Joanna vs Mount Light
Mount Light is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 50 in Joanna. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families.
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
- Joanna has more parks and reserves (10 vs 2)
- Mount Light carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 31/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Mount Light
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (12% vs 23%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Too close to call
Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Mount Light
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (228 min vs 243 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (342.5 km vs 362.7 km)
- But Joanna is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- Joanna is more walkable (10/100 vs 0/100)
- Mount Light carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 31/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Joanna
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (12.8% vs -1.9%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Joanna and Mount Light 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
Mount Light has more residents (155 vs 106); Joanna skews older (50 vs 46).
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 106 | 155 +46% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +12.8% | -1.9% |
| Median age | 50 | 46 |
| Median household income | $97,500/yr | $100,724/yr +3% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $250/wk same for both | |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.7%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
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%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.8%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Zoning mix
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 95% | 99% |
| Environmental | 5% | 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
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 17 across Naracoorte Lucindale same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +300% same for both | |
Ranking within SA
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 77% of SA | Higher than 80% of SA |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 65% of SA | Higher than 55% of SA |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 8% of SA same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 27% of SA | Higher than 49% of SA |
Liveability
Joanna is more walkable (10 vs 0).
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | advantaged area decile 8/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Joanna carries more crime risk (31 vs 21).
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 11/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Low 31/100 | Low 21/100 |
| Flood | — 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
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 1 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 10 | 2 |
Mobility
Joanna sits further from the CBD (362.7 km vs 342.5 km).
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 10/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Adelaide | 362.7 km +6% vs other | 342.5 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 243 min | 228 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.1% postcode 5271 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 50 postcode 5271 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 (83.1%).
Setting
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 89 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 81 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 16/100 | 29/100 |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) | Fixed wireless |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 15 premises | 0% 59 premises |
Climate
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 556 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 27.4°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 5.3°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,794/yr same for both | |
| Council | Naracoorte Lucindale same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Barker same for both | |
| Member | Tony Pasin same for both | |
| Party | Liberal same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Joanna | Mount Light | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $15,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | — same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Joanna
Other comparisons with Mount Light
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.