Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about Microburbs reports, data, pricing, and features.
Reports, Downloads and Sharing
Log in to your Microburbs account and go to the Members Area. All your purchased reports are listed there. Each report has a unique web URL that you can bookmark for future reference. Reports are web-based and update automatically with new data each week, so you always see the latest information.
Yes. All suburb reports and property reports can be downloaded as PDFs directly from the report page. Look for the download/PDF button at the top of the report. The web version is interactive (you can zoom into maps and toggle layers), while the PDF is a static snapshot.
Yes. Every report has a unique shareable URL. Anyone with the link can view the report without needing a Microburbs account. This is useful for sharing with family members, mortgage brokers, financial advisors, or (for buyers agents) your clients.
In Suburb Finder, after applying your filters, look for the CSV export button. Export limits depend on your plan:
- •Essential plan: 10 rows
- •Advanced plan: Full export
- •Office plan: Full export with additional data fields
Property Finder does not currently support CSV export.
Yes. Report URLs remain accessible even after your subscription ends. The data in the report continues to update weekly. However, you will not be able to generate new reports without an active subscription.
Check your Members Area under “My Reports.” If you purchased via a one-off report (not subscription), it may be under a different section. If you still cannot locate it, contact us at [email protected] with your email address and we will help you find it.
This is a common issue. Clicking a suburb link in Suburb Finder automatically generates a report and uses a credit. To avoid this:
- •Use Suburb Finder filtering to narrow your list before clicking into any suburb
- •Only click on suburbs you genuinely want to investigate
If you have accidentally used credits, contact [email protected]. If the reports were generated but not viewed or downloaded, we can review your account.
Each plan includes a monthly allocation of suburb reports and property reports (e.g. Advanced = 20 suburb + 30 property reports per month). Credits reset at the start of each billing cycle and do not roll over. If you need more reports mid-cycle, you can purchase individual reports ($49 suburb, $39 property) or upgrade your plan.
Cancellation and Account Management
You can cancel your subscription at any time through your account settings:
- Log in to your Microburbs account
- Go to Account Settings
- Click “Manage Subscription”
- Select “Cancel Subscription”
Alternatively, email [email protected] and we will process the cancellation for you.
Yes. When you cancel, your subscription remains active until the end of your current billing period. You will have full access to all features until that date. After that, you revert to a free account with limited functionality.
You can change your plan through the member section of your account. Log in and navigate to your subscription settings to see available plan options.
Check your subscription plan details in your account settings. Common reasons for unexpected charges:
- •Annual plan renewal (which may differ from the monthly rate)
- •Auto-renewal of a subscription you thought was one-off
- •Currency conversion fees from your bank (we charge in AUD)
- •Plan upgrade that was requested earlier
Contact [email protected] with your email address and we will investigate any billing discrepancies immediately.
Important: All subscriptions auto-renew unless explicitly cancelled. This is the single most common source of billing confusion. If you only need Microburbs for a fixed period, set a reminder to cancel before your renewal date.
Subscriptions are set to auto-renew by default. If you prefer not to auto-renew, you can cancel your subscription at any time and then resubscribe when you are ready. You retain access until the end of your current billing period after cancelling.
API and Integration
Yes. We offer API access for PropTech companies, developers, and businesses that want to integrate Microburbs data into their own platforms. Pricing:
| Endpoint | Monthly Price |
|---|---|
| Suburb endpoint | $3,000/month |
| Property endpoint | $3,000/month |
| Both endpoints | $4,500/month |
This gives you unlimited requests. The API provides all report data in JSON format and includes a sandbox environment for testing before paying.
Fill out the API enquiry form on our website or email us directly. We will arrange a call to discuss your use case, provide sandbox access for testing, and set up your integration. Contact [email protected] or book a meeting with our technical team.
No. Our API terms require real-time data fetching to ensure users always see the most current information. Caching is not permitted. Our data updates weekly, so cached data would quickly become stale and potentially mislead end users.
Pricing, Plans and Discounts
We offer several plans to suit different needs:
| Plan | Monthly Price | Key Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
| Essential | $45-90/month | Limited reports, Property Finder access |
| Advanced | $170-177/month | 20 suburb reports, 30 property reports, all tools |
| Buyer's Agent | Annual only | Unlimited reports, white labelling |
| Office | $340-567/month | Unlimited reports, white labelling, team access, Data Explorer |
Annual subscriptions save 2 months (pay for 10, get 12).
