Ashley vs Garah
Ashley is the younger of the two, with a median age of 34 against 44 in Garah. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Ashley, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Ashley: a median of $370,000, against $134,000 in Garah, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Ashley tends to suit families with children and couples, while Garah suits people living alone, older residents, and buyers on a tighter budget.
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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Ashley is already more of a family suburb (66% vs 49%)
- Garah carries lower crime risk (48/100 vs 65/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Garah
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($133,500 vs $370,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Garah
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($240/wk vs $280/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Ashley
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (457 min vs 491 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (652.4 km vs 693.3 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Garah
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has more residents already 65 and over (27% vs 12%)
- carries lower crime risk (48/100 vs 65/100)
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
Ashley and Garah drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.
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.
Demographics
Ashley has higher household incomes ($98,748 vs $69,836); Garah skews older (44 vs 34).
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 351 +17% vs other | 291 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -3.8% | -4.9% |
| Median age | 34 | 44 |
| Median household income | $98,748/yr +29% vs other | $69,836/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $280/wk +14% vs other | $240/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.2%).
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (1.1%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.8%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $370,000 | $133,500 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 100% same for both | |
| 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
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 11 across Moree Plains same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -100% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 6% of NSW | Higher than 2% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 67% of NSW | Higher than 33% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 44% of NSW | Higher than 1% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 97% of NSW | Higher than 98% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 1% of NSW | — |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 23% of NSW | Higher than 1% of NSW |
Liveability
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Ashley carries more bushfire risk (39 vs 28); Ashley carries more crime risk (65 vs 48).
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 39/100 | Low 28/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 65/100 | Moderate 48/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| 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
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Ashley
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Garah
- Garah Public School Government · Primary
Amenities in the suburb
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 0 | 1 |
| Parks & reserves | 1 | 3 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 1 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 7 | 15 |
Mobility
Garah sits further from the CBD (693.3 km vs 652.4 km).
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Sydney | 652.4 km | 693.3 km +6% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 457 min | 491 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 2400 | 0.0% postcode 2405 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 78 postcode 2400 | 61 postcode 2405 |
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (85.0%).
Setting
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 196 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 181 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 15/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 23 premises | 0% 62 premises |
Council rates
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,249/yr same for both | |
| Council | Moree Plains same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Parkes same for both | |
| Member | Jamie Chaffey same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Ashley | Garah | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Ashley
Garah
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Ashley
Other comparisons with Garah
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.