Gorae vs Heathmere

Gorae is the younger of the two, with a median age of 40 against 45 in Heathmere. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Gorae, most households are couple families. In Heathmere, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Gorae tends to suit families with children and couples, while Heathmere suits older residents.

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

Too close to call

Nothing among the 6 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

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

Heathmere

ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here

  • has cheaper rent ($200/wk vs $460/wk)
  • leaves renters under less rental stress (14% vs 24%)

Weighs rent and rental stress.

Commuting to the city

Heathmere

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (258 min vs 264 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (344.3 km vs 350.5 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Heathmere

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has more residents already 65 and over (21% vs 11%)

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

Investors

Gorae

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (25.5% vs 0.4%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Gorae Heathmere
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.

Gorae Heathmere
Walkability 0 / 0
Gorae — Walkability: 0/100 Heathmere — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 87 / 84
Gorae — Safety: 87/100 Heathmere — Safety: 84/100
Low fire risk 9 / 9
Gorae — Low fire risk: 9/100 Heathmere — Low fire risk: 9/100
Low flood risk 100 / 81
Gorae — Low flood risk: 100/100 Heathmere — Low flood risk: 81/100

Demographics

Gorae rents higher ($460/wk vs $200/wk); Gorae has higher household incomes ($97,500 vs $76,648).

Gorae Heathmere
Population 236 238
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +25.5% +0.4%
Median age 40 45
Median household income $97,500/yr
+21% vs other
 $76,648/yr
Median weekly rent $460/wk
+57% vs other
 $200/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Gorae Heathmere
0-4 8.9% / 5.9%
Gorae — 0-4: 8.9% Heathmere — 0-4: 5.9%
5-14 12.3% / 7.6%
Gorae — 5-14: 12.3% Heathmere — 5-14: 7.6%
15-19 4.7% / 5.0%
Gorae — 15-19: 4.7% Heathmere — 15-19: 5.0%
20-24 7.6% / 3.8%
Gorae — 20-24: 7.6% Heathmere — 20-24: 3.8%
25-34 13.1% / 18.5%
Gorae — 25-34: 13.1% Heathmere — 25-34: 18.5%
35-44 10.6% / 7.1%
Gorae — 35-44: 10.6% Heathmere — 35-44: 7.1%
45-54 18.6% / 16.0%
Gorae — 45-54: 18.6% Heathmere — 45-54: 16.0%
55-64 12.7% / 14.7%
Gorae — 55-64: 12.7% Heathmere — 55-64: 14.7%
65-74 8.1% / 13.9%
Gorae — 65-74: 8.1% Heathmere — 65-74: 13.9%
75-84 1.3% / 4.6%
Gorae — 75-84: 1.3% Heathmere — 75-84: 4.6%
85+ 1.3% / 2.1%
Gorae — 85+: 1.3% Heathmere — 85+: 2.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.6%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Gorae 67.9% couple families
Gorae — Couple Families: 67.9% Gorae — Lone Person: 26.8% Gorae — One Parent Families: 5.4% Gorae — Group Household: 0.0%
Heathmere 46.3% couple families
Heathmere — Couple Families: 46.3% Heathmere — Lone Person: 20.4% Heathmere — One Parent Families: 27.8% Heathmere — Group Household: 5.6%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Gorae 0.0% renting
Gorae — Owned Outright: 48.6% Gorae — Mortgage: 51.4% Gorae — Renting: 0.0%
Heathmere 7.9% renting
Heathmere — Owned Outright: 44.9% Heathmere — Mortgage: 47.2% Heathmere — Renting: 7.9%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Gorae 100.0% houses
Gorae — Houses: 100.0%
Heathmere 100.0% houses
Heathmere — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

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

Gorae Heathmere
Certificate III & IV 19.5% / 20.2%
Gorae — Certificate III & IV: 19.5% Heathmere — Certificate III & IV: 20.2%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.1% / 9.7%
Gorae — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.1% Heathmere — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.7%
Bachelor Degree 7.2% / 5.0%
Gorae — Bachelor Degree: 7.2% Heathmere — Bachelor Degree: 5.0%
Postgraduate Degree 1.7% / —
Gorae — Postgraduate Degree: 1.7% Heathmere — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.3% / —
Gorae — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.3% Heathmere — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.2%).

Property market

Gorae Heathmere
Median house price — $810,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Zoning mix

Heathmere has more rural and farming land (71% vs 30%).

Gorae Heathmere
Rural and farming 30% 71%
Parks and recreation 70% 28%
Infrastructure and transport 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

Gorae Heathmere
New dwellings approved 60
across Glenelg
same for both
Approvals change year on year -65%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Gorae Heathmere
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 69% of VIC Higher than 44% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 37% of VIC Higher than 53% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 6% of VIC
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 31% of VIC Higher than 67% of VIC

Liveability

Gorae Heathmere
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10
 below-average income
decile 3/10

Risk profile

Heathmere carries more flood risk (19 vs 0).

Gorae Heathmere
Bushfire High
91/100
same for both
Crime Low
13/100
 Low
16/100
Flood None
0/100
 Low
19/100
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

Gorae Heathmere
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

Gorae Heathmere
Parks & reserves 2 3
Waterways 9 5

Mobility

Gorae sits further from the CBD (350.5 km vs 344.3 km).

Gorae Heathmere
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 350.5 km
+2% vs other
 344.3 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 264 min 258 min
Electric vehicle share 0.2%
postcode 3305
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 33
postcode 3305
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.

Gorae Heathmere
Car (driver) 79.1% / 76.9%
Gorae — Car (driver): 79.1% Heathmere — Car (driver): 76.9%
Worked from Home 12.7% / 11.5%
Gorae — Worked from Home: 12.7% Heathmere — Worked from Home: 11.5%
Walked Only 4.5% / 7.7%
Gorae — Walked Only: 4.5% Heathmere — Walked Only: 7.7%
Car (passenger) 3.6% / 3.8%
Gorae — Car (passenger): 3.6% Heathmere — Car (passenger): 3.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.1%).

Setting

Gorae Heathmere
Elevation 70 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 16 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 9.2 km 7.7 km

NBN connectivity

Gorae Heathmere
Connectivity score 27/100 30/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
82 premises
 0%
106 premises

Climate

Gorae Heathmere
Annual rainfall 860 mm 661 mm
Summer max (Jan) 22.2°C —
Winter min (Jul) 6.6°C —

Council rates

Gorae Heathmere
Average residential rate $1,852/yr
same for both
Council Glenelg
same for both

Federal electorate

Gorae Heathmere
Division Wannon
same for both
Member Dan Tehan
same for both
Party Liberal
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Gorae Heathmere
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Gorae

Rural Young Families

Heathmere

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Gorae

Gorae vs Heywood Gorae vs Portland North Gorae vs Bolwarra Gorae vs Gorae West Gorae vs Drumborg

Other comparisons with Heathmere

Heathmere vs Heywood Heathmere vs Bolwarra Heathmere vs Narrawong Heathmere vs Allestree
Full data on Gorae Full data on Heathmere
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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