Huonbrook vs Rowlands Creek
Huonbrook is the younger of the two, with a median age of 52 against 59 in Rowlands Creek. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Rowlands Creek: a median of $1.57 million, against $1.36 million in Huonbrook, though rent is higher in Huonbrook.
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
Huonbrook
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- carries lower crime risk (55/100 vs 81/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
They split
one each way, out of the 2 things we measure here
- Huonbrook has cheaper houses ($1,365,000 vs $1,575,000)
- Rowlands Creek leaves households under less mortgage stress (33% vs 41%)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Rowlands Creek
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (28% vs 35%)
- has cheaper rent ($231/wk vs $255/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Huonbrook
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (525 min vs 560 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (781.3 km vs 796.9 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Huonbrook
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- carries lower crime risk (55/100 vs 81/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Rowlands Creek
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (13.5% vs -34.0%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Huonbrook and Rowlands 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
Rowlands Creek has higher household incomes ($43,316 vs $37,700); Rowlands Creek skews older (59 vs 52).
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 99 +15% vs other | 84 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -34.0% | +13.5% |
| Median age | 52 | 59 |
| Median household income | $37,700/yr | $43,316/yr +15% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $255/wk +9% vs other | $231/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (27.4%).
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 (7.1%).
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 (19.0%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,365,000 | $1,575,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Huonbrook has more land zoned for conservation (81% vs 65%); Rowlands Creek has more rural and farming land (34% vs 19%).
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 81% | 65% |
| Rural and farming | 19% | 34% |
| 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
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 129 across Byron | 331 across Tweed |
| Approvals change year on year | -65% | -50% |
Ranking within NSW
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 70% of NSW | Higher than 77% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 3% of NSW | Higher than 6% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 51% of NSW | Higher than 21% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 4% of NSW same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 90% of NSW | Higher than 64% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 22% of NSW | Higher than 30% of NSW |
Liveability
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 6/10 | below-average income decile 2/10 |
Risk profile
Rowlands Creek carries more crime risk (81 vs 55); Huonbrook carries more bushfire risk (76 vs 61).
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 76/100 | Moderate 61/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 55/100 | High 81/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here 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
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 2 same for both | |
Mobility
Rowlands Creek sits further from the CBD (796.9 km vs 781.3 km).
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 6/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 781.3 km | 796.9 km +2% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 525 min | 560 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.5% postcode 2482 | 0.6% postcode 2484 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 89 postcode 2482 | 76 postcode 2484 |
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 (100.0%).
Setting
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 430 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 182 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 18.5 km | 20.1 km |
NBN connectivity
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 15/100 | 21/100 |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 37 premises same for both | |
Climate
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,569 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 29.1°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 9.1°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,577/yr | $1,745/yr |
| Council | Byron | Tweed |
Federal electorate
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Richmond same for both | |
| Member | Justine Elliot same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Huonbrook | Rowlands Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Huonbrook
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Huonbrook
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.