Bombo vs Kiama Downs

Bombo is the younger of the two, with a median age of 40 against 43 in Kiama Downs. In both, most households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Bombo: a median of $2 million, against $1.28 million in Kiama Downs, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Bombo tends to suit couples, while Kiama Downs suits 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

Kiama Downs

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (18/100 vs 46/100)
  • has more parks and reserves (5 vs 2)

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

First-home buyers

Kiama Downs

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($1,280,000 vs $2,000,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

They split

one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here

  • Bombo has a bigger rental market to choose from (26% vs 14%)
  • Kiama Downs has cheaper rent ($490/wk vs $610/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Kiama Downs

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (101 min vs 106 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (117.7 km vs 120 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Kiama Downs

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (18/100 vs 46/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (21% vs 15%)

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

Investors

Bombo

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (56.2% vs 1.7%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Bombo Kiama Downs
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.

Bombo Kiama Downs
Walkability 41 / 45
Bombo — Walkability: 41/100 Kiama Downs — Walkability: 45/100
Safety 54 / 82
Bombo — Safety: 54/100 Kiama Downs — Safety: 82/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Bombo — Low fire risk: 100/100 Kiama Downs — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Kiama Downs has more residents (5,087 vs 175); Bombo rents higher ($610/wk vs $490/wk).

Bombo Kiama Downs
Population 175 5,087
+2807% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +56.2% +1.7%
Median age 40 43
Median household income $134,888/yr
+19% vs other
 $109,356/yr
Median weekly rent $610/wk
+20% vs other
 $490/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Bombo Kiama Downs
0-4 5.7% / 5.6%
Bombo — 0-4: 5.7% Kiama Downs — 0-4: 5.6%
5-14 9.7% / 13.5%
Bombo — 5-14: 9.7% Kiama Downs — 5-14: 13.5%
15-19 10.3% / 6.3%
Bombo — 15-19: 10.3% Kiama Downs — 15-19: 6.3%
20-24 5.1% / 4.2%
Bombo — 20-24: 5.1% Kiama Downs — 20-24: 4.2%
25-34 12.0% / 8.9%
Bombo — 25-34: 12.0% Kiama Downs — 25-34: 8.9%
35-44 12.0% / 12.4%
Bombo — 35-44: 12.0% Kiama Downs — 35-44: 12.4%
45-54 20.0% / 13.2%
Bombo — 45-54: 20.0% Kiama Downs — 45-54: 13.2%
55-64 7.4% / 14.5%
Bombo — 55-64: 7.4% Kiama Downs — 55-64: 14.5%
65-74 11.4% / 14.0%
Bombo — 65-74: 11.4% Kiama Downs — 65-74: 14.0%
75-84 1.7% / 5.3%
Bombo — 75-84: 1.7% Kiama Downs — 75-84: 5.3%
85+ 2.3% / 1.9%
Bombo — 85+: 2.3% Kiama Downs — 85+: 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Bombo 69.7% couple families
Bombo — Couple Families: 69.7% Bombo — Lone Person: 21.2% Bombo — One Parent Families: 0.0% Bombo — Group Household: 9.1% Bombo — Other Families: 0.0%
Kiama Downs 58.3% couple families
Kiama Downs — Couple Families: 58.3% Kiama Downs — Lone Person: 24.1% Kiama Downs — One Parent Families: 14.6% Kiama Downs — Group Household: 2.2% Kiama Downs — Other Families: 0.8%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Bombo 25.5% renting
Bombo — Owned Outright: 29.1% Bombo — Mortgage: 45.5% Bombo — Renting: 25.5%
Kiama Downs 13.6% renting
Kiama Downs — Owned Outright: 47.0% Kiama Downs — Mortgage: 39.4% Kiama Downs — Renting: 13.6%
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.

Bombo Kiama Downs
England 6.3% / 4.2%
Bombo — England: 6.3% Kiama Downs — England: 4.2%
Scotland 2.3% / 0.8%
Bombo — Scotland: 2.3% Kiama Downs — Scotland: 0.8%
South Africa 1.7% / 0.5%
Bombo — South Africa: 1.7% Kiama Downs — South Africa: 0.5%
New Zealand — / 1.5%
Bombo — New Zealand: not among its largest Kiama Downs — New Zealand: 1.5%
Germany — / 0.6%
Bombo — Germany: not among its largest Kiama Downs — Germany: 0.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (6.3%).

