Gowrie vs Isabella Plains

In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Gowrie, most households are couple families. In Isabella Plains, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Gowrie: a median of $1 million, against $856,000 in Isabella Plains. Gowrie is closer to the city centre: 21.2 km, against 25.5 km. On these figures, Isabella Plains tends to suit people living alone.

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

Gowrie

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more schools rated above their peers (2 vs 0)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (99% vs 75%)
  • is already more of a family suburb (74% vs 65%)
  • But Isabella Plains carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 45/100)

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

First-home buyers

Isabella Plains

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($856,000 vs $1,000,000)

Weighs house 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

Gowrie

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (21.2 km vs 25.5 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Isabella Plains

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (25% vs 1%)
  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 45/100)

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

Investors

Isabella Plains

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • returns a higher gross yield on houses (5.3% vs 4.5%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Gowrie Isabella Plains
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.

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Walkability 62 / 61
Gowrie — Walkability: 62/100 Isabella Plains — Walkability: 61/100
Safety 55 / 74
Gowrie — Safety: 55/100 Isabella Plains — Safety: 74/100
Low fire risk 9 / 10
Gowrie — Low fire risk: 9/100 Isabella Plains — Low fire risk: 10/100
Low flood risk 68 / 43
Gowrie — Low flood risk: 68/100 Isabella Plains — Low flood risk: 43/100

Demographics

Isabella Plains has more residents (4,329 vs 3,140); Gowrie has higher household incomes ($139,048 vs $110,812).

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Population 3,140 4,329
+38% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +2.7% -1.7%
Median age 38 36
Median household income $139,048/yr
+20% vs other
 $110,812/yr
Median weekly rent $440/wk $450/wk
+2% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Gowrie Isabella Plains
0-4 6.9% / 7.1%
Gowrie — 0-4: 6.9% Isabella Plains — 0-4: 7.1%
5-14 14.1% / 13.8%
Gowrie — 5-14: 14.1% Isabella Plains — 5-14: 13.8%
15-19 5.1% / 5.3%
Gowrie — 15-19: 5.1% Isabella Plains — 15-19: 5.3%
20-24 5.1% / 5.7%
Gowrie — 20-24: 5.1% Isabella Plains — 20-24: 5.7%
25-34 13.5% / 15.9%
Gowrie — 25-34: 13.5% Isabella Plains — 25-34: 15.9%
35-44 14.5% / 13.9%
Gowrie — 35-44: 14.5% Isabella Plains — 35-44: 13.9%
45-54 11.2% / 11.6%
Gowrie — 45-54: 11.2% Isabella Plains — 45-54: 11.6%
55-64 12.2% / 13.0%
Gowrie — 55-64: 12.2% Isabella Plains — 55-64: 13.0%
65-74 12.0% / 7.5%
Gowrie — 65-74: 12.0% Isabella Plains — 65-74: 7.5%
75-84 4.3% / 4.3%
Gowrie — 75-84: 4.3% Isabella Plains — 75-84: 4.3%
85+ 1.0% / 1.9%
Gowrie — 85+: 1.0% Isabella Plains — 85+: 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.9%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Gowrie 56.3% couple families
Gowrie — Couple Families: 56.3% Gowrie — Lone Person: 22.0% Gowrie — One Parent Families: 17.8% Gowrie — Group Household: 2.8% Gowrie — Other Families: 1.0%
Isabella Plains 47.3% couple families
Isabella Plains — Couple Families: 47.3% Isabella Plains — Lone Person: 30.6% Isabella Plains — One Parent Families: 17.7% Isabella Plains — Group Household: 3.0% Isabella Plains — Other Families: 1.5%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Gowrie 15.8% renting
Gowrie — Owned Outright: 35.2% Gowrie — Mortgage: 49.0% Gowrie — Renting: 15.8%
Isabella Plains 20.2% renting
Isabella Plains — Owned Outright: 29.4% Isabella Plains — Mortgage: 50.4% Isabella Plains — Renting: 20.2%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Bachelor Degree 16.3% / 12.8%
Gowrie — Bachelor Degree: 16.3% Isabella Plains — Bachelor Degree: 12.8%
Certificate III & IV 12.1% / 14.2%
Gowrie — Certificate III & IV: 12.1% Isabella Plains — Certificate III & IV: 14.2%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 9.4% / 8.7%
Gowrie — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.4% Isabella Plains — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.7%
Postgraduate Degree 6.4% / 4.1%
Gowrie — Postgraduate Degree: 6.4% Isabella Plains — Postgraduate Degree: 4.1%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.2% / 2.1%
Gowrie — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.2% Isabella Plains — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.3%).

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.

