Bolong vs Meroo Meadow
Bolong is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 50 in Meroo Meadow. In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Bolong, about half of households are people living alone. In Meroo Meadow, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Bolong: a median of $1.4 million, against $1 million in Meroo Meadow, though rent is higher in Meroo Meadow. On these figures, Bolong tends to suit people living alone, while Meroo Meadow suits couples, older residents, 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
Meroo Meadow
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (31/100 vs 95/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (68% vs 31%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Meroo Meadow
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 43%)
- has cheaper houses ($1,000,000 vs $1,400,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Bolong
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (37% vs 17%)
- has cheaper rent ($335/wk vs $400/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Meroo Meadow
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (123 min vs 133 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (153.9 km vs 157.2 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Meroo Meadow
ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (14/100 vs 0/100)
- carries lower crime risk (31/100 vs 95/100)
- has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 19%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Meroo Meadow
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (0.4% vs -9.6%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Bolong and Meroo Meadow 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
Meroo Meadow has more residents (474 vs 94); Meroo Meadow has higher household incomes ($110,032 vs $84,500).
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 94 | 474 +404% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -9.6% | +0.4% |
| Median age | 46 | 50 |
| Median household income | $84,500/yr | $110,032/yr +30% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $335/wk | $400/wk +19% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.6%).
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 (4.9%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.6%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,400,000 | $1,000,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $7,700,000 | — |
Zoning mix
Bolong has more rural and farming land (91% vs 72%); Meroo Meadow has more land zoned for conservation (20% vs 6%).
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 91% | 72% |
| Environmental | 6% | 20% |
| Residential | 0% | 6% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 1% | 2% |
| Industrial | 2% | 0% |
| 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
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 854 across Shoalhaven same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -10% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 71% of NSW | Higher than 89% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 52% of NSW | Higher than 75% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 9% of NSW | Higher than 64% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 27% of NSW | Higher than 13% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 53% of NSW | Higher than 54% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 63% of NSW | Higher than 70% of NSW |
Liveability
Meroo Meadow is more walkable (14 vs 0).
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 9/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Bolong carries more crime risk (95 vs 31).
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | High 95/100 | Low 31/100 |
| 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 | 5 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 12 | 11 |
Mobility
Bolong sits further from the CBD (157.2 km vs 153.9 km).
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 | 14/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 157.2 km +2% vs other | 153.9 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 133 min | 123 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 2540 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 44 postcode 2540 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 (70.9%).
Setting
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 1 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 33 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 9.6 km | 13.6 km |
NBN connectivity
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 32/100 | 60/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 2% 44 premises | 43% 222 premises |
Climate
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 974 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,501/yr same for both | |
| Council | Shoalhaven same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gilmore same for both | |
| Member | Fiona Phillips same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Bolong | Meroo Meadow | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Bolong
Other comparisons with Meroo Meadow
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.