Breakwater vs Whittington

In both, the large majority of homes are detached houses and about half of households are people living alone. In Breakwater, most households own their home. In Whittington, about half of households rent.

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

Whittington

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (3 vs 0)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (2 vs 0)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (90% vs 76%)

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

First-home buyers

Whittington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper units ($416,000 vs $705,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Whittington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($250/wk vs $300/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Whittington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (89/100 vs 48/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here

  • Breakwater has more units and townhouses to downsize into (24% vs 10%)
  • Whittington is more walkable (89/100 vs 48/100)

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

Investors

Too close to call

Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Breakwater Whittington
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.

Breakwater Whittington
Walkability 48 / 89
Breakwater — Walkability: 48/100 Whittington — Walkability: 89/100
Safety 10 / 16
Breakwater — Safety: 10/100 Whittington — Safety: 16/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Breakwater — Low fire risk: 100/100 Whittington — Low fire risk: 100/100
Low flood risk 15 / 32
Breakwater — Low flood risk: 15/100 Whittington — Low flood risk: 32/100

Demographics

Whittington has more residents (3,990 vs 1,060); Breakwater rents higher ($300/wk vs $250/wk).

Breakwater Whittington
Population 1,060 3,990
+276% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +4.5% +2.9%
Median age 40 42
Median household income $56,004/yr
+11% vs other
 $49,868/yr
Median weekly rent $300/wk
+17% vs other
 $250/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Breakwater Whittington
0-4 4.1% / 4.6%
Breakwater — 0-4: 4.1% Whittington — 0-4: 4.6%
5-14 10.5% / 11.3%
Breakwater — 5-14: 10.5% Whittington — 5-14: 11.3%
15-19 3.3% / 5.6%
Breakwater — 15-19: 3.3% Whittington — 15-19: 5.6%
20-24 8.4% / 6.3%
Breakwater — 20-24: 8.4% Whittington — 20-24: 6.3%
25-34 17.4% / 14.1%
Breakwater — 25-34: 17.4% Whittington — 25-34: 14.1%
35-44 14.0% / 11.0%
Breakwater — 35-44: 14.0% Whittington — 35-44: 11.0%
45-54 11.1% / 12.7%
Breakwater — 45-54: 11.1% Whittington — 45-54: 12.7%
55-64 12.6% / 12.8%
Breakwater — 55-64: 12.6% Whittington — 55-64: 12.8%
65-74 9.7% / 12.1%
Breakwater — 65-74: 9.7% Whittington — 65-74: 12.1%
75-84 7.3% / 6.4%
Breakwater — 75-84: 7.3% Whittington — 75-84: 6.4%
85+ 2.1% / 2.9%
Breakwater — 85+: 2.1% Whittington — 85+: 2.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.4%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Breakwater 49.7% lone person
Breakwater — Lone Person: 49.7% Breakwater — One Parent Families: 19.4% Breakwater — Couple Families: 20.6% Breakwater — Group Household: 7.7% Breakwater — Other Families: 2.6%
Whittington 46.9% lone person
Whittington — Lone Person: 46.9% Whittington — One Parent Families: 26.5% Whittington — Couple Families: 19.6% Whittington — Group Household: 4.6% Whittington — Other Families: 2.4%
Lone Person One Parent Families Couple Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Breakwater 39.1% renting
Breakwater — Owned Outright: 30.1% Breakwater — Mortgage: 30.8% Breakwater — Renting: 39.1%
Whittington 45.5% renting
Whittington — Owned Outright: 29.7% Whittington — Mortgage: 24.8% Whittington — Renting: 45.5%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Breakwater Whittington
Certificate III & IV 20.5% / 15.3%
Breakwater — Certificate III & IV: 20.5% Whittington — Certificate III & IV: 15.3%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.9% / 5.9%
Breakwater — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.9% Whittington — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.9%
Bachelor Degree 7.1% / 5.4%
Breakwater — Bachelor Degree: 7.1% Whittington — Bachelor Degree: 5.4%
Postgraduate Degree 2.2% / 2.2%
Breakwater — Postgraduate Degree: 2.2% Whittington — Postgraduate Degree: 2.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.3% / 0.8%
Breakwater — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.3% Whittington — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 0.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.5%).

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.

