Dennington vs Illowa

Dennington is the younger of the two, with a median age of 34 against 47 in Illowa. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Dennington, about half of households are couple families. In Illowa, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Illowa: a median of $1.39 million, against $604,000 in Dennington. On these figures, Dennington tends to suit buyers on a tighter budget, while Illowa suits couples and older residents.

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

Dennington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has more childcare (4 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

Dennington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($603,750 vs $1,387,500)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Dennington

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (18% vs 3%)

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

Commuting to the city

Dennington

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (48/100 vs 6/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (194 min vs 201 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (261.3 km vs 266.8 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here

  • Dennington is more walkable (48/100 vs 6/100)
  • Illowa has more residents already 65 and over (23% vs 13%)

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

Investors

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Dennington Illowa
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.

Dennington Illowa
Walkability 48 / 6
Dennington — Walkability: 48/100 Illowa — Walkability: 6/100
Safety 76 / 84
Dennington — Safety: 76/100 Illowa — Safety: 84/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Dennington — Low fire risk: 100/100 Illowa — Low fire risk: 100/100
Low flood risk 29 / 82
Dennington — Low flood risk: 29/100 Illowa — Low flood risk: 82/100

Demographics

Dennington has more residents (1,994 vs 304); Illowa skews older (47 vs 34).

Dennington Illowa
Population 1,994
+85% vs other
 304
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +4.6% +0.0%
Median age 34 47
Median household income $89,804/yr $108,316/yr
+21% vs other
Median weekly rent $370/wk $380/wk
+3% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Dennington Illowa
0-4 6.9% / 7.2%
Dennington — 0-4: 6.9% Illowa — 0-4: 7.2%
5-14 15.0% / 12.2%
Dennington — 5-14: 15.0% Illowa — 5-14: 12.2%
15-19 7.7% / 4.9%
Dennington — 15-19: 7.7% Illowa — 15-19: 4.9%
20-24 6.1% / 2.3%
Dennington — 20-24: 6.1% Illowa — 20-24: 2.3%
25-34 14.5% / 7.2%
Dennington — 25-34: 14.5% Illowa — 25-34: 7.2%
35-44 14.1% / 11.5%
Dennington — 35-44: 14.1% Illowa — 35-44: 11.5%
45-54 13.6% / 15.1%
Dennington — 45-54: 13.6% Illowa — 45-54: 15.1%
55-64 8.7% / 15.8%
Dennington — 55-64: 8.7% Illowa — 55-64: 15.8%
65-74 8.6% / 13.5%
Dennington — 65-74: 8.6% Illowa — 65-74: 13.5%
75-84 3.5% / 8.2%
Dennington — 75-84: 3.5% Illowa — 75-84: 8.2%
85+ 1.2% / 1.6%
Dennington — 85+: 1.2% Illowa — 85+: 1.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.8%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Dennington 47.3% couple families
Dennington — Couple Families: 47.3% Dennington — Lone Person: 27.5% Dennington — One Parent Families: 19.8% Dennington — Group Household: 3.2% Dennington — Other Families: 2.3%
Illowa 60.9% couple families
Illowa — Couple Families: 60.9% Illowa — Lone Person: 23.4% Illowa — One Parent Families: 9.4% Illowa — Group Household: 6.2% Illowa — Other Families: 0.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Dennington 18.0% renting
Dennington — Owned Outright: 32.1% Dennington — Mortgage: 49.9% Dennington — Renting: 18.0%
Illowa 3.1% renting
Illowa — Owned Outright: 53.1% Illowa — Mortgage: 43.9% Illowa — Renting: 3.1%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Dennington Illowa
Certificate III & IV 20.2% / 20.7%
Dennington — Certificate III & IV: 20.2% Illowa — Certificate III & IV: 20.7%
Bachelor Degree 7.3% / 12.5%
Dennington — Bachelor Degree: 7.3% Illowa — Bachelor Degree: 12.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.7% / 6.2%
Dennington — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.7% Illowa — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.5% / 3.0%
Dennington — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.5% Illowa — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.0%
Postgraduate Degree 1.4% / 1.6%
Dennington — Postgraduate Degree: 1.4% Illowa — Postgraduate Degree: 1.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.7%).

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.

