Melbourne’s home of quinoa, bicycles and beards has been ranked the most popular suburb in Australia for those seeking a share house, new data shows.

Fitzroy, in Melbourne’s north-east, is the place to be, with Flatmates.com.au data showing for every room listed there are 30 people looking for a room.

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The suburb is more than twice as competitive as Brunswick with just 12.5 people per listing. In Richmond there are 10 and in Carlton there are 17.

Newtown, a Sydney suburb similar to Fitzroy, has 10 people per listing.

Fitzroy is loaded with bars, restaurants and a great mix of eclectic art galleries, studios and specialist bookshops.

Union Club Hotel, Fitzroy. Photo: Facebook

It was more recently made famous in popular TV series Offspring, where the Proudman family made memories around Brunswick and Gertrude streets, and at the Union Club Hotel – a Fitzroy institution.

The numbers come from more than 60,000 listings created during January and February, peak season for renters seeking share houses.

The average profile of a person looking for shared accommodation is a 27-year-old professional who has likely moved cities recently, Flatmates.com.au data shows.

General Manager of Flatmates.com.au Thomas Clement attributed the demand to increased housing costs.

“The days when share accommodation was simply for students or those first moving out of home are long gone,” he told Fairfax.

“With many being priced out of the home-owner and even rental markets, share accommodation is the only viable option left.”