Melbourne accounted for nearly a third of Australia’s greenfield sales during the March quarter, with lot sales up 14% from the previous quarter.

Data released by the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) showed during the March quarter approximately 1,300 lots were sold each month, which is the highest lot sale activity for Melbourne since 2010 and a 41% increase from the same period last year.

Lot sales aren’t the only thing that are at their highest in years, with new lot releases 36% higher than last year and at their highest levels since 2011.

With 160 projects currently active in Melbourne, UDIA chief executive officer Danni Addison said Melbourne is a prime target for investors looking for affordable land supply.

“Melbourne has regained its title as the highest volume greenfield market in Australia with 31% of national sales,” Ms Addison said.

“Higher demand in Melbourne has been driven by an increase in the number of trading estates, competitive prices, robust established housing market and historically low interest rates.

“Coupled with this demand, healthy competition between developers is ensuring that Melbourne is producing the highest volumes of affordable land supply in the nation.”

Melbourne’s median lot price for the period was $210, 000, which represented a 4% annual increase over the past year, remained lower than areas such as Perth ($260,000) South-east Queensland ($250,000) and Metro Sydney ($395,000).