Back Forest vs Far Meadow
Back Forest is the younger of the two, with a median age of 56 against 60 in Far Meadow. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Back Forest, most households are couple families. In Far Meadow, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Back Forest tends to suit families with children and couples, while Far Meadow suits older residents.
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
Back Forest
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (18/100 vs 77/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (100% vs 66%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Far Meadow
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (23% vs 80%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Back Forest
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($252/wk vs $300/wk)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Far Meadow
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (153.3 km vs 155.6 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- Back Forest carries lower crime risk (18/100 vs 77/100)
- Far Meadow has more residents already 65 and over (36% vs 23%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Back Forest
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (8.3% vs -2.8%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Back Forest and Far Meadow 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
Far Meadow has more residents (209 vs 91); Far Meadow has higher household incomes ($100,360 vs $71,448).
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 91 | 209 +130% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +8.3% | -2.8% |
| Median age | 56 | 60 |
| Median household income | $71,448/yr | $100,360/yr +40% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $252/wk | $300/wk +19% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (31.9%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
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 (5.5%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.6%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | — | $2,500,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 85% | 80% |
| Environmental | 14% | 19% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 1% 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
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 854 across Shoalhaven same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -10% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — | Higher than 90% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 35% of NSW | Higher than 68% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 48% of NSW | Higher than 51% of NSW |
| Affordability | — | Higher than 9% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 87% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 59% of NSW same for both | |
Liveability
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 9/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Far Meadow carries more crime risk (77 vs 18).
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Low 18/100 | High 77/100 |
| 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 | 2 within 5 km |
Schools
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 0 | 1 |
Mobility
Back Forest sits further from the CBD (155.6 km vs 153.3 km).
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 5/100 | 6/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 155.6 km +1% vs other | 153.3 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 134 min | 130 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.4% postcode 2535 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 56 postcode 2535 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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (75.6%).
Setting
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 107 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 9 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 6.4 km | 4.9 km |
NBN connectivity
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 33 premises | 0% 104 premises |
Climate
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 974 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,501/yr same for both | |
| Council | Shoalhaven same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gilmore same for both | |
| Member | Fiona Phillips same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Back Forest | Far Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Back Forest
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Back Forest
Other comparisons with Far Meadow
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.