We do not offer traditional free trials. However:
- •Free accounts provide access to all products but not all data
- •Monthly plans can be cancelled anytime, so you can test for one month at full price with no lock-in
- •You can also purchase individual reports without a subscription: $49 per suburb report, $39 per property report
Common issues with promo codes:
- •The code may be case-sensitive. Enter it exactly as received
- •Some codes only apply to specific plan types (e.g. annual only, not monthly)
- •The promotion may have expired
If you are still having trouble, email [email protected] with the code and the plan you are trying to purchase. We will apply the discount manually or provide an updated code.
The key differences are:
- •Report limits: Essential gives you fewer reports per month. Advanced gives 20 suburb and 30 property reports.
- •CSV export: Essential limits exports to 10 rows. Advanced has full export.
- •Data access: Advanced unlocks all filtering metrics in Suburb Finder.
Advanced is our most popular plan for individual investors who want the full toolkit. Compare plans.
If you are actively searching for an investment property, the annual plan offers the best value (2 months free). Property research is ongoing. Markets change weekly, and having continuous access lets you monitor suburbs, track price movements, and act quickly when opportunities arise. Many customers start monthly, then switch to annual once they see the value.
Product Features and Navigation
The four products follow a natural property search workflow:
- 1Suburb Finder – Filter 15,000+ Australian suburbs by growth forecast, budget, yield, risk factors, and amenity scores. Narrows your search to 5-10 target suburbs.
- 2Suburb Reports – Deep-dive analysis of specific suburbs with street-level data, interactive risk maps, pocket-level pricing, and growth forecasts.
- 3Property Finder – AI scans all current listings in your chosen suburbs and ranks them by growth potential and suitability.
- 4Property Reports – Detailed due diligence on individual properties including valuation, neighbour analysis, comparable sales, and risk assessment.
Property Finder uses machine learning to scan thousands of currently listed properties across your chosen suburbs. It ranks each property based on likelihood to achieve forecast growth, considering factors like:
- •Proximity to public housing (especially within 200m)
- •Bushfire and flood zone risk
- •Street turnover rates and rental percentages
- •Noise levels, school quality, and amenities
Each property gets a percentage match score with detailed pros and cons explaining the ranking.
Pockets are small areas of approximately 120 households (200-800 people). A single suburb contains multiple pockets with very different characteristics. One pocket might have $600K properties while another has $1.4M properties in the same suburb. Pocket-level analysis reveals opportunities and risks that suburb averages completely hide.
Currently, you need to search by suburb first in Property Finder, then locate your property in the results. Direct address search functionality is planned for a future update. In the meantime, you can generate a Property Report for any specific address.
Data Explorer (available on the Office plan) provides access to 5,000+ raw metrics displayed as heat maps across Australia. It is designed for deep research and custom analysis beyond what standard reports offer. Best suited for professionals and serious investors who want to validate specific metrics.
Technical Issues
This error typically occurs due to:
- •Temporary server load: Wait a few minutes and try again
- •Browser cache issues: Clear your browser cache and cookies, then refresh
- •Ad blockers: Some ad blockers interfere with our data fetching. Try disabling them for the Microburbs site
If the issue persists for more than an hour, contact [email protected] and we will investigate.
Try these steps:
- Clear your browser cache and cookies
- Try a different browser (Chrome or Firefox recommended)
- Disable browser extensions temporarily
- Check your internet connection
Our platform is web-based and works best on modern browsers with a stable internet connection.
Interactive maps require JavaScript to be enabled. Check that:
- •JavaScript is enabled in your browser
- •Ad blockers are not blocking map resources
- •You are using an up-to-date browser
If issues continue, email [email protected] with your browser type and a screenshot.
Login and Access
Try these steps:
- Reset your password using the “Forgot Password” link on the login page
- Check your email – the reset link may be in your spam folder
- Clear browser cache and try again
- Try a different browser to rule out browser-specific issues
If you still cannot access your account, email [email protected] with the email address you used to sign up.
