What shapes property values in Torquay and Jan Juc
Two Torquay houses a few streets apart can sit in quite different markets. One is a new home on a standard lot in a recent estate. The other is an older beach house on a bigger block near the water, perhaps under planning controls that limit what replaces it. A valuation has to work out which sales actually compare, and that starts with the rules and conditions that apply to the land.
The settlement boundary and Spring Creek
In April 2022 the State released the final Surf Coast Statement of Planning Policy. The Premier's announcement says it sets protected settlement boundaries for towns including Torquay-Jan Juc, Bellbrae and Breamlea, directs most new development to activity centres, tourism precincts and designated settlement areas, and restricts greenfield growth. It also says the Spring Creek area is outside the protected boundary, as part of the green break between Torquay-Jan Juc and Bellbrae.
The council's planning scheme amendments page still lists Amendment C114, the Spring Creek Precinct Structure Plan, as awaiting decision with the Minister, after council adopted it in October 2017.
Land outside the boundary is valued under the zone it has, not one it might once have been expected to get. A proposal that has not been approved is not an entitlement.
New estates and established streets
The newer estates supply most of the comparable sales for a recently built house. An established house in the older parts of Torquay or Jan Juc often needs to be compared with other established houses, because land size, age and position all differ from a house-and-land package.
Overlays on the land itself
The council's planning permit guidance points owners to VicPlan, a map tool that produces a Planning Property Report listing the zone and overlays for an address. Zones decide how land can be used. Overlays protect things such as heritage and neighbourhood character, or manage risks such as flooding and bushfire.
No overlay applies to every lot in Torquay. An overlay on a particular block can affect what may be built and what a buyer will pay for redevelopment potential. The Planning Property Report for the address is worth having before a valuation.
Erosion on the foreshore
The Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority manages much of the foreshore. In October 2025, after storms and high tides, it reported up to a metre of sand lost along parts of the Torquay Back Beach seawall, with drop-offs of more than two metres, and over a metre eroded around the Jan Juc Surf Life Saving Club ramp. It also says the Jan Juc cliff trail is at risk from erosion and is likely to need closing within the next five years.
Those reports concern public reserves, not private titles. They do not show that any house is at risk. They are part of what buyers know about the coast, and a valuation records the facts publicly known at its date.
Who uses the houses
The council's Urban Futures Strategy page for Torquay-Jan Juc says the town gained almost 15,000 residents and 5,500 new homes over the last two decades.
Those homes sit alongside an older stock of beach houses, and sales come in different kinds: permanent homes, holiday houses and older places bought for the land. A valuer has to match like with like.
Checking sales yourself
Valuer-General Victoria's Guide to Property Values for 2025 gives Torquay a median house price of $1,202,500 for 2025, against $1,200,000 in 2024 and a peak of $1,350,000 in 2022. Its preliminary 2026 figure, based on the sales recorded when the guide was prepared, is $1,150,000. The Torquay unit median was $800,000 in 2025, down 11 per cent on 2024. A house median for the whole suburb mixes new estate homes with older beach houses, so it says little about one address. Settled sales of similar houses are what a valuer relies on, and asking prices are not evidence of value.
For an unsigned estimate, the Automated Market Assessment is the quick option. For a signed figure with an inspection, order a certified valuation, or contact the site with the address and what the figure is for.