Dora Creek vs Cooranbong

Cooranbong is the younger of the two, with a median age of 39 against 51 in Dora Creek. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Cooranbong, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Cooranbong: a median of $950,000, against $850,000 in Dora Creek. On these figures, Dora Creek tends to suit people living alone, while Cooranbong suits families with children and 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

Cooranbong

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (5 vs 0)
  • carries lower crime risk (55/100 vs 74/100)
  • is already more of a family suburb (63% vs 51%)
  • But Dora Creek has more separate houses rather than flats (97% vs 85%)

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

First-home buyers

Dora Creek

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has cheaper land ($559,990 vs $1,105,000)
  • has cheaper houses ($850,000 vs $950,000)

Weighs house prices, land 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

Dora Creek

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (34/100 vs 13/100)
  • sits closer to the CBD (118.7 km vs 129.2 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

They split

one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here

  • Dora Creek is more walkable (34/100 vs 13/100)
  • Cooranbong has more units and townhouses to downsize into (15% vs 3%)

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

Investors

Cooranbong

ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here

  • is growing faster (29.9% vs 5.8%)
  • returns a higher gross yield on houses (4.2% vs 3.6%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Dora Creek Cooranbong
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.

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Walkability 34 / 13
Dora Creek — Walkability: 34/100 Cooranbong — Walkability: 13/100
Safety 26 / 45
Dora Creek — Safety: 26/100 Cooranbong — Safety: 45/100
Low fire risk 58 / 53
Dora Creek — Low fire risk: 58/100 Cooranbong — Low fire risk: 53/100

Demographics

Cooranbong has more residents (7,077 vs 1,739); Dora Creek skews older (51 vs 39).

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Population 1,739 7,077
+307% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +5.8% +29.9%
Median age 51 39
Median household income $72,852/yr $85,228/yr
+17% vs other
Median weekly rent $380/wk
same for both

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Dora Creek Cooranbong
0-4 3.5% / 6.8%
Dora Creek — 0-4: 3.5% Cooranbong — 0-4: 6.8%
5-14 10.2% / 13.2%
Dora Creek — 5-14: 10.2% Cooranbong — 5-14: 13.2%
15-19 4.8% / 5.8%
Dora Creek — 15-19: 4.8% Cooranbong — 15-19: 5.8%
20-24 5.7% / 5.5%
Dora Creek — 20-24: 5.7% Cooranbong — 20-24: 5.5%
25-34 10.8% / 13.4%
Dora Creek — 25-34: 10.8% Cooranbong — 25-34: 13.4%
35-44 9.3% / 11.0%
Dora Creek — 35-44: 9.3% Cooranbong — 35-44: 11.0%
45-54 11.0% / 10.9%
Dora Creek — 45-54: 11.0% Cooranbong — 45-54: 10.9%
55-64 17.1% / 10.8%
Dora Creek — 55-64: 17.1% Cooranbong — 55-64: 10.8%
65-74 15.1% / 10.4%
Dora Creek — 65-74: 15.1% Cooranbong — 65-74: 10.4%
75-84 10.4% / 7.6%
Dora Creek — 75-84: 10.4% Cooranbong — 75-84: 7.6%
85+ 2.8% / 4.7%
Dora Creek — 85+: 2.8% Cooranbong — 85+: 4.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.1%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Dora Creek 33.6% couple families
Dora Creek — Couple Families: 33.6% Dora Creek — Lone Person: 40.9% Dora Creek — One Parent Families: 17.1% Dora Creek — Group Household: 6.2% Dora Creek — Other Families: 2.1%
Cooranbong 47.7% couple families
Cooranbong — Couple Families: 47.7% Cooranbong — Lone Person: 32.6% Cooranbong — One Parent Families: 15.0% Cooranbong — Group Household: 3.9% Cooranbong — Other Families: 0.8%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Dora Creek 21.0% renting
Dora Creek — Owned Outright: 47.0% Dora Creek — Mortgage: 32.0% Dora Creek — Renting: 21.0%
Cooranbong 23.3% renting
Cooranbong — Owned Outright: 31.8% Cooranbong — Mortgage: 44.9% Cooranbong — Renting: 23.3%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Certificate III & IV 21.2% / 17.7%
Dora Creek — Certificate III & IV: 21.2% Cooranbong — Certificate III & IV: 17.7%
Bachelor Degree 7.2% / 11.2%
Dora Creek — Bachelor Degree: 7.2% Cooranbong — Bachelor Degree: 11.2%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.2% / 8.4%
Dora Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.2% Cooranbong — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.4%
Postgraduate Degree 2.5% / 4.5%
Dora Creek — Postgraduate Degree: 2.5% Cooranbong — Postgraduate Degree: 4.5%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.1% / 1.6%
Dora Creek — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.1% Cooranbong — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.2%).

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.

