DSR3 is the latest (and best) version of the DSR. It measures the "Demand To Supply Ratio" of every suburb across Australia, using even more statistics than its predecessors DSR Lite and DSR+, so investors can find locations with the best capital growth potential (and avoid the lemons).

What's a good DSR score?

Typically, anything above 60 gets us excited. Each market comes with its own statistical average, so this will vary based on what we're specifically looking at, as well as any other requirements you may have. For example, it may have a high DSR of 72 – but the gross rental yield for that suburb is not suitable as an investment for you. Or, perhaps more interestingly, it has a high DSR but on further investigation with the Heat Maps, you discover it is a "stand alone" market – meaning that there aren't clusters of heat coming from its neighbouring suburbs. This may come with potential risk, and looking at an alternative market would be a safer option. Using all of the features together (Historical Charts, Market Metrics, etc), you can get a much more comprehensive insight into the specific location. This will allow you to dive even deeper into the "living and breathing" reality of the suburb, on top of the DSR score that measures its capital growth potential.

The first version of the DSR algorithm was created in 2010. This means that the AI has grown in power, intelligence, and accuracy during this time. We're not "new kids on the block" who jumped on the tech boom bandwagon recently – we introduced it back in 2010. We're Subject Matter Experts. We've been property investors since 2002.

How accurate is the data?

Our data is as accurate and up to date as possible (with some of the data going back to 1990) – and we hold ourselves accountable to this data with a Statistical Reliability (SR) score that tells you how reliable the DSR score is for a particular location. The fact is: data is not always available for every property market. While there is almost always some data available (and we have got to a point now where we can almost implicitly trust what the DSR algorithm is telling us), some locations have an incomplete list of stats, which can throw off the DSR. The SR score (also a score out of 100) allows you to measure the reliability of the DSR, so you have more confidence in what the data is telling you. Handy if you're about to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in a particular location.

Yes. We have back-tested DSR3. It outperforms DSR+, which outperforms the original DSR, which has been beating the national growth rate with its monthly predictions since 2010. Typically, you would expect us to say "by 500%" so you're instantly swayed to sign up. We don't do this here – and we think big, cookie-cutter marketing numbers like this are misleading. The fact is – our algorithm works more than it doesn't, but since its inception in 2010, we have seen it fail too. And we want to share this with you so you have complete transparency across the numbers, and what you can realistically expect from AI.

What's the difference between FREE data and LIVE data?

"Free data" is play data, mock/fake data used to trial the system. "Live data" is real data. (Please don't make your investment decisions on the free data.) The aim of the free trial is to get you familiar with the tools, see how it all works, and see if you like it – without being charged anything. You can switch from free to live data any time you like and vice-versa. In "trial" mode you see it exactly as you would in "live" mode, so you can test out different searches, get a quote for them to see how much it would cost to access real data, and troubleshoot the tools to see what modes, searches, and features work best for you. As you only ever pay for the data you want – this means you can try ahead of time what you might be interested in looking at. Once in live mode, you can search your history and simply switch on live data. There is a lot of freedom with the tools – so the fake data lets you play around and build up your confidence. You'll see what we mean once you're inside 🙂

Why do you charge for data when some other places don't?

As a general rule, we are very cautious of people and places that are giving away up-to-date data for free. Our data is not a lead magnet, it is our product. By this, we mean: the data is our product, our service, and like all products and services, we charge for it. If this isn't the case, and you are getting it for free elsewhere, chances are YOU are the product and not the data. (For example, it is highly likely you're getting free data so they can sell you a Buyers Agent package costing tens of thousands of dollars, or they promote a development project, or something else that's really NOT free.) Our data isn't "just any" data – it's premium data. It contains everything you need to locate the best areas to invest in… with a very powerful algorithm driving the growth predictions. This information is quite literally worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in capital gains, so we value our product and its ability to help you make an informed, evidence-backed decision.

Does it help me find a specific investment property?

