Homes in less pricey Moonee Valley suburbs have been snapped up at auctions and private sales.

The Barry Plant Moonee Valley network in Essendon, Keilor East and Gladstone Park, had 100 per cent clearance rates over two consecutive weeks, with affordable Airport West the most popular.

The agency notched five auction sales on February 12, with four Airport West homes and one Strathmore house finding new owners. The previous weekend’s results also signalled a strong start to February.

The agency had seven auctions in the area on February 19, with the Barry Plant Group scheduling more than 80 auctions for the week.

“Airport West is popular with buyers because it offers good value, freeway access and shopping, plus good schools,” Barry Plant Keilor East agent Natalie Drazic said.

“There is also a café precinct and trams to the city, and it is sought after by first-home buyers and families looking to upsize.”

In the September quarter, Airport West joined the growing list of Melbourne suburbs with a median price of $1 million, according to the Real Estate Institute of Victoria. Another Moonee Valley suburb, Avondale Heights, also entered the million-dollar club.

Despite this rise in median house price, property values in Airport West are considerably lower than nearby suburbs such as Essendon, Strathmore and Flemington.

“It is a good suburb to get into and after all the auctions, we need to get new listings in Airport West,” Ms Drazic said.

“Most buyers are from local areas while sellers are a mix of long-term residents, retirees and developers.

She also noted more owners listing their investment properties recently.

Three bidders competed for 1A Overs Street, Airport West, on February 12 and it sold for $865,000 to a young couple.

The same day, an investor paid $910,000 for a nearby property at 1/26 Cameron Street.

The agency also sold two homes on Parer Road within two weeks, with No. 138 selling for $702,000, while No. 196 fetched $1.195 million.

A strong auction saw 31 Lind Street, Strathmore, change hands for $1.425 million.

The City of Moonee Valley has 15 suburbs located between 3km and 13km from the Melbourne CBD, and this proximity to the city is attracting buyers.

Meanwhile Melbourne’s busy auction weekends will continue with more than 1000 auctions scheduled for the third week running.

February has been the busiest for auctions since the week ending December 19 when 1501 auction results were recorded.

PropTrack economic research executive manager Cameron Kusher said auction volumes usually rose at this time of the year but this year they were a lot higher than normal.

The start of the new year has seen many properties sell six figures above the reserve prices.