Carstairs vs Home Hill
Home Hill is the younger of the two, with a median age of 49 against 52 in Carstairs. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Carstairs, most households are couple families. On these figures, Carstairs tends to suit couples, while Home Hill 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
Home Hill
ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more parks and reserves (8 vs 0)
- has more schools inside the suburb (3 vs 0)
- has more childcare (3 vs 0)
- But Carstairs carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 74/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Carstairs
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (12% vs 21%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Carstairs
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (8% vs 18%)
- has cheaper rent ($175/wk vs $220/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Home Hill
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (85/100 vs 4/100)
- has a shorter drive in (849 min vs 854 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (1252.8 km vs 1255.9 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Home Hill
ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (85/100 vs 4/100)
- has more GPs (2 vs 0)
- has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 21%)
- But Carstairs carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 74/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Home Hill
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (-2.6% vs -22.2%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Carstairs and Home Hill 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
Home Hill has more residents (2,876 vs 91); Carstairs has higher household incomes ($114,816 vs $62,920).
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 91 | 2,876 +3060% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -22.2% | -2.6% |
| Median age | 52 | 49 |
| Median household income | $114,816/yr +45% vs other | $62,920/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $175/wk | $220/wk +26% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.0%).
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 (18.3%).
Property market
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | — | $312,500 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — | $130,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | — | 67 days from 29 sales |
Development activity
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 22 across Burdekin same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -9% same for both | |
Ranking within QLD
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 85% of QLD | Higher than 28% of QLD |
| Schools | — | Higher than 96% of QLD |
| Walkability | Higher than 67% of QLD | Higher than 97% of QLD |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | — same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 50% of QLD | Higher than 76% of QLD |
Liveability
Home Hill is more walkable (85 vs 4).
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — | B |
| Score | — | 55/100 |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 | below-average income decile 2/10 |
Risk profile
Home Hill carries more crime risk (74 vs 32).
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Low 32/100 | High 74/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here 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 | 1 within 5 km |
Schools
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 3 |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 2 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
Schools in Carstairs
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Home Hill
- Home Hill State School Government · Primary above peers
- St Colman's Catholic School Catholic · Primary above peers
- Home Hill State High School Government · Secondary below peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 0 | 1 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 0 | 5 |
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 8 |
| Childcare | 0 | 3 |
| GPs | 0 | 2 |
| Pharmacies | 0 | 2 |
| Hospitals | 0 | 1 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 3 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 2 |
| Waterways | 1 | 4 |
Mobility
Carstairs sits further from the CBD (1255.9 km vs 1252.8 km).
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 4/100 | 85/100 |
| Distance to Brisbane | 1255.9 km | 1252.8 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 854 min | 849 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 4806 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 75 postcode 4806 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 (82.4%).
Setting
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 9 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 16 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 7.4 km | 11.5 km |
NBN connectivity
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 65/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless | Fibre to the node |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 59 premises | 38% 1,545 premises |
Climate
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,037 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 32.0°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 13.3°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 6.6 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 17.3 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,502/yr same for both | |
| Council | Burdekin same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Dawson same for both | |
| Member | Andrew Willcox same for both | |
| Party | Liberal National Party of Queensland same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Carstairs | Home Hill | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $30,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Carstairs
Other comparisons with Home Hill
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.