Gowrie Isabella Plains
India 2.0% / 4.3%
Gowrie — India: 2.0% Isabella Plains — India: 4.3%
England 3.3% / 2.7%
Gowrie — England: 3.3% Isabella Plains — England: 2.7%
Philippines 1.2% / 1.8%
Gowrie — Philippines: 1.2% Isabella Plains — Philippines: 1.8%
New Zealand 1.2% / 1.0%
Gowrie — New Zealand: 1.2% Isabella Plains — New Zealand: 1.0%
Vietnam — / 1.3%
Gowrie — Vietnam: not among its largest Isabella Plains — Vietnam: 1.3%
Italy 0.7% / —
Gowrie — Italy: 0.7% Isabella Plains — Italy: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.3%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Gowrie 98.7% houses
Gowrie — Houses: 98.7% Gowrie — Townhouses: 0.7% Gowrie — Flats / Apartments: 0.5%
Isabella Plains 75.1% houses
Isabella Plains — Houses: 75.1% Isabella Plains — Townhouses: 24.4% Isabella Plains — Flats / Apartments: 0.5%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Median house price $1,000,000 $856,000
Median unit price — $690,500
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 20 days
from 30 sales
 20 days
from 36 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.

Gowrie Isabella Plains
3 bed $910K / $810K
Gowrie — 3 bed: $910K (19 sales) Isabella Plains — 3 bed: $810K (58 sales)

19 vs 58 sales

4 bed $1.02M / $945K
Gowrie — 4 bed: $1.02M (40 sales) Isabella Plains — 4 bed: $945K (24 sales)

40 vs 24 sales

Development activity

Gowrie Isabella Plains
New dwellings approved 3,750
across Unincorporated ACT
same for both
Approvals change year on year -48%
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.

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Houses 4.5%
$850/wk on $979K
 5.3%
$800/wk on $779K
Units —
same for both

Ranking within ACT

Gowrie Isabella Plains
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 75% of ACT Higher than 19% of ACT
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 50% of ACT Higher than 49% of ACT
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 21% of ACT Higher than 3% of ACT
NBN connectivity Higher than 10% of ACT Higher than 30% of ACT
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 71% of ACT Higher than 95% of ACT

Liveability

Gowrie scores higher overall (29 vs 16).

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Grade D
same for both
Score 29/100 16/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 advantaged area
decile 8/10

Risk profile

Isabella Plains carries more flood risk (57 vs 32); Gowrie carries more crime risk (45 vs 26).

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Bushfire High
91/100
 High
90/100
Crime Moderate
45/100
 Low
26/100
Flood Low
32/100
 Moderate
57/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 3
within 5 km
 0
within 5 km

Schools

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Inside the suburb 2
same for both
Rated above peers 2 0
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Gowrie

  • Gowrie Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • Holy Family Primary School Catholic · Primary above peers

Schools in Isabella Plains

  • St Mary MacKillop College Catholic · Secondary at peers
  • Isabella Plains Early Childhood School Government · Primary

Amenities in the suburb

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Supermarkets 1
same for both
Cafes & restaurants 1
same for both
Parks & reserves 1 0
Childcare 5 3
GPs 0 1
Pharmacies 1
same for both
Waterways 0 1

Mobility

Isabella Plains sits further from the CBD (25.5 km vs 21.2 km).

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Walkability score 62/100 61/100
Distance to Canberra 21.2 km 25.5 km
+20% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 28 min
same for both
Public transport score 78/100
Bus
same for both
Peak arrivals per hour 57.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
 52.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 2.1%
postcode 2904
 1.4%
postcode 2905
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 56
postcode 2904
 47
postcode 2905

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.

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Car (driver) 77.4% / 79.7%
Gowrie — Car (driver): 77.4% Isabella Plains — Car (driver): 79.7%
Worked from Home 11.1% / 9.8%
Gowrie — Worked from Home: 11.1% Isabella Plains — Worked from Home: 9.8%
Car (passenger) 6.1% / 5.9%
Gowrie — Car (passenger): 6.1% Isabella Plains — Car (passenger): 5.9%
Bus 3.6% / 3.9%
Gowrie — Bus: 3.6% Isabella Plains — Bus: 3.9%
Walked Only 1.1% / 0.5%
Gowrie — Walked Only: 1.1% Isabella Plains — Walked Only: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.7%).

Setting

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Elevation 611 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 596 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Connectivity score 45/100 47/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
1,196 premises
 4%
1,619 premises

Climate

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Annual rainfall 686 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 28.2°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 0.9°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Gowrie Isabella Plains
PM2.5 7.3 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 11.9 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.32 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Average residential rate $3,105/yr
same for both
Council Unincorporated ACT
same for both

Federal electorate

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Division Bean
same for both
Member David Smith
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Gowrie Isabella Plains
Grant amount Not offered
same for both
Property price cap —
same for both
Eligibility None
same for both

Tags

Gowrie

Large Blocks Middle-Ring Quiet

Isabella Plains

Affordable Middle-Ring Quiet Townhouses

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Gowrie

Gowrie vs Wanniassa Gowrie vs Monash Gowrie vs Chisholm Gowrie vs Richardson Gowrie vs Fadden

Other comparisons with Isabella Plains

Isabella Plains vs Gordon Isabella Plains vs Calwell Isabella Plains vs Monash Isabella Plains vs Greenway Isabella Plains vs Bonython Isabella Plains vs Richardson
Full data on Gowrie Full data on Isabella Plains
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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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