Ensay vs Swifts Creek
Swifts Creek is the younger of the two, with a median age of 50 against 56 in Ensay. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Swifts Creek: a median of $425,000, against $284,000 in Ensay, though rent is higher in Ensay. On these figures, Ensay tends to suit older residents and 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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Ensay carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 66/100)
- Swifts Creek has more schools inside the suburb (2 vs 0)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Ensay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($284,000 vs $425,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Swifts Creek
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (8% vs 17%)
- has cheaper rent ($120/wk vs $150/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Ensay
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (273 min vs 293 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (357 km vs 377 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Ensay
ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
- carries lower crime risk (33/100 vs 66/100)
- has more residents already 65 and over (36% vs 24%)
- But Swifts Creek has more GPs (2 vs 0)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Where they sit
Ensay and Swifts Creek drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.
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.
Demographics
Swifts Creek has higher household incomes ($73,424 vs $46,800); Swifts Creek has more residents (232 vs 155).
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 155 | 232 +50% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | — | -16.5% |
| Median age | 56 | 50 |
| Median household income | $46,800/yr | $73,424/yr +57% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $150/wk +20% vs other | $120/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.3%).
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.7%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.8%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $284,000 | $425,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Ensay has more rural and farming land (86% vs 49%).
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 86% | 49% |
| Parks and recreation | 13% | 51% |
| 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
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 386 across East Gippsland same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +50% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 7% of VIC | Higher than 39% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 71% of VIC | Higher than 39% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | — same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 31% of VIC | Higher than 43% of VIC |
Liveability
Ensay is more walkable (10 vs 0).
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Swifts Creek carries more crime risk (66 vs 33).
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 96/100 | High 95/100 |
| Crime | Low 33/100 | Moderate 66/100 |
| Flood | None 0/100 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
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 2 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
Schools in Ensay
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Swifts Creek
- Swifts Creek P-12 School Government · Combined below peers
- Swifts Creek P-12 School-Flagstaff Campus Government · Combined
Amenities in the suburb
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 0 | 1 |
| Parks & reserves | 1 same for both | |
| GPs | 0 | 2 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 same for both | |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 13 | 11 |
Mobility
Swifts Creek sits further from the CBD (377 km vs 357 km).
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 10/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 357 km | 377 km +6% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 273 min | 293 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 3895 | 0.0% postcode 3896 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 30 postcode 3895 | 33 postcode 3896 |
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (61.4%).
Setting
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 264 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 329 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 27/100 | 29/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 109 premises | 0% 199 premises |
Council rates
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,807/yr same for both | |
| Council | East Gippsland same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gippsland same for both | |
| Member | Darren Chester same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Ensay | Swifts Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
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.