Buckland vs Bright

In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Buckland, most households are couple families. In Bright, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Buckland tends to suit couples, while Bright suits people living alone and older residents.

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

Buckland

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 55/100)
  • is already more of a family suburb (66% vs 46%)
  • But Bright has more parks and reserves (14 vs 2)

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

First-home buyers

Buckland

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 28%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

They split

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

  • Buckland has cheaper rent ($275/wk vs $300/wk)
  • Bright has a bigger rental market to choose from (24% vs 12%)

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

Commuting to the city

Buckland

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (264 min vs 289 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (342.3 km vs 345.9 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Bright

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more GPs (5 vs 0)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 19%)
  • But Buckland carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 55/100)

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

Investors

Buckland

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (15.6% vs 8.9%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Buckland Bright
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.

Buckland Bright
Walkability 0 / 0
Buckland — Walkability: 0/100 Bright — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 74 / 45
Buckland — Safety: 74/100 Bright — Safety: 45/100
Low fire risk 6 / 4
Buckland — Low fire risk: 6/100 Bright — Low fire risk: 4/100
Low flood risk 100 / 86
Buckland — Low flood risk: 100/100 Bright — Low flood risk: 86/100

Demographics

Bright has more residents (2,620 vs 156); Bright skews older (49 vs 47).

Buckland Bright
Population 156 2,620
+1579% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +15.6% +8.9%
Median age 47 49
Median household income $77,012/yr
+9% vs other
 $70,304/yr
Median weekly rent $275/wk $300/wk
+9% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Buckland Bright
0-4 4.5% / 3.3%
Buckland — 0-4: 4.5% Bright — 0-4: 3.3%
5-14 11.5% / 11.4%
Buckland — 5-14: 11.5% Bright — 5-14: 11.4%
15-19 2.6% / 4.8%
Buckland — 15-19: 2.6% Bright — 15-19: 4.8%
20-24 1.9% / 4.3%
Buckland — 20-24: 1.9% Bright — 20-24: 4.3%
25-34 10.3% / 8.8%
Buckland — 25-34: 10.3% Bright — 25-34: 8.8%
35-44 10.3% / 12.0%
Buckland — 35-44: 10.3% Bright — 35-44: 12.0%
45-54 11.5% / 13.3%
Buckland — 45-54: 11.5% Bright — 45-54: 13.3%
55-64 20.5% / 14.4%
Buckland — 55-64: 20.5% Bright — 55-64: 14.4%
65-74 10.3% / 14.8%
Buckland — 65-74: 10.3% Bright — 65-74: 14.8%
75-84 9.0% / 9.6%
Buckland — 75-84: 9.0% Bright — 75-84: 9.6%
85+ — / 3.2%
Buckland — 85+: not among its largest Bright — 85+: 3.2%

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

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Buckland 56.2% couple families
Buckland — Couple Families: 56.2% Buckland — Lone Person: 34.4% Buckland — One Parent Families: 9.4% Buckland — Group Household: 0.0% Buckland — Other Families: 0.0%
Bright 33.4% couple families
Bright — Couple Families: 33.4% Bright — Lone Person: 47.4% Bright — One Parent Families: 12.6% Bright — Group Household: 5.6% Bright — Other Families: 1.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Buckland 11.5% renting
Buckland — Owned Outright: 44.2% Buckland — Mortgage: 44.2% Buckland — Renting: 11.5%
Bright 24.5% renting
Bright — Owned Outright: 47.6% Bright — Mortgage: 27.9% Bright — Renting: 24.5%
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.

Buckland Bright
England 5.1% / 5.5%
Buckland — England: 5.1% Bright — England: 5.5%
New Zealand — / 1.5%
Buckland — New Zealand: not among its largest Bright — New Zealand: 1.5%
Germany — / 1.1%
Buckland — Germany: not among its largest Bright — Germany: 1.1%
South Africa — / 0.7%
Buckland — South Africa: not among its largest Bright — South Africa: 0.7%
Canada — / 0.5%
Buckland — Canada: not among its largest Bright — Canada: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (5.5%).

