Bruthen vs Nowa Nowa
Bruthen is the younger of the two, with a median age of 43 against 55 in Nowa Nowa. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. Houses cost more in Bruthen: a median of $482,000, against $200,000 in Nowa Nowa, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Bruthen tends to suit families with children, while Nowa Nowa suits share households, 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
Bruthen
ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more parks and reserves (6 vs 1)
- has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)
- carries lower crime risk (44/100 vs 81/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Nowa Nowa
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($200,000 vs $482,500)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Nowa Nowa
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($210/wk vs $250/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Bruthen
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (311.1 km vs 325.9 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- Bruthen carries lower crime risk (44/100 vs 81/100)
- Nowa Nowa has more residents already 65 and over (29% vs 18%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Bruthen and Nowa Nowa 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
Bruthen has more residents (820 vs 199); Nowa Nowa skews older (55 vs 43).
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 820 +76% vs other | 199 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +0.7% | +2.6% |
| Median age | 43 | 55 |
| Median household income | $62,296/yr +16% vs other | $52,624/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $250/wk +16% vs other | $210/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.1%).
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 (4.0%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.3%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $482,500 | $200,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $491,500 | — |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 147 days from 7 sales | — |
Zoning mix
Bruthen has more rural and farming land (55% vs 5%).
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks and recreation | 40% | 93% |
| Rural and farming | 55% | 5% |
| Residential | 3% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 1% same for both | |
| 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
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 386 across East Gippsland same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +50% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 23% of VIC | Higher than 11% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 49% of VIC | Higher than 44% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 51% of VIC | — |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 45% of VIC | Higher than 64% of VIC |
Liveability
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | D | — |
| Score | 23/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Nowa Nowa carries more crime risk (81 vs 44).
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 96/100 | High 90/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 44/100 | High 81/100 |
| Flood | None 0/100 same for both | |
| 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
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Bruthen
- Bruthen Primary School Government · Primary above peers
Schools in Nowa Nowa
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 3 | 2 |
| Parks & reserves | 6 | 1 |
| Childcare | 1 | 0 |
| GPs | 1 | 0 |
| Police stations | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 same for both | |
| Fuel stations | 1 | 0 |
| EV chargers | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 4 | 11 |
Mobility
Nowa Nowa sits further from the CBD (325.9 km vs 311.1 km).
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 311.1 km | 325.9 km +5% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 242 min | 239 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 3885 | 0.0% postcode 3887 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 55 postcode 3885 | 79 postcode 3887 |
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 (72.2%).
Setting
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 21 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 141 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 21.2 km | 19.3 km |
NBN connectivity
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 29/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 434 premises | 0% 106 premises |
Climate
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 620 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 25.5°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 4.5°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,807/yr same for both | |
| Council | East Gippsland same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gippsland same for both | |
| Member | Darren Chester same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Bruthen | Nowa Nowa | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Bruthen
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Bruthen
Other comparisons with Nowa Nowa
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.