Coombs vs Holder

Coombs is the younger of the two, with a median age of 30 against 41 in Holder. In both, most households own their home. In Coombs, about half of households are couple families. In Holder, most homes are detached houses. Houses cost more in Coombs: a median of $1.05 million, against $940,000 in Holder. On these figures, Coombs tends to suit young adults and families with children, while Holder 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

Holder

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (13/100 vs 51/100)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (3 vs 1)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (75% vs 37%)

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

First-home buyers

Holder

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has cheaper units ($478,000 vs $572,500)
  • has cheaper houses ($940,000 vs $1,050,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

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

Commuting to the city

Holder

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (85/100 vs 72/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Holder

ahead on 3 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more residents already 65 and over (19% vs 3%)
  • carries lower crime risk (13/100 vs 51/100)
  • is more walkable (85/100 vs 72/100)
  • But Coombs has more units and townhouses to downsize into (63% vs 25%)

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

Investors

Coombs

ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here

  • is growing faster (167.9% vs 8.1%)
  • returns a higher gross yield on houses (5.3% vs 3.6%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Coombs Holder
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.

Coombs Holder
Walkability 72 / 85
Coombs — Walkability: 72/100 Holder — Walkability: 85/100
Safety 49 / 87
Coombs — Safety: 49/100 Holder — Safety: 87/100
Low fire risk 1 / 1
Coombs — Low fire risk: 1/100 Holder — Low fire risk: 1/100
Low flood risk 36 / 63
Coombs — Low flood risk: 36/100 Holder — Low flood risk: 63/100

Demographics

Coombs has more residents (4,851 vs 2,816); Holder skews older (41 vs 30).

Coombs Holder
Population 4,851
+42% vs other
 2,816
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +167.9% +8.1%
Median age 30 41
Median household income $136,968/yr
+11% vs other
 $121,576/yr
Median weekly rent $480/wk
+3% vs other
 $465/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Coombs Holder
0-4 9.2% / 5.9%
Coombs — 0-4: 9.2% Holder — 0-4: 5.9%
5-14 15.0% / 12.7%
Coombs — 5-14: 15.0% Holder — 5-14: 12.7%
15-19 4.7% / 5.7%
Coombs — 15-19: 4.7% Holder — 15-19: 5.7%
20-24 6.7% / 4.6%
Coombs — 20-24: 6.7% Holder — 20-24: 4.6%
25-34 26.0% / 11.9%
Coombs — 25-34: 26.0% Holder — 25-34: 11.9%
35-44 21.3% / 15.0%
Coombs — 35-44: 21.3% Holder — 35-44: 15.0%
45-54 9.5% / 14.4%
Coombs — 45-54: 9.5% Holder — 45-54: 14.4%
55-64 4.6% / 10.8%
Coombs — 55-64: 4.6% Holder — 55-64: 10.8%
65-74 2.3% / 10.1%
Coombs — 65-74: 2.3% Holder — 65-74: 10.1%
75-84 0.8% / 7.1%
Coombs — 75-84: 0.8% Holder — 75-84: 7.1%
85+ 0.2% / 2.2%
Coombs — 85+: 0.2% Holder — 85+: 2.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (26.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Coombs 51.0% couple families
Coombs — Couple Families: 51.0% Coombs — Lone Person: 26.3% Coombs — One Parent Families: 14.1% Coombs — Group Household: 7.1% Coombs — Other Families: 1.5%
Holder 44.7% couple families
Holder — Couple Families: 44.7% Holder — Lone Person: 35.5% Holder — One Parent Families: 15.8% Holder — Group Household: 3.1% Holder — Other Families: 0.9%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Coombs 28.1% renting
Coombs — Owned Outright: 7.4% Coombs — Mortgage: 64.5% Coombs — Renting: 28.1%
Holder 18.8% renting
Holder — Owned Outright: 38.6% Holder — Mortgage: 42.6% Holder — Renting: 18.8%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Coombs Holder
Bachelor Degree 23.4% / 21.2%
Coombs — Bachelor Degree: 23.4% Holder — Bachelor Degree: 21.2%
Postgraduate Degree 14.5% / 10.5%
Coombs — Postgraduate Degree: 14.5% Holder — Postgraduate Degree: 10.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.2% / 8.5%
Coombs — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.2% Holder — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.5%
Certificate III & IV 6.0% / 7.9%
Coombs — Certificate III & IV: 6.0% Holder — Certificate III & IV: 7.9%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.0% / 5.0%
Coombs — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.0% Holder — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 5.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.4%).

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.

