Downside vs Marrar

Marrar is the younger of the two, with a median age of 39 against 46 in Downside. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Downside: a median of $2.5 million, against $516,000 in Marrar, though rent is higher in Marrar. On these figures, Marrar tends to suit buyers on a tighter budget.

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

Marrar

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 77/100)

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

First-home buyers

Marrar

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($516,000 vs $2,500,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Downside

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (7% vs 15%)
  • has cheaper rent ($185/wk vs $275/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Marrar

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (26/100 vs 8/100)
  • sits closer to the CBD (462.7 km vs 470.8 km)
  • But Downside has a shorter drive in (299 min vs 307 min)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Marrar

ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 77/100)
  • is more walkable (26/100 vs 8/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (19% vs 12%)

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

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

Downside Marrar
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.

Downside Marrar
Walkability 8 / 26
Downside — Walkability: 8/100 Marrar — Walkability: 26/100
Safety 23 / 79
Downside — Safety: 23/100 Marrar — Safety: 79/100
Low fire risk 82 / 84
Downside — Low fire risk: 82/100 Marrar — Low fire risk: 84/100

Demographics

Marrar has more residents (363 vs 124); Marrar rents higher ($275/wk vs $185/wk).

Downside Marrar
Population 124 363
+193% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +0.0% -1.4%
Median age 46 39
Median household income $134,316/yr
+29% vs other
 $94,900/yr
Median weekly rent $185/wk $275/wk
+49% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Downside Marrar
0-4 5.6% / 6.6%
Downside — 0-4: 5.6% Marrar — 0-4: 6.6%
5-14 12.1% / 13.2%
Downside — 5-14: 12.1% Marrar — 5-14: 13.2%
15-19 4.8% / 6.3%
Downside — 15-19: 4.8% Marrar — 15-19: 6.3%
20-24 9.7% / 3.3%
Downside — 20-24: 9.7% Marrar — 20-24: 3.3%
25-34 8.1% / 14.9%
Downside — 25-34: 8.1% Marrar — 25-34: 14.9%
35-44 12.1% / 11.8%
Downside — 35-44: 12.1% Marrar — 35-44: 11.8%
45-54 17.7% / 14.3%
Downside — 45-54: 17.7% Marrar — 45-54: 14.3%
55-64 16.1% / 11.8%
Downside — 55-64: 16.1% Marrar — 55-64: 11.8%
65-74 12.1% / 12.7%
Downside — 65-74: 12.1% Marrar — 65-74: 12.7%
75-84 — / 4.4%
Downside — 75-84: not among its largest Marrar — 75-84: 4.4%
85+ — / 1.9%
Downside — 85+: not among its largest Marrar — 85+: 1.9%

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

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Downside 63.6% couple families
Downside — Couple Families: 63.6% Downside — Lone Person: 22.7% Downside — One Parent Families: 13.6% Downside — Group Household: 0.0%
Marrar 69.6% couple families
Marrar — Couple Families: 69.6% Marrar — Lone Person: 24.6% Marrar — One Parent Families: 0.0% Marrar — Group Household: 5.8%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Downside 21.1% renting
Downside — Owned Outright: 34.2% Downside — Mortgage: 44.7% Downside — Renting: 21.1%
Marrar 16.2% renting
Marrar — Owned Outright: 41.9% Marrar — Mortgage: 41.9% Marrar — Renting: 16.2%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Downside 100.0% houses
Downside — Houses: 100.0%
Marrar 102.5% houses
Marrar — Houses: 102.5%
Houses

Qualifications

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

Downside Marrar
Certificate III & IV 15.3% / 19.6%
Downside — Certificate III & IV: 15.3% Marrar — Certificate III & IV: 19.6%
Bachelor Degree 13.7% / 6.9%
Downside — Bachelor Degree: 13.7% Marrar — Bachelor Degree: 6.9%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.6% / 5.8%
Downside — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.6% Marrar — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.8%
Postgraduate Degree 4.0% / 2.5%
Downside — Postgraduate Degree: 4.0% Marrar — Postgraduate Degree: 2.5%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 1.4%
Downside — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Marrar — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.6%).

Property market

Downside Marrar
Median house price $2,500,000 $516,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Zoning mix

Downside Marrar
Rural and farming 99%
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

Downside Marrar
New dwellings approved 548
across Wagga Wagga
 26
across Coolamon
Approvals change year on year +139% -33%

Ranking within NSW

Downside Marrar
House price Higher than 90% of NSW Higher than 8% of NSW
Income Higher than 90% of NSW Higher than 62% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 52% of NSW Higher than 73% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 20% of NSW Higher than 96% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 38% of NSW Higher than 3% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 52% of NSW Higher than 45% of NSW

Liveability

Marrar is more walkable (26 vs 8).

Downside Marrar
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10

Risk profile

Downside carries more crime risk (77 vs 21).

Downside Marrar
Bushfire Low
18/100
 Low
16/100
Crime High
77/100
 Low
21/100
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 0
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Downside Marrar
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 Downside

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

Schools in Marrar

  • Marrar Public School Government · Primary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Downside Marrar
Parks & reserves 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Waterways 5 11

Mobility

Downside sits further from the CBD (470.8 km vs 462.7 km).

Downside Marrar
Walkability score 8/100 26/100
Distance to Sydney 470.8 km
+2% vs other
 462.7 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 299 min 307 min
Electric vehicle share 0.4%
postcode 2650
 0.1%
postcode 2652
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 45
postcode 2650
 58
postcode 2652

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.

Downside Marrar
Car (driver) 77.4% / 67.4%
Downside — Car (driver): 77.4% Marrar — Car (driver): 67.4%
Worked from Home 22.6% / 25.4%
Downside — Worked from Home: 22.6% Marrar — Worked from Home: 25.4%
Car (passenger) — / 4.4%
Downside — Car (passenger): not among its largest Marrar — Car (passenger): 4.4%
Walked Only — / 2.8%
Downside — Walked Only: not among its largest Marrar — Walked Only: 2.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (77.4%).

Setting

Downside Marrar
Elevation 204 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 301 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Downside Marrar
Connectivity score 30/100 29/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
49 premises
 0%
158 premises

Climate

Downside Marrar
Annual rainfall 565 mm 559 mm
Summer max (Jan) 31.8°C —
Winter min (Jul) 3.4°C —

Council rates

Downside Marrar
Average residential rate $1,254/yr $441/yr
Council Wagga Wagga Coolamon

Federal electorate

Downside Marrar
Division Riverina
same for both
Member Michael Mccormack
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Downside Marrar
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Downside

Premium Rural

Marrar

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Downside

Downside vs Boorooma Downside vs North Wagga Wagga Downside vs Charles Sturt University Downside vs Brucedale Downside vs Yathella Downside vs Cartwrights Hill

Other comparisons with Marrar

Marrar vs Coolamon Marrar vs Old Junee Marrar vs Yathella Marrar vs Berry Jerry Marrar vs The Gap Marrar vs Murrulebale
Full data on Downside Full data on Marrar
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.

Save this page for later

We'll email you a link to this page so you can finish reading it on any device. We use your address once to send it and don't keep it.

or