Beech Forest vs Carlisle River

Carlisle River is the younger of the two, with a median age of 45 against 50 in Beech Forest. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Beech Forest, most households are people living alone. On these figures, Beech Forest 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

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Beech Forest carries lower crime risk (17/100 vs 49/100)
  • Carlisle River is already more of a family suburb (49% vs 29%)

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

First-home buyers

Carlisle River

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 26%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Beech Forest

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($185/wk vs $200/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Carlisle River

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (154 min vs 164 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (191.8 km vs 201.7 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Beech Forest

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • carries lower crime risk (17/100 vs 49/100)

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

Investors

Beech Forest

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (52.4% vs 24.4%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Beech Forest Carlisle River
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.

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Walkability 0 / 0
Beech Forest — Walkability: 0/100 Carlisle River — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 83 / 51
Beech Forest — Safety: 83/100 Carlisle River — Safety: 51/100
Low fire risk 15 / 16
Beech Forest — Low fire risk: 15/100 Carlisle River — Low fire risk: 16/100
Low flood risk 100 / 50
Beech Forest — Low flood risk: 100/100 Carlisle River — Low flood risk: 50/100

Demographics

Carlisle River has more residents (168 vs 125); Carlisle River has higher household incomes ($53,872 vs $43,680).

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Population 125 168
+34% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +52.4% +24.4%
Median age 50 45
Median household income $43,680/yr $53,872/yr
+23% vs other
Median weekly rent $185/wk $200/wk
+8% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Beech Forest Carlisle River
0-4 6.4% / 3.6%
Beech Forest — 0-4: 6.4% Carlisle River — 0-4: 3.6%
5-14 12.8% / 13.7%
Beech Forest — 5-14: 12.8% Carlisle River — 5-14: 13.7%
15-19 6.4% / 8.3%
Beech Forest — 15-19: 6.4% Carlisle River — 15-19: 8.3%
20-24 2.4% / 5.4%
Beech Forest — 20-24: 2.4% Carlisle River — 20-24: 5.4%
25-34 7.2% / 10.7%
Beech Forest — 25-34: 7.2% Carlisle River — 25-34: 10.7%
35-44 14.4% / 12.5%
Beech Forest — 35-44: 14.4% Carlisle River — 35-44: 12.5%
45-54 17.6% / 13.7%
Beech Forest — 45-54: 17.6% Carlisle River — 45-54: 13.7%
55-64 26.4% / 19.6%
Beech Forest — 55-64: 26.4% Carlisle River — 55-64: 19.6%
65-74 12.0% / 13.7%
Beech Forest — 65-74: 12.0% Carlisle River — 65-74: 13.7%
75-84 2.4% / 3.6%
Beech Forest — 75-84: 2.4% Carlisle River — 75-84: 3.6%
85+ — / —
Beech Forest — 85+: not among its largest Carlisle River — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.4%).

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.

Beech Forest Carlisle River
England 2.4% / 5.4%
Beech Forest — England: 2.4% Carlisle River — England: 5.4%
Philippines — / 3.0%
Beech Forest — Philippines: not among its largest Carlisle River — Philippines: 3.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (5.4%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Beech Forest 71.4% lone person
Beech Forest — Lone Person: 71.4% Beech Forest — Couple Families: 28.6% Beech Forest — Group Household: 0.0% Beech Forest — One Parent Families: 0.0%
Carlisle River 38.5% lone person
Carlisle River — Lone Person: 38.5% Carlisle River — Couple Families: 41.0% Carlisle River — Group Household: 12.8% Carlisle River — One Parent Families: 7.7%
Lone Person Couple Families Group Household One Parent Families

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Beech Forest 100.0% houses
Beech Forest — Houses: 100.0%
Carlisle River 100.0% houses
Carlisle River — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

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

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Certificate III & IV 18.4% / 14.9%
Beech Forest — Certificate III & IV: 18.4% Carlisle River — Certificate III & IV: 14.9%
Bachelor Degree 13.6% / 10.7%
Beech Forest — Bachelor Degree: 13.6% Carlisle River — Bachelor Degree: 10.7%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 4.0% / 6.0%
Beech Forest — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 4.0% Carlisle River — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.0%
Postgraduate Degree 3.2% / 2.4%
Beech Forest — Postgraduate Degree: 3.2% Carlisle River — Postgraduate Degree: 2.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.4%).

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Beech Forest 15.9% renting
Beech Forest — Owned Outright: 40.9% Beech Forest — Mortgage: 43.2% Beech Forest — Renting: 15.9%
Carlisle River 22.6% renting
Carlisle River — Owned Outright: 46.8% Carlisle River — Mortgage: 30.6% Carlisle River — Renting: 22.6%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Property market

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Median house price $471,250 —
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $215,000 —
Typical days to sell (houses) 83 days
from 4 sales
 —

Zoning mix

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Parks and recreation 69% 61%
Rural and farming 31% 38%
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

Beech Forest Carlisle River
New dwellings approved 226
across Colac Otway
same for both
Approvals change year on year +64%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Beech Forest Carlisle River
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 4% of VIC Higher than 12% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 51% of VIC Higher than 8% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption —
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 66% of VIC Higher than 18% of VIC

Liveability

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10
same for both

Risk profile

Carlisle River carries more flood risk (50 vs 0); Carlisle River carries more crime risk (49 vs 17).

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Bushfire High
85/100
 High
84/100
Crime Low
17/100
 Moderate
49/100
Flood None
0/100
 Moderate
50/100
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

Beech Forest Carlisle River
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 Beech Forest

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

Schools in Carlisle River

  • Carlisle River Primary School Government · Primary

Amenities in the suburb

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Cafes & restaurants 2 0
Parks & reserves 3 1
Waterways 32 4

Mobility

Beech Forest sits further from the CBD (201.7 km vs 191.8 km).

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 201.7 km
+5% vs other
 191.8 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 164 min 154 min
Electric vehicle share 0.0%
postcode 3237
 0.0%
postcode 3239
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 39
postcode 3237
 43
postcode 3239

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.

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Car (driver) 53.3% / 50.0%
Beech Forest — Car (driver): 53.3% Carlisle River — Car (driver): 50.0%
Worked from Home 31.1% / 27.6%
Beech Forest — Worked from Home: 31.1% Carlisle River — Worked from Home: 27.6%
Walked Only 8.9% / 13.8%
Beech Forest — Walked Only: 8.9% Carlisle River — Walked Only: 13.8%
Car (passenger) 6.7% / 8.6%
Beech Forest — Car (passenger): 6.7% Carlisle River — Car (passenger): 8.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (53.3%).

Setting

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Elevation 522 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 77 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 13.8 km 21.7 km

NBN connectivity

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Connectivity score 30/100 21/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Satellite (Sky Muster)
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
125 premises
 0%
54 premises

Climate

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Annual rainfall 1,070 mm 607 mm
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Council rates

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Average residential rate $2,023/yr
same for both
Council Colac Otway
same for both

Federal electorate

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Division Wannon
same for both
Member Dan Tehan
same for both
Party Liberal
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Beech Forest Carlisle River
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Beech Forest

Affordable Rural

Carlisle River

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Beech Forest

Beech Forest vs Apollo Bay Beech Forest vs Gellibrand

Other comparisons with Carlisle River

Carlisle River vs Simpson Carlisle River vs Gellibrand Carlisle River vs Irrewillipe Carlisle River vs Lavers Hill
Full data on Beech Forest Full data on Carlisle River
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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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