Qualifications

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

Bombo Kiama Downs
Certificate III & IV 18.9% / 16.8%
Bombo — Certificate III & IV: 18.9% Kiama Downs — Certificate III & IV: 16.8%
Bachelor Degree 16.6% / 14.8%
Bombo — Bachelor Degree: 16.6% Kiama Downs — Bachelor Degree: 14.8%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.3% / 10.0%
Bombo — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.3% Kiama Downs — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.0%
Postgraduate Degree 2.9% / 4.7%
Bombo — Postgraduate Degree: 2.9% Kiama Downs — Postgraduate Degree: 4.7%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.3% / 2.9%
Bombo — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.3% Kiama Downs — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.9%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Bombo 86.4% houses
Bombo — Houses: 86.4% Bombo — Townhouses: 13.6% Bombo — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Kiama Downs 92.8% houses
Kiama Downs — Houses: 92.8% Kiama Downs — Townhouses: 5.8% Kiama Downs — Flats / Apartments: 1.4%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Bombo Kiama Downs
Median house price $2,000,000 $1,280,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price — $695,000
Typical days to sell (houses) — 22 days
from 44 sales

Zoning mix

Bombo has more rural and farming land (42% vs 0%); Kiama Downs has more land zoned for conservation (33% vs 17%).

Bombo Kiama Downs
Residential 5% 43%
Rural and farming 42% 0%
Environmental 17% 33%
Infrastructure and transport 26% 4%
Parks and recreation 8% 19%
Planning zones cover 98% of Bombo and 99% of Kiama Downs. The rest is unzoned land such as water or road reserve.
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

Bombo Kiama Downs
New dwellings approved 159
across Kiama
same for both
Approvals change year on year -35%
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.

Bombo Kiama Downs
Houses — 3.3%
$850/wk on $1.34M
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Bombo Kiama Downs
House price Higher than 85% of NSW Higher than 67% of NSW
Income Higher than 90% of NSW Higher than 75% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 79% of NSW Higher than 80% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 35% of NSW Higher than 51% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 88% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 100% of NSW Higher than 99% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 35% of NSW

Liveability

Bombo Kiama Downs
Grade — A
Score — 71/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Bombo carries more crime risk (46 vs 18).

Bombo Kiama Downs
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Moderate
46/100
 Low
18/100
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion Low
26/100
 Low
19/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 3
within 5 km
 6
within 5 km

Schools

Bombo Kiama Downs
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

Bombo Kiama Downs
Parks & reserves 2 5
Childcare 0 2
GPs 0 1
Pharmacies 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Beaches 2 1

Mobility

Bombo sits further from the CBD (120 km vs 117.7 km).

Bombo Kiama Downs
Walkability score 41/100 45/100
Distance to Sydney 120 km
+2% vs other
 117.7 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 106 min 101 min
Public transport score 43/100
Rail · Bus
 73/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 7.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 68.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 7.5 min
scheduled, not actual
 0 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 1.4%
postcode 2533
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 47
postcode 2533
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.

Bombo Kiama Downs
Car (driver) 75.3% / 62.5%
Bombo — Car (driver): 75.3% Kiama Downs — Car (driver): 62.5%
Worked from Home 24.7% / 32.6%
Bombo — Worked from Home: 24.7% Kiama Downs — Worked from Home: 32.6%
Car (passenger) — / 3.3%
Bombo — Car (passenger): not among its largest Kiama Downs — Car (passenger): 3.3%
Walked Only — / 0.9%
Bombo — Walked Only: not among its largest Kiama Downs — Walked Only: 0.9%
Train — / 0.5%
Bombo — Train: not among its largest Kiama Downs — Train: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (75.3%).

Setting

Bombo Kiama Downs
Elevation 10 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 9 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 426 m
665 m to a named beach
 802 m
801 m to a named beach

NBN connectivity

Bombo Kiama Downs
Connectivity score 100/100
same for both
Most common technology Fibre to the premises
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 100%
86 premises
 100%
2,015 premises

Climate

Bombo Kiama Downs
Annual rainfall 974 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Bombo Kiama Downs
PM2.5 5.1 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 14.3 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.37 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Bombo Kiama Downs
Average residential rate $1,898/yr
same for both
Council Kiama
same for both

Federal electorate

Bombo Kiama Downs
Division Gilmore
same for both
Member Fiona Phillips
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Bombo Kiama Downs
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Bombo

Beach Coastal Parks Premium Professionals Trains

Kiama Downs

Beach Coastal Large Blocks

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Full data on Bombo Full data on Kiama Downs
Unlock full address-level data — $29/month

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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