Dockers Plains vs Boralma

Boralma is the younger of the two, with a median age of 43 against 50 in Dockers Plains. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. On these figures, Dockers Plains tends to suit families with children.

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

Boralma

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (59/100 vs 82/100)
  • is already more of a family suburb (80% vs 69%)

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

Dockers Plains

ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here

  • has cheaper rent ($195/wk vs $290/wk)
  • leaves renters under less rental stress (12% vs 18%)

Weighs rent and rental stress.

Commuting to the city

Dockers Plains

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (266.5 km vs 270.3 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Boralma

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • has more residents already 65 and over (15% vs 10%)
  • carries lower crime risk (59/100 vs 82/100)

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

Investors

Boralma

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (14.5% vs 9.3%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Dockers Plains Boralma
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.

Dockers Plains Boralma
Walkability 0 / 0
Dockers Plains — Walkability: 0/100 Boralma — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 18 / 41
Dockers Plains — Safety: 18/100 Boralma — Safety: 41/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Dockers Plains — Low fire risk: 100/100 Boralma — Low fire risk: 100/100
Low flood risk 25 / 100
Dockers Plains — Low flood risk: 25/100 Boralma — Low flood risk: 100/100

Demographics

Boralma rents higher ($290/wk vs $195/wk); Boralma has more residents (79 vs 59).

Dockers Plains Boralma
Population 59 79
+34% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +9.3% +14.5%
Median age 50 43
Median household income $84,448/yr $84,500/yr
Median weekly rent $195/wk $290/wk
+49% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Dockers Plains Boralma
0-4 5.1% / —
Dockers Plains — 0-4: 5.1% Boralma — 0-4: not among its largest
5-14 15.3% / 10.1%
Dockers Plains — 5-14: 15.3% Boralma — 5-14: 10.1%
15-19 15.3% / 8.9%
Dockers Plains — 15-19: 15.3% Boralma — 15-19: 8.9%
20-24 — / 5.1%
Dockers Plains — 20-24: not among its largest Boralma — 20-24: 5.1%
25-34 11.9% / 11.4%
Dockers Plains — 25-34: 11.9% Boralma — 25-34: 11.4%
35-44 — / 8.9%
Dockers Plains — 35-44: not among its largest Boralma — 35-44: 8.9%
45-54 22.0% / 17.7%
Dockers Plains — 45-54: 22.0% Boralma — 45-54: 17.7%
55-64 13.6% / 17.7%
Dockers Plains — 55-64: 13.6% Boralma — 55-64: 17.7%
65-74 5.1% / 7.6%
Dockers Plains — 65-74: 5.1% Boralma — 65-74: 7.6%
75-84 5.1% / 7.6%
Dockers Plains — 75-84: 5.1% Boralma — 75-84: 7.6%
85+ — / —
Dockers Plains — 85+: not among its largest Boralma — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Dockers Plains 68.8% couple families
Dockers Plains — Couple Families: 68.8% Dockers Plains — Lone Person: 31.2% Dockers Plains — Group Household: 0.0% Dockers Plains — One Parent Families: 0.0%
Boralma 65.0% couple families
Boralma — Couple Families: 65.0% Boralma — Lone Person: 0.0% Boralma — Group Household: 20.0% Boralma — One Parent Families: 15.0%
Couple Families Lone Person Group Household One Parent Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Dockers Plains 18.2% renting
Dockers Plains — Owned Outright: 40.9% Dockers Plains — Mortgage: 40.9% Dockers Plains — Renting: 18.2%
Boralma 0.0% renting
Boralma — Owned Outright: 33.3% Boralma — Mortgage: 66.7% Boralma — Renting: 0.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Dockers Plains 100.0% houses
Dockers Plains — Houses: 100.0%
Boralma 100.0% houses
Boralma — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

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

Dockers Plains Boralma
Certificate III & IV 13.6% / 17.7%
Dockers Plains — Certificate III & IV: 13.6% Boralma — Certificate III & IV: 17.7%
Bachelor Degree 16.9% / 10.1%
Dockers Plains — Bachelor Degree: 16.9% Boralma — Bachelor Degree: 10.1%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.8% / 5.1%
Dockers Plains — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.8% Boralma — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.7%).

Zoning mix

Dockers Plains Boralma
Rural and farming 98% 97%
Infrastructure and transport 2%
same for both
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

Dockers Plains Boralma
New dwellings approved 238
across Wangaratta
same for both
Approvals change year on year +329%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Dockers Plains Boralma
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 52% of VIC Higher than 53% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 11% of VIC Higher than 15% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 43% of VIC —
NBN connectivity Higher than 52% of VIC Higher than 53% of VIC

Liveability

Dockers Plains Boralma
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10
 advantaged area
decile 7/10

Risk profile

Dockers Plains carries more flood risk (75 vs 0); Dockers Plains carries more crime risk (82 vs 59).

Dockers Plains Boralma
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime High
82/100
 Moderate
59/100
Flood High
75/100
 None
0/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 0
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Dockers Plains Boralma
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

Dockers Plains Boralma
Parks & reserves 0 2
Waterways 1 0

Mobility

Boralma sits further from the CBD (270.3 km vs 266.5 km).

Dockers Plains Boralma
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 266.5 km 270.3 km
+1% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 173 min 174 min
Electric vehicle share 0.5%
postcode 3678
 0.0%
postcode 3682
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 78
postcode 3678
 75
postcode 3682

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.

Dockers Plains Boralma
Car (driver) 67.7% / 57.6%
Dockers Plains — Car (driver): 67.7% Boralma — Car (driver): 57.6%
Worked from Home 19.4% / 33.3%
Dockers Plains — Worked from Home: 19.4% Boralma — Worked from Home: 33.3%
Car (passenger) 12.9% / —
Dockers Plains — Car (passenger): 12.9% Boralma — Car (passenger): not among its largest
Walked Only — / 9.1%
Dockers Plains — Walked Only: not among its largest Boralma — Walked Only: 9.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (67.7%).

Setting

Dockers Plains Boralma
Elevation 151 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 154 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Dockers Plains Boralma
Connectivity score 30/100
same for both
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
25 premises
 0%
35 premises

Climate

Dockers Plains Boralma
Annual rainfall 565 mm 567 mm
Summer max (Jan) 31.4°C 31.7°C
Winter min (Jul) 2.7°C 2.1°C

Council rates

Dockers Plains Boralma
Average residential rate $1,962/yr
same for both
Council Wangaratta
same for both

Federal electorate

Dockers Plains Boralma
Division Indi
same for both
Member Helen Haines
same for both
Party Independent
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Dockers Plains Boralma
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Dockers Plains

Rural

Boralma

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Dockers Plains

Dockers Plains vs Killawarra Dockers Plains vs North Wangaratta Dockers Plains vs Byawatha Dockers Plains vs Boorhaman

Other comparisons with Boralma

Boralma vs Springhurst Boralma vs Byawatha Boralma vs Boorhaman
Full data on Dockers Plains Full data on Boralma
Unlock full address-level data — $29/month

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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