Directions from Burwood to Pascoe Vale South via Fitzroy have never sounded so confusing. But touring via Melbourne's secret suburbs gives the route a quaint, village feel. Little-known place names have gained favour in recent years, according to those who make it their business to know where Westgarth is. Secret suburbs are a handy conversation starter - "We're in Cremorne. You know, in Richmond behind Dimmey's?" They can signal wealth (the Darling part of Malvern East comes under "if you have to ask, then you can't afford it") or disguise a suburb that hasn't traditionally been as sought after (see Paisley, Altona North).

"They're increasing," says Melway director Murray Godfrey. "There are new names out to the west all the time. In the inner suburbs: Aberfeldie, Coonans Hill, they're all new." Well, maybe not new. Many hark back to early Melbourne landmarks. "You could argue that that some of the locals will have called it Coonans Hill for the last 60 years," says Godfrey, "but it only got pushed as a name about 10 years ago." Ditto other secreted spots, he says, putting the push down to investors who want to boost value and separate locations from the area that surrounds or borders them. "It's normally to get away from a bad suburb name."

"They're neighbourhoods, not suburbs," explains chief surveyor John Tulloch, who is also the registrar of geographic names. "They don't have a boundary around them." Tulloch is keeper of the Vicnames register of more than 190,000 places including mountains and rivers, bounded localities such as suburbs, towns, cities and regions, and physical infrastructure such as roads, reserves and schools.

The register was born out of legislation in the late '90s designed to make place names and suburb boundaries the province of local government. The registrar's office audits the process. From a registry point of view, secret suburbs are not a good thing. "This has been a major project," Tulloch says. "In particular to align the postcodes with bounded suburbs. "One of our key partners in this is Australia Post. We've concentrated on the official names and tried to discourage people from using the neighbourhood names," says Tulloch, who also outlines the problems that secret suburbs and multiple names for the one place pose for emergency services. "We haven't had a case where somebody has died, but in NSW there were instances where an ambulance was sent to the wrong location because of confusion with address. We're striving for that not to occur in Victoria."

He also relates the story of a package of human ashes sent to Deepdene in Western Australia several years ago instead of the neighbourhood of Deepdene in Balwyn. Tulloch is sometimes amused by business or private use of place names, occasionally well outside their official location.

Naming guidelines aim to avoid duplicate locality names (of which there are 16 already in Victoria) and names that may be deemed racist. "We prefer not to use names of living people," adds Tulloch. "We've had instances where prominent people have done the wrong thing." One recent exception was a Langwarrin college named after Dame Elisabeth Murdoch - probably a safe bet. "Our focus has been on the bounded localities and making sure they are correct and people adopt those." Murray Godfrey's experience suggests this may be an uphill battle. The Melway director and his team of researchers keep an ear to the ground and an eye on the media for emerging place names. The publication doesn't necessarily wait for a place name to be officially registered before including it.

"(We include it) when it becomes a fairly publicly used name," he says. "The local paper was certainly referring to Coonans Hill. With that sort of usage we jump. "A perfect case was Jeff's Shed. It was used on radio stations and by the public, so we put it in the index."

Not all pitches are successful. "If people are using it then we'll promote it but not if people are just pushing their own barrow." Others are a testament to people power, like the one-man push to put South Kingsville on the map (it comes under the Spotswood postcode). "One guy lobbied Australia Post so hard, the poor girl crippled under the paperwork and pestering. When she did, I had to." And so the index grows. "Some places are listed under three names," says Godfrey. The secret suburbs or neighbourhoods are those in lower case on maps, without their own postcode, and listed with "see suburb X" inside the back cover.

"People are trying to resurrect them," says Real Estate Institute of Victoria president Adrian Jones. "It's about point of difference. "Everybody likes to think they've got the perfect house in the perfect location. Part of that equation is that if there is not a lot of people in that location, then you're a bit unique.

"If you have to say, 'where's that?', immediately there's a touch of exclusivity." He disputes the idea that the use of neighbourhood names stems from a search for community. "There are quite a few in those inner northern suburbs. I think because they were settled earlier when you did have more tribal village stuff going on," says Jones, who is CEO of the Noel Jones Real Estate Group. "If people live in areas like that, they love having it listed that way. You have the heading 'Balwyn' and then they say they want 'Deepdene'."

Jones is unaware of any definitive proof that using a neighbourhood name boosts property value, but believes it does boost interest. "The whole thing is to get people's attention and encourage them to believe they're buying something with a little more exclusivity. With exclusivity comes the perception of price," he says. Even Mr Melway gets stumped, though. The area of Mar Lodge near Essendon draws a blank. "What area does it cover? I don't have that one," laughs Godfrey. It's that secret.

Disclaimer: Reporter recently purchased property in a "secret suburb" in the inner north.