not commercial, but relevant if the title has any residential component)

5. 🎯 Eva's Read

Verdict: worth inspecting, but only at the right price — and the rent makes that price low.

The case for:

• It is inside the $700k budget with room to spare — the rare thing in this corridor
• Thornbury is growing (+4.5–8.6% houses, +4.2–9.4% units) where Richmond is falling; you get a rising suburb underneath a cheap asset
• No documented strip vacancy crisis on Station Street
• Tenanted, so no immediate vacancy loss
• Strata title means a small buyer can enter without a $1.15M freehold

The case against:

• $18,200 pa on ~$500k is a 3.6% yield — worse than a Thornbury unit at ~4.2%, and much worse than a Richmond/Fairfield unit at 5.0–5.5%
• ~$152/m² rent is well below the Richmond strip band and below the 735 High Street comparable ($223/m²) — either the shop is under-rented (an opportunity on review) or the location/quality justifies the discount (a risk)
• Soft-tenant category cluster (multiple massage businesses adjacent)
• Strata shop = OC fees + land tax + CIPT stacking on a thin rent
• Secondary strip, not the High Street spine where the capital growth is

What I'd do:

1. Get the price. Nothing here can be finalised without it. Ask Moss Estate Agents directly.
2. Get the lease. Term, options, tenant covenant, outgoings responsibility, and whether $18,200 is current passing rent or a stale figure.
3. Test the rent against market. If comparable Station Street shops lease at $200–250/m², this is under-rented by 30–40% and there is a reversion story on lease renewal — that changes the thesis materially.
4. Get the OC fees and site value (from the s32 vendor statement) and model net yield after land tax + CIPT + OC.
5. Confirm the CIPT status of the property.

Price guide I'd work to: at ≤$400,000 this competes with the unit alternatives (4.55% gross). At $450–500k it only makes sense if the rent can be lifted toward market on the next lease event. Above $500k on $18,200 pa, the numbers do not beat a unit and the illiquidity is not compensated.

Compare before committing: a Thornbury unit at $571–625k yields ~4.2% and is in a suburb growing 4–9%; a Fairfield or Richmond unit yields 5.0–5.5% with 1% vacancy. Shop 5 has to beat those on a risk-adjusted basis, and at current rent it does not — unless the price is low or the rent is reversionary.

Sources

1. Moss Estate Agents — 5/387 Station, Thornbury (120 m², $18,200 pa): https://www.mossea.com.au/property?property_id=410966
2. Commercial Real Estate — 7/387 Station Street Thornbury, sold 31 Mar 2024, 91 m²: https://www.commercialrealestate.com.au/property/7-387-station-street-thornbury-vic-3071-2019090934
3. Old Listings — 6/387 Station Street Thornbury, advertised $360,000–$400,000 + GST (Sept 2010): https://www.oldlistings.com.au/real-estate/VIC/Thornbury/3071/buy/86
4. Commercial Real Estate — Thornbury VIC 3071 sold shop & retail (129 listings; 715 High St $1,150,000 May 2026; 2/638 High St $843,000 Nov 2024; 735 High St leased $60,000 pa): https://www.commercialrealestate.com.au/sold/thornbury-vic-3071/retail/
5. Nelson Alexander — 7/387 Station Street Thornbury listing detail: https://www.nelsonalexander.com.au/property/1491714/7387-station-street-thornbury-vic-3071/
6. SuburbsFinder — Thornbury 3071 market profile (median house $1,455,000 +2.28%; unit $625,000 +4.17%): https://suburbsfinder.com.au/suburb-profile/thornbury-vic-3071
7. Heatmaps — Thornbury 3071 suburb profile: https://heatmaps.com.au/suburbs/vic/thornbury-3071
8. Barry Plant — Thornbury suburb profile (house +8.6%, unit +9.35% 12M): https://barryplant.com.au/suburb-profile/melbourne/northern-suburbs/thornbury
9. Statement of Information — 2/383-385 Station Street Thornbury (s47AF example; Cotality Thornbury unit median $599,000): https://storage.homely.com.au/documents/statement-of-information-2-383-station-street-thornbury-vic-3071-id12519711
10. Allhomes — 61/337 Station Street Thornbury sold $887,000 (23 Oct 2025): https://www.allhomes.com.au/unit-61-337-station-street-thornbury-vic-3071
11. Premium REA — Victorian land tax rates & thresholds 2026: https://premiumrea.com.au/guides/land-tax-victoria
12. State Revenue Office VIC — Commercial and Industrial Property Tax: https://www.sro.vic.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/commercial-and-industrial-property-tax