Cathcart vs Moyston
Moyston is the younger of the two, with a median age of 49 against 53 in Cathcart. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Cathcart, most households are couple families. On these figures, Cathcart tends to suit 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
- Cathcart carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 72/100)
- Moyston has more parks and reserves (11 vs 2)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Cathcart
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (7% vs 16%)
- has cheaper rent ($138/wk vs $200/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Cathcart
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (147 min vs 158 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (211.2 km vs 223.6 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Cathcart
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- carries lower crime risk (32/100 vs 72/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Cathcart
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (20.9% vs 15.8%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Cathcart and Moyston 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
Moyston has more residents (403 vs 110); Cathcart has higher household incomes ($98,748 vs $65,520).
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 110 | 403 +266% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +20.9% | +15.8% |
| Median age | 53 | 49 |
| Median household income | $98,748/yr +34% vs other | $65,520/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $138/wk | $200/wk +45% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.7%).
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 (17.6%).
Property market
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | — | $500,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — | $740,000 |
Zoning mix
Cathcart has more rural and farming land (98% vs 87%).
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 98% | 87% |
| Parks and recreation | 1% | 12% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 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
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 56 across Ararat same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +80% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 71% of VIC | Higher than 26% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 31% of VIC | Higher than 28% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 19% of VIC same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 35% of VIC | Higher than 57% of VIC |
Liveability
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | advantaged area decile 7/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 |
Risk profile
Moyston carries more bushfire risk (81 vs 14); Moyston carries more crime risk (72 vs 32).
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 14/100 | High 81/100 |
| Crime | Low 32/100 | High 72/100 |
| 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 | 1 within 5 km | 0 within 5 km |
Schools
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
Schools in Cathcart
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Moyston
- Moyston Primary School Government · Primary below peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 2 | 11 |
| GPs | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 8 | 44 |
Mobility
Moyston sits further from the CBD (223.6 km vs 211.2 km).
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 211.2 km | 223.6 km +6% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 147 min | 158 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.3% postcode 3377 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 38 postcode 3377 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 (86.1%).
Setting
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 330 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 271 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 28/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 47 premises | 0% 186 premises |
Climate
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 554 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 27.5°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 4.0°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,002/yr same for both | |
| Council | Ararat same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Wannon same for both | |
| Member | Dan Tehan same for both | |
| Party | Liberal same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Cathcart | Moyston | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Cathcart
Other comparisons with Moyston
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.