Blackwood vs Newbury
Blackwood is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 55 in Newbury. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Blackwood, most households are people living alone. On these figures, Blackwood tends to suit people living alone, while Newbury 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
Newbury
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 55/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (63% vs 40%)
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
Newbury
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($0/wk vs $305/wk)
Weighs rent.
Commuting to the city
Blackwood
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (87.9 km vs 95 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Newbury
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has more residents already 65 and over (38% vs 16%)
- carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 55/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Blackwood
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (31.2% vs 18.3%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Blackwood and Newbury 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
Blackwood rents higher ($305/wk vs $0/wk); Blackwood has more residents (387 vs 84).
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 387 +78% vs other | 84 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +31.2% | +18.3% |
| Median age | 47 | 55 |
| Median household income | $74,048/yr | $81,224/yr +10% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $305/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 (27.4%).
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 (6.0%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.8%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $597,500 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $228,500 | — |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 46 days from 7 sales | — |
Zoning mix
Newbury has more rural and farming land (86% vs 0%).
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks and recreation | 92% | 11% |
| Rural and farming | 0% | 86% |
| Environmental | 4% | 1% |
| Residential | 2% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 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
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 338 across Moorabool | 104 across Hepburn |
| Approvals change year on year | +4% | -6% |
Ranking within VIC
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 40% of VIC | Higher than 49% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 59% of VIC | Higher than 53% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 89% of VIC same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 14% of VIC | Higher than 10% of VIC |
Liveability
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 | advantaged area decile 8/10 |
Risk profile
Blackwood carries more bushfire risk (83 vs 0); Blackwood carries more flood risk (23 vs 0).
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 83/100 | None 0/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 55/100 | Low 33/100 |
| Flood | Low 23/100 | None 0/100 |
| 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
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Blackwood
- Frankston Special Developmental School-Blackwood Special Schools Outdoor Education Centre Government · Secondary · Special school
Schools in Newbury
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 3 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 2 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 9 | 0 |
Mobility
Newbury sits further from the CBD (95 km vs 87.9 km).
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 87.9 km | 95 km +8% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 71 min | 75 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.6% postcode 3458 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 50 postcode 3458 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 (59.2%).
Setting
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 658 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 766 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 17/100 | 15/100 |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 51 premises | 0% 34 premises |
Climate
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 778 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,979/yr | $1,748/yr |
| Council | Moorabool | Hepburn |
Federal electorate
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Hawke | Ballarat |
| Member | Sam Rae | Catherine King |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Blackwood | Newbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Blackwood
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Blackwood
Other comparisons with Newbury
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.