Ballendella vs Rochester

Rochester is the younger of the two, with a median age of 53 against 56 in Ballendella. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Ballendella, about half of households are couple families. In Rochester, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Ballendella tends to suit couples, while Rochester suits 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

Rochester

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (8 vs 0)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (3 vs 0)
  • has more childcare (3 vs 0)
  • But Ballendella is already more of a family suburb (70% vs 43%)

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

First-home buyers

Too close to call

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

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Ballendella

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (10% vs 20%)
  • has cheaper rent ($120/wk vs $220/wk)
  • But Rochester has a bigger rental market to choose from (20% vs 7%)

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

Commuting to the city

Rochester

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (11/100 vs 0/100)
  • sits closer to the CBD (202.4 km vs 209.3 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Rochester

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (11/100 vs 0/100)
  • has more GPs (2 vs 0)

Weighs smaller dwellings, 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

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

Ballendella Rochester
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.

Ballendella Rochester
Walkability 0 / 11
Ballendella — Walkability: 0/100 Rochester — Walkability: 11/100
Safety 44 / 47
Ballendella — Safety: 44/100 Rochester — Safety: 47/100
Low fire risk 58 / 74
Ballendella — Low fire risk: 58/100 Rochester — Low fire risk: 74/100
Low flood risk 7 / 15
Ballendella — Low flood risk: 7/100 Rochester — Low flood risk: 15/100

Demographics

Rochester has more residents (3,154 vs 120); Rochester rents higher ($220/wk vs $120/wk).

Ballendella Rochester
Population 120 3,154
+2528% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -3.2% +1.3%
Median age 56 53
Median household income $60,632/yr
+8% vs other
 $55,796/yr
Median weekly rent $120/wk $220/wk
+83% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Ballendella Rochester
0-4 4.2% / 3.9%
Ballendella — 0-4: 4.2% Rochester — 0-4: 3.9%
5-14 5.0% / 10.1%
Ballendella — 5-14: 5.0% Rochester — 5-14: 10.1%
15-19 7.5% / 5.1%
Ballendella — 15-19: 7.5% Rochester — 15-19: 5.1%
20-24 4.2% / 4.5%
Ballendella — 20-24: 4.2% Rochester — 20-24: 4.5%
25-34 2.5% / 7.7%
Ballendella — 25-34: 2.5% Rochester — 25-34: 7.7%
35-44 9.2% / 8.4%
Ballendella — 35-44: 9.2% Rochester — 35-44: 8.4%
45-54 13.3% / 12.3%
Ballendella — 45-54: 13.3% Rochester — 45-54: 12.3%
55-64 18.3% / 15.7%
Ballendella — 55-64: 18.3% Rochester — 55-64: 15.7%
65-74 25.0% / 15.2%
Ballendella — 65-74: 25.0% Rochester — 65-74: 15.2%
75-84 9.2% / 11.5%
Ballendella — 75-84: 9.2% Rochester — 75-84: 11.5%
85+ — / 5.3%
Ballendella — 85+: not among its largest Rochester — 85+: 5.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Ballendella 30.0% lone person
Ballendella — Lone Person: 30.0% Ballendella — Couple Families: 46.7% Ballendella — One Parent Families: 23.3% Ballendella — Group Household: 0.0% Ballendella — Other Families: 0.0%
Rochester 50.5% lone person
Rochester — Lone Person: 50.5% Rochester — Couple Families: 28.8% Rochester — One Parent Families: 14.4% Rochester — Group Household: 4.2% Rochester — Other Families: 2.0%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Ballendella 7.3% renting
Ballendella — Owned Outright: 53.7% Ballendella — Mortgage: 39.0% Ballendella — Renting: 7.3%
Rochester 20.0% renting
Rochester — Owned Outright: 51.8% Rochester — Mortgage: 28.2% Rochester — Renting: 20.0%
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.

Ballendella Rochester
England 7.5% / 1.6%
Ballendella — England: 7.5% Rochester — England: 1.6%
New Zealand — / 0.8%
Ballendella — New Zealand: not among its largest Rochester — New Zealand: 0.8%
Malaysia — / 0.7%
Ballendella — Malaysia: not among its largest Rochester — Malaysia: 0.7%
Scotland — / 0.4%
Ballendella — Scotland: not among its largest Rochester — Scotland: 0.4%
Philippines — / 0.3%
Ballendella — Philippines: not among its largest Rochester — Philippines: 0.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (7.5%).

