Those in Tinamba, Tinamba West, Newry, Mewburn Park, Bellbird Corner, Riverslea and Maffra were ordered on Wednesday night to leave immediately due to flooding, while a major flood warning was issued for the Port of Sale on Thursday.
Evacuees have been advised it's not safe to return and anyone still in the area is urged to head for dry ground.
"We estimate up to 130 properties may be impacted," the State Emergency Service's David Baker told ABC TV.
"It's mainly homes in that area, rural homes, that may see what we call above-floor inundation."
A handful of locals stayed behind in Tinamba to protect the town and farm land by building a dirt levee, while others sandbagged homes and the general store.
Water had already reached well above ankle height outside some houses on Thursday afternoon, with gardens and roads inundated with murky liquid.
Residents built makeshift levees outside properties in Tinamba.
Turf farmer Steven Stead was waiting for the flooding to subside so he could see how much of his crop was impacted by an estimated 130 millimetres of rain but was hopeful the damage wouldn't be as bad as feared.
"I don't think we'll be harvesting any time soon," he told AAP.
"Normally what we would expect in a flood in Tinamba is that (particular) crop would entirely be inundated and that hasn't happened, not yet anyway."
He said it was a different story for his nearby dairy farm, which had been covered in water.
A flood watch has been issued for the entire eastern part of Victoria, with minor to major flood warnings for the Macalister, Goulburn, Bunyip, La Trobe, Yarra, Kiawah, Ovens and King rivers in addition to Seven and Castle creeks.
There were 125 calls for assistance to the SES in the 24 hours to 1pm on Thursday, most relating to fallen trees.
The Macalister River downstream of Lake Glenmaggie measured above the major flood level on Thursday morning but had eased by afternoon.
Locals were told to gather pets, mobile phones and medications and bunker down at a relief centre at Gippsland Regional Sports Group in Sale.
Most had heeded the orders, Mr Baker said.
"At this stage, encouragingly, we have not had to undergo any rescues," he said.
The flood level was expected to peak near Maffra about noon on Thursday, Premier Jacinta Allan said.
She thanked communities for following calls to leave, saying the level of damage and inundation would be assessed when waters recede.
Authorities were also closely watching Wangaratta in the northeast, with at least two homes already inundated, Emergency Services Minister Jaclyn Symes said.
Mr Baker said the next few days would be challenging but further heavy rain was not expected.
"The big tap in the sky has been turned off - that's great news for us," he said.
"What we're dealing with now is what's currently in the river systems that will need to flush itself through.
"We can assess that and manage that and put efforts in place to make sure communities are out of harm's way."
The next few days in eastern Victoria will be challenging but no further heavy rain is expected.
A farmer had to be rescued from floodwaters on Tuesday night in Alexandra after getting into trouble trying to rescue cattle on his tractor. The 43-year-old was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
In Gippsland, warnings for fires at Briagolong and Loch Sport have been downgraded to advice level, with the focus on flood risk zones after about 100mm of rain fell in the area.
About 700 firefighters spent three days battling two blazes, with one home lost in Briagolong but no reports of serious injury.
The cause of that blaze, which burnt about 17,500 hectares, is under investigation.