Dennington Illowa
England 1.2% / 2.6%
Dennington — England: 1.2% Illowa — England: 2.6%
New Zealand 1.2% / 1.3%
Dennington — New Zealand: 1.2% Illowa — New Zealand: 1.3%
Netherlands — / 1.0%
Dennington — Netherlands: not among its largest Illowa — Netherlands: 1.0%
China 0.8% / —
Dennington — China: 0.8% Illowa — China: not among its largest
India 0.7% / —
Dennington — India: 0.7% Illowa — India: not among its largest
Philippines 0.5% / —
Dennington — Philippines: 0.5% Illowa — Philippines: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (2.6%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Dennington 98.9% houses
Dennington — Houses: 98.9% Dennington — Townhouses: 0.9% Dennington — Flats / Apartments: 0.3%
Illowa 100.0% houses
Illowa — Houses: 100.0% Illowa — Townhouses: 0.0% Illowa — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Dennington Illowa
Median house price $603,750 $1,387,500
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $210,000 —

Zoning mix

Illowa has more rural and farming land (99% vs 65%).

Dennington Illowa
Rural and farming 65% 99%
Residential 15% 0%
Parks and recreation 13% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 5% 1%
Industrial 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

Dennington Illowa
New dwellings approved 388
across Warrnambool
 64
across Moyne
Approvals change year on year -22% -15%

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.

Dennington Illowa
Houses 5.7%
$680/wk on $625K
 —
Units —
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Dennington Illowa
House price Higher than 31% of VIC —
Income Higher than 59% of VIC Higher than 81% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 86% of VIC Higher than 68% of VIC
Affordability Higher than 81% of VIC —
EV adoption Higher than 57% of VIC Higher than 35% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 77% of VIC Higher than 68% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 99% of VIC —

Liveability

Dennington is more walkable (48 vs 6).

Dennington Illowa
Grade C —
Score 48/100 —
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Dennington carries more flood risk (71 vs 18).

Dennington Illowa
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Low
24/100
 Low
16/100
Flood High
71/100
 Low
18/100
Coastal erosion Moderate
63/100
 Low
16/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 8
within 5 km
 1
within 5 km

Schools

Dennington Illowa
Inside the suburb 1 0
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 1 0

Schools in Dennington

  • St John's School Catholic · Primary below peers

Schools in Illowa

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Amenities in the suburb

Dennington Illowa
Supermarkets 1 0
Parks & reserves 2 3
Childcare 4 0
GPs 1 0
Pharmacies 1 0
Fuel stations 1 0
Waterways 1
same for both

Mobility

Illowa sits further from the CBD (266.8 km vs 261.3 km).

Dennington Illowa
Walkability score 48/100 6/100
Distance to Melbourne 261.3 km 266.8 km
+2% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 194 min 201 min
Public transport score 48/100 19/100
Peak arrivals per hour 15.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
 1.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
 71 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 0.6%
postcode 3280
 0.4%
postcode 3282
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 25
postcode 3280
 37
postcode 3282

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.

Dennington Illowa
Car (driver) 82.3% / 79.1%
Dennington — Car (driver): 82.3% Illowa — Car (driver): 79.1%
Worked from Home 8.3% / 14.0%
Dennington — Worked from Home: 8.3% Illowa — Worked from Home: 14.0%
Car (passenger) 6.0% / 7.0%
Dennington — Car (passenger): 6.0% Illowa — Car (passenger): 7.0%
Walked Only 2.0% / —
Dennington — Walked Only: 2.0% Illowa — Walked Only: not among its largest
Bicycle 0.8% / —
Dennington — Bicycle: 0.8% Illowa — Bicycle: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (82.3%).

Setting

Dennington Illowa
Elevation 6 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 24 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 2.1 km
4.0 km to a named beach
 2.4 km

NBN connectivity

Dennington Illowa
Connectivity score 66/100 30/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 41%
943 premises
 0%
128 premises

Climate

Dennington Illowa
Annual rainfall 699 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 22.5°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.2°C
same for both

Council rates

Dennington Illowa
Average residential rate $2,162/yr $1,613/yr
Council Warrnambool Moyne

Federal electorate

Dennington Illowa
Division Wannon
same for both
Member Dan Tehan
same for both
Party Liberal
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Dennington Illowa
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Dennington

Acreage Coastal

Illowa

Coastal Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Dennington

Dennington vs Warrnambool Dennington vs Yangery

Other comparisons with Illowa

Illowa vs Koroit Illowa vs Southern Cross Illowa vs Yangery Illowa vs Tower Hill
Full data on Dennington Full data on Illowa
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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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