Repeated login issues may be caused by:
- •Saved passwords that are outdated
- •Browser auto-fill entering incorrect credentials
- •Multiple accounts registered under different emails
Contact us and we will check your account status and help resolve the access issue.
Data Accuracy
The annualised growth forecast has an 85% success rate over 15 years of backtesting (180+ monthly tests). When we predict a suburb will outperform the 7% national average, we are right 85% of the time. Our top picks historically achieve 14.8% compound annual growth over 4 years, outperforming the market by 7.8%.
We use the same raw data that councils use for planning decisions. However:
- •Risk maps update at different frequencies depending on the state/council
- •Recent events (like major floods) may not yet be reflected in official mapping data
- •Some states have better coverage than others (Queensland updates most frequently)
Always double-check with your local council before purchasing, especially for flood and bushfire risk. If you believe our data is incorrect, report it to [email protected] so we can investigate.
Microburbs uses “Smart Median” pricing with hedonic algorithms that account for capital improvements, market timing, and property mix. Traditional platforms often use simple medians (the middle sale price), which gets skewed when only expensive or cheap properties sell in a given period.
Smart Medians are more reflective of current market conditions and are also influenced by sales outside the target area. Other platforms tend to be more influenced by old transactions (up to 12-24 months ago). This leads Microburbs to be more accurate while competitors have smoother-looking graphs.
Our smart median ensures the price reflects the typical property in a suburb, not just recent sales. This often results in lower (but more accurate) medians than competitors.
- •Median prices and growth forecasts: Weekly (every Monday)
- •Property listings: Daily
- •Demographics: Annually (aligned with ABS releases)
- •Risk maps: As updated by councils/government sources
This is 4x more frequent than most competitors who update monthly.
Microburbs is a primary researcher with its own database of over 90 million property listings, more than Domain and realestate.com.au combined. We collect our own data rather than relying on third parties like CoreLogic. This gives us full control over data quality, enables unique features like street-level analysis, and means we can update more frequently.
Understanding Microburbs Data
Key differences:
- •Primary data: We own our database (90M+ listings) vs relying on third parties
- •Update frequency: Weekly vs monthly
- •Valuation accuracy: 6% error rate (MicroVal) vs 13% (CoreLogic)
- •Granularity: Street-level and pocket-level analysis vs suburb averages only
- •Pricing methodology: Smart median (hedonic) vs simple median
For individual streets, we provide: median house price, median rent, 10-year growth percentage, renter percentage, rental turnover rate, and sales turnover rate. This reveals the best streets within suburbs. For example, you might find streets with 8% renters in suburbs averaging 35%.
MicroVal is our automated valuation model. It has a 6% error rate for properties in the $500K-$1.2M range (vs CoreLogic's 13%). For a $600K property, that means a range of $564K-$636K. It is most accurate for standard houses in established areas. Use it alongside the street median price and listing price for best results.
A map feature in Property Reports showing surrounding properties colour-coded by status: green (owner-occupied), orange (rented), blue (subject property), pink (also for sale). It shows when each property last sold and at what price. Being surrounded by long-term owner-occupiers (no sales in 15-20 years) indicates a desirable, stable neighbourhood.
Investment Strategy
It is difficult to maximise both simultaneously, but in general it is best to combine good yield with very good capital growth. Capital growth builds long-term wealth (potentially tens of thousands annually in equity), while yield manages week-to-week cash flow. Every 1% above average growth on a $600K property equals $3,500+ in additional equity per year, compounding over time. Most wealth-building strategies prioritise growth.
The national average is 30% renters. General rule: below 20-30% at suburb level. But with Microburbs street-level data, you can be more flexible. A suburb might have 40% renters overall but contain streets with only 10-15% renters. Lower renter percentages correlate with better capital growth because owner-occupiers create stable, desirable neighbourhoods.
Properties in pockets with more than 10% public housing see capital growth reduced by approximately 2-2.7% annually. The impact is distance-dependent:
- •Within 100-200m: strongest impact (2.9% reduction)
- •At 1km: drops to 0.7% reduction
Context matters. Public housing near retirement villages or healthcare facilities is typically less problematic.
Sales turnover shows how long owners hold properties before selling:
- •15-20+ years: Excellent. Tightly held, desirable area.
- •13 years: National average.
