Bendemeer vs Watsons Creek
In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Bendemeer, about half of households are people living alone. In Watsons Creek, most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Bendemeer: a median of $500,000, against $280,000 in Watsons Creek, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Watsons Creek tends to suit people living alone 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
- Bendemeer is already more of a family suburb (46% vs 28%)
- Watsons Creek carries lower crime risk (18/100 vs 64/100)
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
- Bendemeer leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 36%)
- Watsons Creek has cheaper houses ($280,000 vs $500,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Watsons Creek
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($0/wk vs $300/wk)
Weighs rent.
Commuting to the city
Bendemeer
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- sits closer to the CBD (454.7 km vs 474.3 km)
- has a shorter drive in (338 min vs 350 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Watsons Creek
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (18/100 vs 64/100)
- has more residents already 65 and over (36% vs 28%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Bendemeer
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (-1.2% vs -18.3%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Bendemeer and Watsons Creek 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
Bendemeer rents higher ($300/wk vs $0/wk); Bendemeer has more residents (486 vs 94).
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 486 +81% vs other | 94 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -1.2% | -18.3% |
| Median age | 52 | 53 |
| Median household income | $53,092/yr +27% vs other | $38,636/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $300/wk (not reported on the other side) | — |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.2%).
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 (4.3%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.3%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $500,000 | $280,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $250,000 | — |
Zoning mix
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 100% | 95% |
| Environmental | 0% | 5% |
| 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
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 390 across Tamworth same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -35% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 13% of NSW | Higher than 7% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 13% of NSW | Higher than 4% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 8% of NSW | Higher than 43% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 74% of NSW | Higher than 83% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 61% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 39% of NSW | Higher than 22% of NSW |
Liveability
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 |
Risk profile
Bendemeer carries more crime risk (64 vs 18).
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 46/100 | Moderate 53/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 64/100 | Low 18/100 |
| 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
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 1 | 0 |
Schools in Bendemeer
- Bendemeer Public School Government · Primary below peers
Schools in Watsons Creek
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 1 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 5 | 3 |
| Childcare | 1 | 0 |
| Police stations | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 23 | 1 |
Mobility
Watsons Creek sits further from the CBD (474.3 km vs 454.7 km).
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Sydney | 454.7 km | 474.3 km +4% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 338 min | 350 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.6% postcode 2355 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 40 postcode 2355 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 (64.3%).
Setting
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 820 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 805 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 27/100 | 15/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless | Satellite (Sky Muster) |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 228 premises | 0% 35 premises |
Climate
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 784 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 27.5°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 0.1°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,397/yr same for both | |
| Council | Tamworth same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | New England same for both | |
| Member | Barnaby Joyce same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Bendemeer | Watsons Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Bendemeer
Watsons Creek
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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.