Dora Creek Cooranbong
England 3.0% / 2.7%
Dora Creek — England: 3.0% Cooranbong — England: 2.7%
New Zealand 1.6% / 3.7%
Dora Creek — New Zealand: 1.6% Cooranbong — New Zealand: 3.7%
Philippines 0.6% / 0.6%
Dora Creek — Philippines: 0.6% Cooranbong — Philippines: 0.6%
South Africa — / 1.1%
Dora Creek — South Africa: not among its largest Cooranbong — South Africa: 1.1%
Scotland 0.7% / 0.3%
Dora Creek — Scotland: 0.7% Cooranbong — Scotland: 0.3%
Netherlands 0.6% / —
Dora Creek — Netherlands: 0.6% Cooranbong — Netherlands: not among its largest
India — / 0.6%
Dora Creek — India: not among its largest Cooranbong — India: 0.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.7%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Dora Creek 96.6% houses
Dora Creek — Houses: 96.6% Dora Creek — Townhouses: 0.4% Dora Creek — Flats / Apartments: 3.0%
Cooranbong 85.4% houses
Cooranbong — Houses: 85.4% Cooranbong — Townhouses: 10.2% Cooranbong — Flats / Apartments: 4.4%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Median house price $850,000 $950,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $559,990 $1,105,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 34 days
from 41 sales
 31 days
from 95 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.

Dora Creek Cooranbong
2 bed $910K / $802K
Dora Creek — 2 bed: $910K (8 sales) Cooranbong — 2 bed: $802K (8 sales)

8 vs 8 sales

3 bed $836K / $824K
Dora Creek — 3 bed: $836K (34 sales) Cooranbong — 3 bed: $824K (36 sales)

34 vs 36 sales

4 bed $798K / $962K
Dora Creek — 4 bed: $798K (27 sales) Cooranbong — 4 bed: $962K (88 sales)

27 vs 88 sales

Zoning mix

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Environmental 48% 52%
Rural and farming 31% 37%
Residential 12% 6%
Infrastructure and transport 6% 4%
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

Dora Creek Cooranbong
New dwellings approved 1,212
across Lake Macquarie
same for both
Approvals change year on year +2%
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.

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Houses 3.6%
$758/wk on $1.1M
 4.2%
$830/wk on $1.02M
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Dora Creek Cooranbong
House price Higher than 34% of NSW Higher than 45% of NSW
Income Higher than 39% of NSW Higher than 55% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 76% of NSW Higher than 61% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 56% of NSW Higher than 57% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 45% of NSW Higher than 75% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 80% of NSW Higher than 87% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 50% of NSW Higher than 82% of NSW

Liveability

Dora Creek is more walkable (34 vs 13); Cooranbong scores higher overall (38 vs 31).

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Grade C
same for both
Score 31/100 38/100
Socio-economic band below-average income
decile 3/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 6/10

Risk profile

Dora Creek carries more crime risk (74 vs 55).

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Bushfire Moderate
42/100
 Moderate
47/100
Crime High
74/100
 Moderate
55/100
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 2
within 5 km
 0
within 5 km

Schools

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Inside the suburb 1 2
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 1 2
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Dora Creek

  • Dora Creek Public School Government · Primary at peers

Schools in Cooranbong

  • Avondale School Independent · Combined at peers
  • Cooranbong Public School Government · Primary at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Cafes & restaurants 0 4
Parks & reserves 2 3
Childcare 0 5
GPs 0 1
Pharmacies 1 0
Banks & Bank@Post 1
same for both
Fuel stations 0 2
Waterways 3 14

Mobility

Cooranbong sits further from the CBD (129.2 km vs 118.7 km).

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Walkability score 34/100 13/100
Distance to Sydney 118.7 km 129.2 km
+9% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 94 min 96 min
Public transport score 42/100
Rail · Bus
 76/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 8.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 59.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 4.5 min
scheduled, not actual
 0 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 0.4%
postcode 2264
 0.9%
postcode 2265
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 52
postcode 2264
 78
postcode 2265

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.

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Car (driver) 69.8% / 67.5%
Dora Creek — Car (driver): 69.8% Cooranbong — Car (driver): 67.5%
Worked from Home 25.0% / 25.7%
Dora Creek — Worked from Home: 25.0% Cooranbong — Worked from Home: 25.7%
Car (passenger) 3.2% / 3.7%
Dora Creek — Car (passenger): 3.2% Cooranbong — Car (passenger): 3.7%
Walked Only 0.9% / 1.9%
Dora Creek — Walked Only: 0.9% Cooranbong — Walked Only: 1.9%
Train 1.1% / 0.8%
Dora Creek — Train: 1.1% Cooranbong — Train: 0.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (69.8%).

Setting

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Elevation -3 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 23 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 13.4 km 16.9 km

NBN connectivity

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Connectivity score 73/100 78/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 53%
1,100 premises
 61%
3,709 premises

Climate

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Annual rainfall 1,272 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 26.4°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 10.6°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Dora Creek Cooranbong
PM2.5 5.0 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 11.6 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.27 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Average residential rate $1,708/yr
same for both
Council Lake Macquarie
same for both

Federal electorate

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Division Hunter
same for both
Member Dan Repacholi
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Dora Creek Cooranbong
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Dora Creek

Acreage Retirees Trains

Cooranbong

Acreage

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Dora Creek

Dora Creek vs Morisset Dora Creek vs Eraring

Other comparisons with Cooranbong

Cooranbong vs Morisset Cooranbong vs Mandalong Cooranbong vs Awaba Cooranbong vs Martinsville Cooranbong vs Eraring Cooranbong vs Freemans Waterhole
Full data on Dora Creek Full data on Cooranbong
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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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