Qualifications

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

Buckland Bright
Bachelor Degree 10.9% / 14.0%
Buckland — Bachelor Degree: 10.9% Bright — Bachelor Degree: 14.0%
Certificate III & IV 10.3% / 14.6%
Buckland — Certificate III & IV: 10.3% Bright — Certificate III & IV: 14.6%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 13.5% / 9.5%
Buckland — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 13.5% Bright — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.5%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 5.8% / 3.1%
Buckland — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 5.8% Bright — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.1%
Postgraduate Degree 4.5% / 3.5%
Buckland — Postgraduate Degree: 4.5% Bright — Postgraduate Degree: 3.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (14.6%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Buckland 94.7% houses
Buckland — Houses: 94.7% Buckland — Townhouses: 0.0% Buckland — Flats / Apartments: 5.3%
Bright 86.0% houses
Bright — Houses: 86.0% Bright — Townhouses: 11.0% Bright — Flats / Apartments: 3.0%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Buckland Bright
Median house price — $1,122,500
Median unit price — $622,500
Median land price — $737,500
Typical days to sell (houses) — 120 days
from 14 sales

Zoning mix

Bright has more rural and farming land (19% vs 6%).

Buckland Bright
Parks and recreation 92% 76%
Rural and farming 6% 19%
Residential 0% 3%
Environmental 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

Buckland Bright
New dwellings approved 32
across Alpine
same for both
Approvals change year on year -42%
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.

Buckland Bright
Houses — 2.6%
$602/wk on $1.19M
Units — 3.5%
$420/wk on $624K

Ranking within VIC

Buckland Bright
House price — Higher than 71% of VIC
Income Higher than 44% of VIC Higher than 32% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 63% of VIC Higher than 4% of VIC
Affordability — Higher than 11% of VIC
EV adoption Higher than 70% of VIC Higher than 79% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 12% of VIC Higher than 92% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) — Higher than 5% of VIC
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 2% of VIC

Liveability

Buckland Bright
Grade — D
Score — 28/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
 advantaged area
decile 7/10

Risk profile

Bright carries more flood risk (14 vs 0); Bright carries more crime risk (55 vs 26).

Buckland Bright
Bushfire High
94/100
 High
96/100
Crime Low
26/100
 Moderate
55/100
Flood None
0/100
 Low
14/100
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

Buckland Bright
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Buckland

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

Schools in Bright

  • Bright P-12 College Government · Combined at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Buckland Bright
Supermarkets 0 2
Cafes & restaurants 0 18
Parks & reserves 2 14
Childcare 0 2
GPs 0 5
Hospitals 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 3
Fuel stations 0 3
EV chargers 0 1
Waterways 978 30

Mobility

Bright sits further from the CBD (345.9 km vs 342.3 km).

Buckland Bright
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 342.3 km 345.9 km
+1% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 264 min 289 min
Electric vehicle share 0.8%
postcode 3740
 1.1%
postcode 3741
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 63
postcode 3740
 45
postcode 3741

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.

Buckland Bright
Car (driver) 66.2% / 55.2%
Buckland — Car (driver): 66.2% Bright — Car (driver): 55.2%
Worked from Home 26.8% / 25.1%
Buckland — Worked from Home: 26.8% Bright — Worked from Home: 25.1%
Walked Only 7.0% / 13.0%
Buckland — Walked Only: 7.0% Bright — Walked Only: 13.0%
Car (passenger) — / 3.6%
Buckland — Car (passenger): not among its largest Bright — Car (passenger): 3.6%
Bicycle — / 2.8%
Buckland — Bicycle: not among its largest Bright — Bicycle: 2.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (66.2%).

Setting

Buckland Bright
Elevation 657 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 900 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Buckland Bright
Connectivity score 15/100 84/100
Most common technology Satellite (Sky Muster) Fibre to the premises
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
38 premises
 45%
2,112 premises

Climate

Buckland Bright
Annual rainfall 895 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Council rates

Buckland Bright
Average residential rate $1,945/yr
same for both
Council Alpine
same for both

Federal electorate

Buckland Bright
Division Indi
same for both
Member Helen Haines
same for both
Party Independent
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Buckland Bright
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Buckland

River Rural

Bright

Retirees Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Buckland

Buckland vs Porepunkah Buckland vs Wandiligong Buckland vs Harrietville Buckland vs Smoko

Other comparisons with Bright

Bright vs Porepunkah Bright vs Tawonga Bright vs Wandiligong Bright vs Coral Bank Bright vs Kancoona
Full data on Buckland Full data on Bright
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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