Cape Clear vs Happy Valley
Happy Valley is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 52 in Cape Clear. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Cape Clear, most households are people living alone. In Happy Valley, about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Cape Clear tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while Happy Valley suits 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
Happy Valley
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (35/100 vs 80/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (53% vs 42%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Happy Valley
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (16% vs 21%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Happy Valley
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($150/wk vs $180/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Cape Clear
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (117 min vs 133 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (150.2 km vs 158.2 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- Cape Clear has more residents already 65 and over (30% vs 18%)
- Happy Valley carries lower crime risk (35/100 vs 80/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Cape Clear
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (18.4% vs 2.4%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Cape Clear and Happy Valley 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
Cape Clear has more residents (148 vs 87); Cape Clear rents higher ($180/wk vs $150/wk).
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 148 +41% vs other | 87 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +18.4% | +2.4% |
| Median age | 52 | 47 |
| Median household income | $62,816/yr +2% vs other | $61,724/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $180/wk +17% vs other | $150/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.5%).
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 (10.3%).
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 (23.0%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Zoning mix
Cape Clear has more rural and farming land (97% vs 69%).
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 97% | 69% |
| Parks and recreation | 0% | 31% |
| Residential | 2% | 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
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 186 across Golden Plains same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +10% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 24% of VIC | Higher than 23% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 75% of VIC | Higher than 72% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 39% of VIC | Higher than 42% of VIC |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 58% of VIC | Higher than 24% of VIC |
Liveability
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Cape Clear carries more crime risk (80 vs 35); Happy Valley carries more bushfire risk (28 vs 17).
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 17/100 | Low 28/100 |
| Crime | High 80/100 | Low 35/100 |
| Flood | Moderate 43/100 | Low 30/100 |
| 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
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Cape Clear
- Cape Clear Primary School Government · Primary
Schools in Happy Valley
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 2 | 3 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 2 | 4 |
Mobility
Happy Valley sits further from the CBD (158.2 km vs 150.2 km).
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 13/100 | 10/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 150.2 km | 158.2 km +5% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 117 min | 133 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.4% postcode 3351 | 0.5% postcode 3360 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 52 postcode 3351 | 42 postcode 3360 |
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 (75.0%).
Setting
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 265 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 322 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 24/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 77 premises | 0% 38 premises |
Climate
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 602 mm | 605 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | — | 25.7°C |
| Winter min (Jul) | — | 3.5°C |
Council rates
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,052/yr same for both | |
| Council | Golden Plains same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Ballarat same for both | |
| Member | Catherine King same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Cape Clear | Happy Valley | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Happy Valley
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Cape Clear
Other comparisons with Happy Valley
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.