Brooks Bay vs Surges Bay
Surges Bay is the younger of the two, with a median age of 50 against 53 in Brooks Bay. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Surges Bay, most households are couple families. On these figures, Brooks Bay tends to suit people living alone and families with children.
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
Surges Bay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is already more of a family suburb (83% vs 56%)
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Brooks Bay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (18% vs 23%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Brooks Bay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($210/wk vs $288/wk)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Surges Bay
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (65 min vs 71 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (68.1 km vs 71.7 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Too close to call
Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
Investors
Brooks Bay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (82.1% vs 28.3%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Brooks Bay and Surges Bay 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
Surges Bay has more residents (163 vs 51); Surges Bay rents higher ($288/wk vs $210/wk).
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 51 | 163 +220% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +82.1% | +28.3% |
| Median age | 53 | 50 |
| Median household income | $60,632/yr | $67,444/yr +11% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $210/wk | $288/wk +37% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.5%).
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (13.7%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.8%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $860,000 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 82% | 76% |
| Environmental | 18% | 23% |
| 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
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 81 across Huon Valley same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -33% same for both | |
Ranking within TAS
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 37% of TAS | — |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 52% of TAS | Higher than 70% of TAS |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 67% of TAS same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 67% of TAS | Higher than 64% of TAS |
Liveability
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 3/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 99/100 | High 97/100 |
| Crime | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 | Low 23/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 0 | 1 |
Mobility
Brooks Bay sits further from the CBD (71.7 km vs 68.1 km).
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 | 6/100 |
| Distance to Hobart | 71.7 km +5% vs other | 68.1 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 71 min | 65 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.6% postcode 7116 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 37 postcode 7116 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 (80.9%).
Setting
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 37 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 57 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 708 m 4.6 km to a named beach | 1.4 km |
NBN connectivity
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 33 premises | 0% 80 premises |
Climate
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 854 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 21.0°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 3.7°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,884/yr same for both | |
| Council | Huon Valley same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Franklin same for both | |
| Member | Julie Collins same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Brooks Bay | Surges Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $20,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | — same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Brooks Bay
Other comparisons with Surges Bay
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.