Howqua vs Macs Cove
Howqua is the younger of the two, with a median age of 15 against 56 in Macs Cove. In both, the large majority of households own their home and most homes are detached houses. In Howqua, most households are couple families. In Macs Cove, most households are people living alone. On these figures, Howqua tends to suit families with children and couples, while Macs Cove suits people living alone and 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
Howqua
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (11/100 vs 55/100)
- is already more of a family suburb (59% vs 26%)
- But Macs Cove has more separate houses rather than flats (92% vs 71%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Howqua
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (15% vs 32%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Howqua
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($0/wk vs $206/wk)
Weighs rent.
Commuting to the city
Macs Cove
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
- has a shorter drive in (173 min vs 184 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (207.9 km vs 215.3 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here
- Howqua carries lower crime risk (11/100 vs 55/100)
- Macs Cove is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Howqua
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (43.6% vs 33.0%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Howqua and Macs Cove 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
Macs Cove rents higher ($206/wk vs $0/wk); Macs Cove skews older (56 vs 15).
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 158 +23% vs other | 121 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +43.6% | +33.0% |
| Median age | 15 | 56 |
| Median household income | $97,500/yr +50% vs other | $48,516/yr |
| Median weekly rent | — | $206/wk (not reported on the other side) |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (37.3%).
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 (5.7%).
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 (16.5%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | — | $440,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | — | 234 days from 3 sales |
Zoning mix
Macs Cove has more rural and farming land (89% vs 39%).
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 39% | 89% |
| Parks and recreation | 61% | 3% |
| Residential | 0% | 4% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 0% | 4% |
| 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
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 76 across Mansfield same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -50% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 70% of VIC | Higher than 8% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 64% of VIC | Higher than 71% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 60% of VIC | Higher than 59% of VIC |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 17% of VIC | Higher than 60% of VIC |
Liveability
Macs Cove is more walkable (10 vs 0).
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | advantaged area decile 7/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Macs Cove carries more crime risk (55 vs 11); Howqua carries more flood risk (39 vs 22).
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 98/100 | High 100/100 |
| Crime | Low 11/100 | Moderate 55/100 |
| Flood | Low 39/100 | Low 22/100 |
| 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
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Howqua
- Lauriston Girls' School - Howqua Campus Independent · Combined
Schools in Macs Cove
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 66 | 18 |
Mobility
Howqua sits further from the CBD (215.3 km vs 207.9 km).
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 | 10/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 215.3 km +3% vs other | 207.9 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 184 min | 173 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.6% postcode 3723 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 33 postcode 3723 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 (69.2%).
Setting
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 465 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 338 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 19/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) | Fixed wireless |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 32 premises | 0% 100 premises |
Climate
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,633 mm | 810 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | 17.1°C | 29.3°C |
| Winter min (Jul) | -2.1°C | 4.1°C |
Council rates
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,697/yr same for both | |
| Council | Mansfield same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Indi same for both | |
| Member | Helen Haines same for both | |
| Party | Independent same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Howqua | Macs Cove | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Howqua
Other comparisons with Macs Cove
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.