- •6-7 years: Red flag. People leave quickly.
Tightly held streets create scarcity, driving up prices when rare opportunities arise.
Watch weekly forecast changes. If the forecast drops from 8.0% to 7.9%, it means median prices rose (people are buying). Continued drops indicate a heating market. Use this to identify when to act before further price increases. If a suburb drops below 7%, it may have peaked.
Risk Assessment
Check development applications for subdivision clusters (blue dots on maps). Multiple subdivision applications in one area indicate significant new housing supply coming. Microburbs will not provide growth forecasts for suburbs with massive upcoming supply (thousands of new blocks) because it makes predictions unreliable. Supply within 7km of your property impacts growth.
- •Back easements (stormwater/sewage): Common and typically not a concern. You cannot build there anyway.
- •Side easements: Problematic. Even a 450-600mm easement might restrict building 2-3 metres from it, eliminating extension potential and significantly impacting value.
- •Most Likely (yellow): Primary forecast with 85% accuracy
- •Conservative: Downside scenario if conditions worsen
- •Optimistic: Best-case potential
Wider spreads indicate more uncertainty/risk. Prefer suburbs where the conservative estimate is not too far below “most likely” (limited downside) but optimistic shows good upside.
Getting Started and Workflow
Follow this workflow:
- 1Suburb Finder first: Set growth forecast to 7%+ and enter your budget range. This narrows 15,000+ suburbs to a manageable shortlist.
- 2Generate Suburb Reports for your top 3-5 suburbs to analyse streets and risks.
- 3Use Property Finder to see AI-ranked listings in your chosen suburbs.
- 4Get Property Reports for your top 2-3 properties for final due diligence.
This entire process takes under an hour once you are familiar with the tools.
Even if you have a suburb in mind, running it through Suburb Finder validates your choice with data. You might discover:
- •Your suburb is forecasting below the 7% national average (poor timing)
- •Nearby suburbs offer better growth potential at similar or lower prices
- •Risk factors you were not aware of
That said, if you are focused on 3 or fewer specific suburbs, you can go straight to Suburb Reports.
Most investors find the Advanced plan sufficient with 20 suburb reports and 30 property reports per month. Use Suburb Finder to narrow your options first, then generate reports only for vetted suburbs. This systematic approach avoids wasting reports on unsuitable areas.
White Labelling and Professional Features
White labelling removes Microburbs branding from reports and adds your own logo and branding. It is designed for:
- •Buyers agents presenting reports to clients
- •Financial advisors incorporating property analysis into client materials
- •Property professionals who want to present data under their own brand
Available on Buyer's Agent and Office annual plans.
Once enabled on your account:
- •All reports generated will carry your logo instead of Microburbs branding
- •Shareable report URLs will display your branding
- •Clients viewing shared reports see your brand, not ours
- •Both web and PDF versions are branded
Contact [email protected] with your logo to get set up.
If white labelling is not applying correctly:
- •Ensure your account has white labelling activated (available on Buyer's Agent and Office annual plans only)
- •Check that your logo was uploaded and confirmed by our team
- •Try generating a new report. White labelling may not retroactively apply to previously generated reports
- •If sharing via URL, check the shareable link rather than the direct report page
Contact [email protected] if issues persist, and we will check your white label configuration.
White labelling is exclusively available on annual Buyer's Agent and Office plans. It is not offered on monthly subscriptions. If white labelling is essential for your business, consider switching to an annual plan for both the white label feature and the cost savings (2 months free).
Yes. The Office plan supports team access. Contact us to discuss your team size and specific needs. Each team member gets their own login while sharing the account's report allocation.
Email [email protected] with the email addresses of team members you would like to add or remove. We will update your account access. There is also a team member link in your account settings that you can share with colleagues to grant them access.
Quick Reference: Contact and Support
| Need | Contact |
|---|---|
| General support | [email protected] |
| Cancellation | Account Settings > Manage Subscription, or email David |
| Billing issue | [email protected] |
| Data accuracy report | [email protected] |
| API enquiries | API form on website, or email directly |
| White label setup | [email protected] |
| Technical issues | [email protected] (include browser type + screenshot) |
Still have questions?
Our team is ready to help. Reach out and we will get back to you promptly.