Bagotville vs Meerschaum Vale
Meerschaum Vale is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 50 in Bagotville. In both, the large majority of households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Bagotville, most households are people living alone. In Meerschaum Vale, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Meerschaum Vale: a median of $1.12 million, against $915,000 in Bagotville. On these figures, Bagotville tends to suit people living alone and buyers on a tighter budget, while Meerschaum Vale suits couples.
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
Meerschaum Vale
ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here
- is already more of a family suburb (71% vs 30%)
- carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 51/100)
- has more separate houses rather than flats (97% vs 65%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
They split
one each way, out of the 2 things we measure here
- Bagotville has cheaper houses ($915,000 vs $1,125,000)
- Meerschaum Vale leaves households under less mortgage stress (19% vs 36%)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Too close to call
Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Bagotville
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (460 min vs 466 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (709.6 km vs 715.4 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here
- Bagotville has more units and townhouses to downsize into (35% vs 3%)
- Meerschaum Vale carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 51/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Bagotville
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (22.4% vs -6.3%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Bagotville and Meerschaum Vale 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
Meerschaum Vale has more residents (372 vs 60); Meerschaum Vale has higher household incomes ($102,336 vs $90,948).
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 60 | 372 +520% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +22.4% | -6.3% |
| Median age | 50 | 47 |
| Median household income | $90,948/yr | $102,336/yr +13% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $450/wk +3% vs other | $435/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (28.3%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 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 (24.5%).
Property market
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $915,000 | $1,125,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Meerschaum Vale has more rural and farming land (65% vs 41%); Bagotville has more land zoned for conservation (32% vs 14%).
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 41% | 65% |
| Environmental | 32% | 14% |
| Other and special use | 28% | 21% |
| 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
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 238 across Ballina same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +210% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 44% of NSW | Higher than 62% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 58% of NSW | Higher than 70% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 54% of NSW | Higher than 63% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 63% of NSW | Higher than 52% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 68% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 48% of NSW | Higher than 45% of NSW |
Liveability
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 | advantaged area decile 7/10 |
Risk profile
Bagotville carries more crime risk (51 vs 32); Bagotville carries more bushfire risk (68 vs 49).
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 68/100 | Moderate 49/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 51/100 | Low 32/100 |
| 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 | 2 within 5 km | 0 within 5 km |
Schools
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 1 | 3 |
Mobility
Meerschaum Vale sits further from the CBD (715.4 km vs 709.6 km).
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 8/100 | 14/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 709.6 km | 715.4 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 460 min | 466 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.7% postcode 2477 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 75 postcode 2477 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 (76.6%).
Setting
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 61 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 6 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 6.7 km | 9.6 km |
NBN connectivity
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 29/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 26 premises | 0% 137 premises |
Council rates
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,264/yr same for both | |
| Council | Ballina same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Page same for both | |
| Member | Kevin Hogan same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Bagotville | Meerschaum Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Bagotville
Other comparisons with Meerschaum Vale
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.