Buchan South vs Buchan
Buchan South is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 54 in Buchan. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Buchan, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Buchan South tends to suit families with children, while Buchan suits people living alone.
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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Buchan South is already more of a family suburb (60% vs 42%)
- Buchan has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Buchan
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (21% vs 33%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Buchan South
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($125/wk vs $158/wk)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Buchan South
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (260 min vs 282 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (348.4 km vs 367.1 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Too close to call
Nothing among the 4 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Buchan South
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (24.4% vs -14.8%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Buchan South and Buchan 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
Buchan has more residents (201 vs 102); Buchan rents higher ($158/wk vs $125/wk).
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 102 | 201 +97% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +24.4% | -14.8% |
| Median age | 46 | 54 |
| Median household income | $61,724/yr +9% vs other | $56,316/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $125/wk | $158/wk +26% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.9%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 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 (22.5%).
Zoning mix
Buchan has more rural and farming land (29% vs 17%).
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks and recreation | 83% | 70% |
| Rural and farming | 17% | 29% |
| 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
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 386 across East Gippsland same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +50% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 23% of VIC | Higher than 15% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 56% of VIC | Higher than 39% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 51% of VIC same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 69% of VIC | Higher than 43% of VIC |
Liveability
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 3/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 91/100 | High 90/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 51/100 | Moderate 45/100 |
| 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
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 1 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Buchan South
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Buchan
- Buchan Primary School Government · Primary above peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 0 | 3 |
| Parks & reserves | 8 | 10 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 1 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 21 | 13 |
Mobility
Buchan sits further from the CBD (367.1 km vs 348.4 km).
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 348.4 km | 367.1 km +5% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 260 min | 282 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 3885 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 55 postcode 3885 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 (65.3%).
Setting
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 181 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 260 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 30.4 km | 45.6 km |
NBN connectivity
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 29/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 68 premises | 0% 176 premises |
Council rates
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,807/yr same for both | |
| Council | East Gippsland same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gippsland same for both | |
| Member | Darren Chester same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Buchan South | Buchan | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
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.