Fosterville vs Goornong
Goornong is the younger of the two, with a median age of 40 against 50 in Fosterville. 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, Fosterville tends to suit couples and older residents, while Goornong suits 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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Fosterville is already more of a family suburb (73% vs 65%)
- Goornong carries lower crime risk (30/100 vs 49/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Goornong
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (18% vs 44%)
Weighs 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
Fosterville
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- sits closer to the CBD (154.9 km vs 164.1 km)
- has a shorter drive in (114 min vs 120 min)
- But Goornong is more walkable (30/100 vs 0/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Goornong
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (30/100 vs 0/100)
- carries lower crime risk (30/100 vs 49/100)
- But Fosterville has more residents already 65 and over (28% vs 14%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Goornong
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (9.8% vs -9.5%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Fosterville and Goornong 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
Goornong has more residents (718 vs 57); Fosterville skews older (50 vs 40).
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 57 | 718 +1160% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -9.5% | +9.8% |
| Median age | 50 | 40 |
| Median household income | $80,600/yr | $87,724/yr +9% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $240/wk | $245/wk +2% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.6%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 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 (20.8%).
Property market
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | — | $626,750 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — | $465,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | — | 20 days from 6 sales |
Zoning mix
Goornong has more rural and farming land (85% vs 52%).
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 52% | 85% |
| Parks and recreation | 48% | 11% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 0% | 2% |
| Residential | 0% | 1% |
| Industrial | 0% | 1% |
| 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
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 885 across Greater Bendigo same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +28% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 48% of VIC | Higher than 58% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 15% of VIC | Higher than 83% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | — same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 25% of VIC | Higher than 61% of VIC |
Liveability
Goornong is more walkable (30 vs 0).
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — | B |
| Score | — | 55/100 |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 6/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 5/10 |
Risk profile
Goornong carries more bushfire risk (20 vs 0); Fosterville carries more crime risk (49 vs 30).
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Low 20/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 49/100 | Low 30/100 |
| Flood | Low 12/100 | Low 11/100 |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 1 within 5 km | 0 within 5 km |
Schools
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 | 1 |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Fosterville
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Goornong
- Goornong Primary School Government · Primary at peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 4 | 6 |
| Childcare | 0 | 1 |
| Police stations | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 1 | 8 |
Mobility
Goornong sits further from the CBD (164.1 km vs 154.9 km).
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 | 30/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 154.9 km | 164.1 km +6% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 114 min | 120 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 3557 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 53 postcode 3557 same for both | |
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 (80.0%).
Setting
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 173 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 146 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 25/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 31 premises | 0% 301 premises |
Climate
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 553 mm | 438 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | 29.6°C | — |
| Winter min (Jul) | 3.1°C | — |
Council rates
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,949/yr same for both | |
| Council | Greater Bendigo same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Bendigo same for both | |
| Member | Lisa Chesters same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Fosterville | Goornong | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Fosterville
Other comparisons with Goornong
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.