Ancona vs Merton

Merton is the younger of the two, with a median age of 53 against 56 in Ancona. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. On these figures, Merton tends to suit people living alone.

Which one suits you?

There is no overall winner — the suburb that suits a family with school-age kids is routinely the wrong one for someone commuting into the city. So each of these answers its own question, against a checklist you can see, using the same figures in the tables below.

Families with school-age kids

Ancona

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • is already more of a family suburb (80% vs 51%)
  • carries lower crime risk (66/100 vs 88/100)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.

First-home buyers

Ancona

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (26% vs 32%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

They split

one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here

  • Ancona has a bigger rental market to choose from (16% vs 5%)
  • Merton has cheaper rent ($200/wk vs $295/wk)

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Merton

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (23/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (130 min vs 142 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (151.2 km vs 161.9 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Ancona

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (66/100 vs 88/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (34% vs 29%)
  • But Merton is more walkable (23/100 vs 0/100)

Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Ancona and Merton drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Ancona Merton
Hides rows where both suburbs match

Bars start at zero. Scores, risks and rankings are drawn against their full 0–100 range; other rows are drawn in proportion to the larger of the two.

Side by side, out of 100

Risks are inverted — shown as safety and low exposure — so a longer bar always means better.

Ancona Merton
Walkability 0 / 23
Ancona — Walkability: 0/100 Merton — Walkability: 23/100
Safety 34 / 12
Ancona — Safety: 34/100 Merton — Safety: 12/100
Low fire risk 29 / 35
Ancona — Low fire risk: 29/100 Merton — Low fire risk: 35/100
Low flood risk 58 / 68
Ancona — Low flood risk: 58/100 Merton — Low flood risk: 68/100

Demographics

Merton has more residents (216 vs 99); Ancona rents higher ($295/wk vs $200/wk).

Ancona Merton
Population 99 216
+118% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +17.9% +13.7%
Median age 56 53
Median household income $73,632/yr
+23% vs other
 $56,732/yr
Median weekly rent $295/wk
+32% vs other
 $200/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Ancona Merton
0-4 4.0% / 5.1%
Ancona — 0-4: 4.0% Merton — 0-4: 5.1%
5-14 11.1% / 8.3%
Ancona — 5-14: 11.1% Merton — 5-14: 8.3%
15-19 — / 5.6%
Ancona — 15-19: not among its largest Merton — 15-19: 5.6%
20-24 5.1% / 1.4%
Ancona — 20-24: 5.1% Merton — 20-24: 1.4%
25-34 4.0% / 5.6%
Ancona — 25-34: 4.0% Merton — 25-34: 5.6%
35-44 11.1% / 13.9%
Ancona — 35-44: 11.1% Merton — 35-44: 13.9%
45-54 14.1% / 14.4%
Ancona — 45-54: 14.1% Merton — 45-54: 14.4%
55-64 24.2% / 16.7%
Ancona — 55-64: 24.2% Merton — 55-64: 16.7%
65-74 25.3% / 21.8%
Ancona — 65-74: 25.3% Merton — 65-74: 21.8%
75-84 9.1% / 7.4%
Ancona — 75-84: 9.1% Merton — 75-84: 7.4%
85+ — / —
Ancona — 85+: not among its largest Merton — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.3%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Ancona 53.3% one parent families
Ancona — One Parent Families: 53.3% Ancona — Couple Families: 26.7% Ancona — Lone Person: 20.0% Ancona — Group Household: 0.0%
Merton 12.7% one parent families
Merton — One Parent Families: 12.7% Merton — Couple Families: 38.2% Merton — Lone Person: 43.6% Merton — Group Household: 5.5%
One Parent Families Couple Families Lone Person Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Ancona 15.6% renting
Ancona — Owned Outright: 50.0% Ancona — Mortgage: 34.4% Ancona — Renting: 15.6%
Merton 4.8% renting
Merton — Owned Outright: 59.5% Merton — Mortgage: 35.7% Merton — Renting: 4.8%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Where residents were born

Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents, 2021 Census. A dash means that country is not among the suburb's own eight largest.

