Cartwrights Hill vs Downside
In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Cartwrights Hill, about half of households are couple families. In Downside, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Downside: a median of $2.5 million, against $748,000 in Cartwrights Hill, though rent is higher in Cartwrights Hill. On these figures, Cartwrights Hill tends to suit people living alone, older residents, and buyers on a tighter budget, while Downside suits couples.
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
- Cartwrights Hill carries lower crime risk (61/100 vs 77/100)
- Downside is already more of a family suburb (77% vs 67%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Cartwrights Hill
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($748,000 vs $2,500,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Downside
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (7% vs 16%)
- has cheaper rent ($185/wk vs $300/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Cartwrights Hill
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (16/100 vs 8/100)
- has a shorter drive in (290 min vs 299 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (459.7 km vs 470.8 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Cartwrights Hill
ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (16/100 vs 8/100)
- has more residents already 65 and over (21% vs 12%)
- carries lower crime risk (61/100 vs 77/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Downside
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (0.0% vs -10.6%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Cartwrights Hill and Downside 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
Cartwrights Hill rents higher ($300/wk vs $185/wk); Downside has higher household incomes ($134,316 vs $95,316).
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 169 +27% vs other | 124 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -10.6% | +0.0% |
| Median age | 47 | 46 |
| Median household income | $95,316/yr | $134,316/yr +41% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $300/wk +38% vs other | $185/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.5%).
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 (18.9%).
Property market
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $748,000 | $2,500,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Downside has more rural and farming land (99% vs 82%).
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 82% | 99% |
| Other and special use | 13% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 3% | 1% |
| Parks and recreation | 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
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 548 across Wagga Wagga same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +139% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 29% of NSW | Higher than 90% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 62% of NSW | Higher than 90% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 66% of NSW | Higher than 52% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 80% of NSW | Higher than 20% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 38% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 63% of NSW | Higher than 52% of NSW |
Liveability
Cartwrights Hill is more walkable (16 vs 8).
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 | very advantaged area decile 10/10 |
Risk profile
Downside carries more bushfire risk (18 vs 0); Downside carries more crime risk (77 vs 61).
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Low 18/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 61/100 | High 77/100 |
| 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 | 10 within 5 km | 0 within 5 km |
Schools
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 3 | 5 |
Mobility
Downside sits further from the CBD (470.8 km vs 459.7 km).
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 16/100 | 8/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 459.7 km | 470.8 km +2% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 290 min | 299 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.4% postcode 2650 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 45 postcode 2650 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 (81.2%).
Setting
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 201 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 204 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 32/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 3% 75 premises | 0% 49 premises |
Climate
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 565 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 31.8°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 3.4°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 7.7 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 23.1 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,254/yr same for both | |
| Council | Wagga Wagga same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Riverina same for both | |
| Member | Michael Mccormack same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Cartwrights Hill | Downside | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Cartwrights Hill
Other comparisons with Downside
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.