No. Suburb Data is a research platform designed to help you shortlist the best suburbs to buy in. For example, say you know that your budget is $500,000 and you're chasing at least 4.5% rental yield per annum, you can put in this specific information, as well as many other key variables, and ask the tool to scan every suburb across Australia to find the areas that match your criteria and, importantly, are primed to grow in value. From there, you will be given a shortlist of suburbs – with heaps more information (and suburb scores) that help you determine where the best return on investment is. And this is really "top level" – the real power of the tool is diving deep on the statistics where you can set benchmarks for Auction Clearance Rates, how much stock is on the market (so you can avoid oversupply, which is the enemy to capital growth), vacancy rates, the proportion of renters in a market, statistical reliability, and many more. Unlike many Buyers Agents who just buy in pockets they are familiar with, or where they have business relationships (so they can do deals faster), Suburb Data uses DATA to determine where to buy. Once you've shortlisted your suburb, you can then jump on a real estate advertising company like www.realestate.com.au or www.domain.com.au to search for properties within that location (you'll know whether to search for units or houses in that market based on your research with us). Location choice impacts your investment decision by hundreds of thousands of dollars. The choice of the individual property may have less consequence. Having a "feel good" experience with someone who buys a property for you isn't where you should be focusing your attention – focus on "the return." Focus on the location first – this is where you will find the return.

How much will it end up costing me?

Because we charge per use, this means you only ever pay for the data you want. So how much it costs really depends on what data you want to see and how you choose to conduct your research. As a general rule – if you are doing your proper due diligence and are maximising the tool to its full potential, it should set you "back" about $200 or so up-front and then set you "forward" hundreds of times more than that in the immediate years to follow. If you only got an extra $20,000 from using this research platform (for $200), that's a 10,000% return on investment.

Expert Busting Series

How Suburb Data Works

Step 1

Get Started

Step 2

Go Live

Turn on live data and start researching

Step 3

Shortlist Suburbs

Shortlist suburbs that match your budget and strategy

Start Researching

MAKE INFORMED REAL ESTATE DECISIONS

Use Suburb Data to identify high-performing suburbs with confidence.

Step 1

Suburb Search

Spot high-demand suburbs with early momentum

Step 2

Heat Maps

See demand hotspots on an interactive map

Step 3: Analyse & Compare

Market Metrics

Review detailed suburb stats

Historical Charts

Check trends and volatility

Context Ruler

Compare ranges and pick the best

The research process, step by step

Every research session in Suburb Data follows the same three steps, so you always move from a wide field of suburbs to a confident shortlist.

Step 1 — Search. Start with Suburb Search to filter more than 15,000 Australian suburbs by budget, rental yield, property type and strategy. Rather than scrolling listings, you begin with the locations that match your criteria and show early demand momentum.

Step 2 — Heat Maps. Next, open the interactive heat maps to see where demand is concentrated. Clusters of neighbouring hot suburbs are a healthier signal than a single standout market, and the maps make those patterns obvious at a glance.

Step 3 — Analyse & Compare. Finally, dig into Market Metrics, Historical Charts and the Context Ruler to compare auction clearance rates, vacancy rates, stock on market and dozens of other metrics against national percentiles. When the numbers line up, you have a defensible shortlist.

Understanding the DSR3 score

DSR3 — the Demand to Supply Ratio — scores every suburb from 0 to 100 by measuring buyer demand against available supply, with each indicator weighted by how strongly it predicts price movement. A higher score means demand is outpacing supply.

Every DSR3 score also carries a Statistical Reliability (SR) rating, so you know how much data sits behind the number before you commit. The algorithm was created in 2010 and has been refined across more than 15 years of market cycles, outperforming its predecessors DSR Lite and DSR+ in back-testing.

You can read the full DSR3 methodology and browse every metric in our data library, or see the research tools in detail.

WHY CHOOSE SUBURB DATA?

Property data since 2010

One of the most mature property AIs on the market, refined over 15+ years of real data

Proven + tested

Trusted by thousands of property professionals across multiple market cycles

No marketing, just data

Unbiased data with no hidden agendas or flashy sales pitches

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Suburb Data is a property research platform that houses a well-known algorithm (AI) called "DSR" or Demand to Supply Ratio. The DSR works by pulling millions of data points into powerful property statistics to give investors the tools they need to find the top investment suburbs in Australia. You can completely tailor your research to suit your budget, criteria, risk appetite and more.