Ancona Merton
New Zealand 3.0% / 1.9%
Ancona — New Zealand: 3.0% Merton — New Zealand: 1.9%
Scotland 4.0% / —
Ancona — Scotland: 4.0% Merton — Scotland: not among its largest
England — / 2.3%
Ancona — England: not among its largest Merton — England: 2.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.0%).

Qualifications

Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.

Ancona Merton
Certificate III & IV 21.2% / 18.1%
Ancona — Certificate III & IV: 21.2% Merton — Certificate III & IV: 18.1%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 11.1% / 14.8%
Ancona — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 11.1% Merton — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 14.8%
Bachelor Degree 8.1% / 6.9%
Ancona — Bachelor Degree: 8.1% Merton — Bachelor Degree: 6.9%
Postgraduate Degree 5.1% / 3.2%
Ancona — Postgraduate Degree: 5.1% Merton — Postgraduate Degree: 3.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 3.2%
Ancona — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Merton — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Ancona 100.0% houses
Ancona — Houses: 100.0%
Merton 101.1% houses
Merton — Houses: 101.1%
Houses

Zoning mix

Merton has more rural and farming land (97% vs 79%).

Ancona Merton
Rural and farming 79% 97%
Parks and recreation 21% 1%
Infrastructure and transport 0% 1%
Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the suburb around it. Zones as at 2026-09.

Development activity

Ancona Merton
New dwellings approved 76
across Mansfield
same for both
Approvals change year on year -50%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Ancona Merton
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 39% of VIC Higher than 15% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 7% of VIC Higher than 81% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 58% of VIC
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 12% of VIC Higher than 13% of VIC

Liveability

Merton is more walkable (23 vs 0).

Ancona Merton
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10
same for both

Risk profile

Merton carries more crime risk (88 vs 66); Ancona carries more flood risk (42 vs 32).

Ancona Merton
Bushfire High
71/100
 Moderate
65/100
Crime Moderate
66/100
 High
88/100
Flood Moderate
42/100
 Low
32/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 0
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Ancona Merton
Inside the suburb 0
same for both
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Amenities in the suburb

Ancona Merton
Parks & reserves 0 2
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Fuel stations 0 1
Waterways 11 3

Mobility

Ancona sits further from the CBD (161.9 km vs 151.2 km).

Ancona Merton
Walkability score 0/100 23/100
Distance to Melbourne 161.9 km
+7% vs other
 151.2 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 142 min 130 min
Electric vehicle share 0.6%
postcode 3715
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 35
postcode 3715
same for both

How people get to work

Method of travel on census day 2021 — which fell during COVID restrictions, so working from home is inflated and every travel mode understated.

Ancona Merton
Car (driver) 61.9% / 61.1%
Ancona — Car (driver): 61.9% Merton — Car (driver): 61.1%
Worked from Home 38.1% / 25.6%
Ancona — Worked from Home: 38.1% Merton — Worked from Home: 25.6%
Car (passenger) — / 6.7%
Ancona — Car (passenger): not among its largest Merton — Car (passenger): 6.7%
Walked Only — / 6.7%
Ancona — Walked Only: not among its largest Merton — Walked Only: 6.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (61.9%).

Setting

Ancona Merton
Elevation 438 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 343 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Ancona Merton
Connectivity score 16/100
same for both
Most common technology Satellite (Sky Muster)
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
42 premises
 0%
63 premises

Climate

Ancona Merton
Annual rainfall 865 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 27.2°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 2.0°C
same for both

Council rates

Ancona Merton
Average residential rate $1,697/yr
same for both
Council Mansfield
same for both

Federal electorate

Ancona Merton
Division Indi
same for both
Member Helen Haines
same for both
Party Independent
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Ancona Merton
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Ancona

Retirees Rural

Merton

Retirees River Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Ancona

Ancona vs Bonnie Doon Ancona vs Strathbogie Ancona vs Woodfield

Other comparisons with Merton

Merton vs Strathbogie Merton vs Gooram Merton vs Gobur Merton vs Terip Terip Merton vs Woodfield Merton vs Kanumbra
Full data on Ancona Full data on Merton
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Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.

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