Coombs Holder
India 9.0% / 2.3%
Coombs — India: 9.0% Holder — India: 2.3%
England 1.8% / 3.9%
Coombs — England: 1.8% Holder — England: 3.9%
Nepal 4.6% / 0.8%
Coombs — Nepal: 4.6% Holder — Nepal: 0.8%
China 2.8% / 1.3%
Coombs — China: 2.8% Holder — China: 1.3%
Philippines 2.9% / 0.8%
Coombs — Philippines: 2.9% Holder — Philippines: 0.8%
Pakistan 1.8% / —
Coombs — Pakistan: 1.8% Holder — Pakistan: not among its largest
New Zealand — / 1.4%
Coombs — New Zealand: not among its largest Holder — New Zealand: 1.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (9.0%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Coombs 37.3% houses
Coombs — Houses: 37.3% Coombs — Townhouses: 34.6% Coombs — Flats / Apartments: 28.1%
Holder 74.6% houses
Holder — Houses: 74.6% Holder — Townhouses: 19.4% Holder — Flats / Apartments: 6.0%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Coombs Holder
Median house price $1,050,000 $940,000
Median unit price $572,500 $478,000
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 27 days
from 25 sales
 21 days
from 28 sales

House price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Coombs Holder
3 bed $900K / $915K
Coombs — 3 bed: $900K (11 sales) Holder — 3 bed: $915K (37 sales)

11 vs 37 sales

4 bed $1.35M / $1.04M
Coombs — 4 bed: $1.35M (23 sales) Holder — 4 bed: $1.04M (28 sales)

23 vs 28 sales

Development activity

Coombs Holder
New dwellings approved 3,750
across Unincorporated ACT
same for both
Approvals change year on year -48%
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.

Coombs Holder
Houses 5.3%
$720/wk on $710K
 3.6%
$660/wk on $945K
Units 6.3%
$600/wk on $499K
 —

Ranking within ACT

Coombs Holder
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 71% of ACT Higher than 46% of ACT
Schools — Higher than 64% of ACT
Walkability Higher than 69% of ACT Higher than 93% of ACT
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 73% of ACT Higher than 66% of ACT
NBN connectivity Higher than 93% of ACT Higher than 28% of ACT
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 91% of ACT Higher than 21% of ACT
Rental yield (units) Higher than 63% of ACT —

Liveability

Holder scores higher overall (62 vs 43); Holder is more walkable (85 vs 72).

Coombs Holder
Grade C B
Score 43/100 62/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
same for both

Risk profile

Coombs carries more crime risk (51 vs 13); Coombs carries more flood risk (64 vs 37).

Coombs Holder
Bushfire High
99/100
same for both
Crime Moderate
51/100
 Low
13/100
Flood Moderate
64/100
 Low
37/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Coombs Holder
Inside the suburb 1 3
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 1 0
Rated below peers 0 1
Universities within 10 km 3
Australian National University, 7.9 km
 2
UNSW Canberra, 9.0 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 2.5% 1.6%

Schools in Coombs

  • Charles Weston School Government · Primary at peers

Schools in Holder

  • St Jude's Primary School Catholic · Primary above peers
  • Canberra Montessori School Independent · Primary below peers
  • Communities@Work Galilee School - Holder Campus Independent · Secondary · Special school

Amenities in the suburb

Coombs Holder
Supermarkets 0 1
Cafes & restaurants 2 0
Parks & reserves 1
same for both
Childcare 3 4
GPs 1
same for both
Pharmacies 1 0
Waterways 7 0

Mobility

Coombs Holder
Walkability score 72/100 85/100
Distance to Canberra 14.3 km
+3% vs other
 13.8 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 19 min 18 min
Public transport score 77/100
Bus
 78/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 43.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
 65.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 4.0%
postcode 2611
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 52
postcode 2611
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.

Coombs Holder
Car (driver) 75.2% / 70.0%
Coombs — Car (driver): 75.2% Holder — Car (driver): 70.0%
Worked from Home 10.6% / 14.2%
Coombs — Worked from Home: 10.6% Holder — Worked from Home: 14.2%
Bus 6.6% / 6.6%
Coombs — Bus: 6.6% Holder — Bus: 6.6%
Car (passenger) 6.0% / 5.5%
Coombs — Car (passenger): 6.0% Holder — Car (passenger): 5.5%
Bicycle 0.8% / 2.2%
Coombs — Bicycle: 0.8% Holder — Bicycle: 2.2%
Walked Only 0.9% / 1.5%
Coombs — Walked Only: 0.9% Holder — Walked Only: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (75.2%).

Setting

Coombs Holder
Elevation 561 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 576 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Coombs Holder
Connectivity score 100/100 47/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises Fibre to the node
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 100%
2,384 premises
 3%
1,329 premises

Climate

Coombs Holder
Annual rainfall 686 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 28.2°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 0.9°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Coombs Holder
PM2.5 5.4 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 14.1 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Coombs Holder
Average residential rate $3,105/yr
same for both
Council Unincorporated ACT
same for both

Federal electorate

Coombs Holder
Division Bean
same for both
Member David Smith
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Coombs Holder
Grant amount Not offered
same for both
Property price cap —
same for both
Eligibility None
same for both

Tags

Coombs

Family Middle-Ring Multicultural Professionals River Townhouses Young Families

Holder

Middle-Ring Professionals

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Coombs

Coombs vs Weston Coombs vs Wright Coombs vs Duffy Coombs vs Denman Prospect

Other comparisons with Holder

Holder vs Weston Holder vs Duffy Holder vs Rivett Holder vs Stirling
Full data on Coombs Full data on Holder
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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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