Qualifications

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

Ballendella Rochester
Certificate III & IV 19.2% / 16.6%
Ballendella — Certificate III & IV: 19.2% Rochester — Certificate III & IV: 16.6%
Bachelor Degree 5.0% / 5.8%
Ballendella — Bachelor Degree: 5.0% Rochester — Bachelor Degree: 5.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 2.5% / 5.5%
Ballendella — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 2.5% Rochester — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.5%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.5% / 1.3%
Ballendella — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.5% Rochester — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.3%
Postgraduate Degree 2.5% / 0.7%
Ballendella — Postgraduate Degree: 2.5% Rochester — Postgraduate Degree: 0.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Ballendella 93.0% houses
Ballendella — Houses: 93.0% Ballendella — Flats / Apartments: 7.0% Ballendella — Townhouses: 0.0%
Rochester 92.9% houses
Rochester — Houses: 92.9% Rochester — Flats / Apartments: 1.7% Rochester — Townhouses: 5.4%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Ballendella Rochester
Median house price — $455,000
Median unit price — $365,000
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) — 75 days
from 14 sales

Zoning mix

Ballendella Rochester
Rural and farming 97% 89%
Infrastructure and transport 2% 5%
Residential 0% 4%
Parks and recreation 1% 2%
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

Ballendella Rochester
New dwellings approved 264
across Campaspe
same for both
Approvals change year on year +63%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Ballendella Rochester
Houses — 4.2%
$445/wk on $549K
Units —
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Ballendella Rochester
House price — Higher than 8% of VIC
Income Higher than 21% of VIC Higher than 14% of VIC
Schools — Higher than 10% of VIC
Walkability Higher than 60% of VIC Higher than 73% of VIC
Affordability — Higher than 76% of VIC
EV adoption Higher than 32% of VIC
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 70% of VIC Higher than 76% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 81% of VIC

Liveability

Rochester is more walkable (11 vs 0).

Ballendella Rochester
Grade — D
Score — 18/100
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10
 below-average income
decile 2/10

Risk profile

Ballendella carries more bushfire risk (42 vs 26).

Ballendella Rochester
Bushfire Moderate
42/100
 Low
26/100
Crime Moderate
56/100
 Moderate
53/100
Flood High
93/100
 High
85/100
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

Ballendella Rochester
Inside the suburb 0 3
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0 2

Schools in Ballendella

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Schools in Rochester

  • Rochester Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • Rochester Secondary College Government · Secondary below peers
  • St Joseph's School Catholic · Primary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Ballendella Rochester
Supermarkets 0 1
Cafes & restaurants 0 2
Parks & reserves 0 8
Childcare 0 3
GPs 0 2
Pharmacies 0 1
Hospitals 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 2
Fuel stations 0 4
Waterways 0 7

Mobility

Ballendella sits further from the CBD (209.3 km vs 202.4 km).

Ballendella Rochester
Walkability score 0/100 11/100
Distance to Melbourne 209.3 km
+3% vs other
 202.4 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 152 min 149 min
Electric vehicle share 0.4%
postcode 3561
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 57
postcode 3561
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.

Ballendella Rochester
Car (driver) 69.8% / 79.8%
Ballendella — Car (driver): 69.8% Rochester — Car (driver): 79.8%
Worked from Home 18.6% / 9.0%
Ballendella — Worked from Home: 18.6% Rochester — Worked from Home: 9.0%
Walked Only 11.6% / 4.4%
Ballendella — Walked Only: 11.6% Rochester — Walked Only: 4.4%
Car (passenger) — / 5.4%
Ballendella — Car (passenger): not among its largest Rochester — Car (passenger): 5.4%
Bicycle — / 1.1%
Ballendella — Bicycle: not among its largest Rochester — Bicycle: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.8%).

Setting

Ballendella Rochester
Elevation 109 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 117 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Ballendella Rochester
Connectivity score 30/100 64/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Fibre to the premises
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
54 premises
 41%
1,679 premises

Climate

Ballendella Rochester
Annual rainfall 438 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Council rates

Ballendella Rochester
Average residential rate $2,035/yr
same for both
Council Campaspe
same for both

Federal electorate

Ballendella Rochester
Division Nicholls Bendigo
Member Sam Birrell Lisa Chesters
Party The Nationals Australian Labor Party

First Home Owner Grant

Ballendella Rochester
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Ballendella

Retirees Rural

Rochester

Acreage Affordable Retirees Trains

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Ballendella

Ballendella vs Bamawm Ballendella vs Strathallan Ballendella vs Fairy Dell

Other comparisons with Rochester

Rochester vs Elmore Rochester vs Bamawm Rochester vs Nanneella Rochester vs Fairy Dell Rochester vs Diggora
Full data on Ballendella Full data on Rochester
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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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