Breakwater Whittington
England 2.2% / 2.9%
Breakwater — England: 2.2% Whittington — England: 2.9%
India 1.3% / 2.2%
Breakwater — India: 1.3% Whittington — India: 2.2%
Philippines 0.8% / 1.1%
Breakwater — Philippines: 0.8% Whittington — Philippines: 1.1%
New Zealand 0.9% / 0.8%
Breakwater — New Zealand: 0.9% Whittington — New Zealand: 0.8%
Pakistan 0.8% / —
Breakwater — Pakistan: 0.8% Whittington — Pakistan: not among its largest
Scotland — / 0.6%
Breakwater — Scotland: not among its largest Whittington — Scotland: 0.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (2.9%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Breakwater 76.4% houses
Breakwater — Houses: 76.4% Breakwater — Flats / Apartments: 14.8% Breakwater — Townhouses: 8.8%
Whittington 90.5% houses
Whittington — Houses: 90.5% Whittington — Flats / Apartments: 2.4% Whittington — Townhouses: 7.1%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Breakwater Whittington
Median house price $565,000 $596,000
Median unit price $705,000 $416,000
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 25 days
from 3 sales
 26 days
from 14 sales

Zoning mix

Breakwater has more industrially zoned land (33% vs 0%).

Breakwater Whittington
Residential 13% 89%
Industrial 33% 0%
Parks and recreation 26% 8%
Other and special use 22% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 5% 2%
Rural and farming 1% 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

Breakwater Whittington
New dwellings approved 3,468
across Greater Geelong
same for both
Approvals change year on year +56%
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.

Breakwater Whittington
Houses 4.0%
$478/wk on $622K
 4.3%
$500/wk on $600K
Units — 4.7%
$420/wk on $470K

Ranking within VIC

Breakwater Whittington
House price Higher than 19% of VIC Higher than 20% of VIC
Income Higher than 14% of VIC —
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 86% of VIC Higher than 96% of VIC
Affordability Higher than 45% of VIC —
EV adoption Higher than 43% of VIC
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 80% of VIC Higher than 86% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 68% of VIC Higher than 86% of VIC
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 43% of VIC

Liveability

Whittington is more walkable (89 vs 48); Whittington scores higher overall (35 vs 24).

Breakwater Whittington
Grade D C
Score 24/100 35/100
Socio-economic band high-need area
decile 1/10
same for both

Risk profile

Breakwater carries more flood risk (85 vs 68).

Breakwater Whittington
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime High
90/100
 High
84/100
Flood High
85/100
 Moderate
68/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 8
within 5 km
 9
within 5 km

Schools

Breakwater Whittington
Inside the suburb 0 2
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both
Universities within 10 km 2
Deakin University, Geelong Waterfront Campus, 3.8 km
 2
Deakin University, Geelong Waterfront Campus, 4.0 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 0.9% 1.0%

Schools in Breakwater

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

Schools in Whittington

  • Whittington Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • MacKillop Specialist School - Whittington Catholic · Combined · Special school

Amenities in the suburb

Breakwater Whittington
Cafes & restaurants 1 0
Parks & reserves 2 3
Childcare 0 3

Mobility

Breakwater Whittington
Walkability score 48/100 89/100
Distance to Melbourne 80.3 km
+2% vs other
 79 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 72 min 70 min
Public transport score 54/100 76/100
Peak arrivals per hour 19.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
 62.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.5%
postcode 3219
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 28
postcode 3219
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.

Breakwater Whittington
Car (driver) 79.3% / 75.0%
Breakwater — Car (driver): 79.3% Whittington — Car (driver): 75.0%
Worked from Home 10.8% / 12.0%
Breakwater — Worked from Home: 10.8% Whittington — Worked from Home: 12.0%
Car (passenger) 4.6% / 7.4%
Breakwater — Car (passenger): 4.6% Whittington — Car (passenger): 7.4%
Bus 2.4% / 2.6%
Breakwater — Bus: 2.4% Whittington — Bus: 2.6%
Walked Only 2.2% / 1.7%
Breakwater — Walked Only: 2.2% Whittington — Walked Only: 1.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.3%).

Setting

Breakwater Whittington
Elevation 11 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 8 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 3.9 km
4.0 km to a named beach
 2.9 km
3.8 km to a named beach

NBN connectivity

Breakwater Whittington
Connectivity score 71/100 77/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node Fibre to the premises
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 46%
1,052 premises
 55%
2,031 premises

Climate

Breakwater Whittington
Annual rainfall —
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 22.8°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.8°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Breakwater Whittington
PM2.5 5.0 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 20.5 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Breakwater Whittington
Average residential rate $1,802/yr
same for both
Council Greater Geelong
same for both

Federal electorate

Breakwater Whittington
Division Corio
same for both
Member Richard Marles
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Breakwater Whittington
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Breakwater

Affordable Quiet

Whittington

Coastal Parks

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Breakwater

Breakwater vs Belmont Breakwater vs St Albans Park Breakwater vs East Geelong Breakwater vs Charlemont Breakwater vs Thomson Breakwater vs South Geelong

Other comparisons with Whittington

Whittington vs St Albans Park Whittington vs Newcomb Whittington vs Moolap Whittington vs Thomson
Full data on Breakwater Full data on Whittington
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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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