Karara vs Thanes Creek
Thanes Creek is the younger of the two, with a median age of 52 against 55 in Karara. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and about half of households are people living alone. On these figures, Karara tends to suit 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
Thanes Creek
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- carries lower crime risk (41/100 vs 79/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Thanes Creek
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 34%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Karara
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (24% vs 41%)
- has cheaper rent ($225/wk vs $300/wk)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Thanes Creek
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- sits closer to the CBD (198.8 km vs 214.3 km)
- has a shorter drive in (161 min vs 166 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- Karara has more residents already 65 and over (33% vs 25%)
- Thanes Creek carries lower crime risk (41/100 vs 79/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Thanes Creek
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (103.3% vs 4.1%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Karara and Thanes 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
Karara has more residents (128 vs 61); Thanes Creek rents higher ($300/wk vs $225/wk).
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 128 +52% vs other | 61 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +4.1% | +103.3% |
| Median age | 55 | 52 |
| Median household income | $49,348/yr +24% vs other | $37,700/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $225/wk | $300/wk +33% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.7%).
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 (6.6%).
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 (10.9%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Development activity
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 291 across Southern Downs same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +63% same for both | |
Ranking within QLD
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 12% of QLD | Higher than 3% of QLD |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 2% of QLD | Higher than 63% of QLD |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 66% of QLD | Higher than 29% of QLD |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 25% of QLD | Higher than 22% of QLD |
Liveability
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 | high-need area decile 1/10 |
Risk profile
Karara carries more crime risk (79 vs 41).
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 42/100 | Low 38/100 |
| Crime | High 79/100 | Moderate 41/100 |
| 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
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Karara
- Karara State School Government · Primary
Schools in Thanes Creek
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 24 | 3 |
Mobility
Karara sits further from the CBD (214.3 km vs 198.8 km).
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Brisbane | 214.3 km +7% vs other | 198.8 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 166 min | 161 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.6% postcode 4352 | 0.2% postcode 4370 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 84 postcode 4352 | 57 postcode 4370 |
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 (72.2%).
Setting
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 473 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 464 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 18/100 | 15/100 |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 26 premises | 0% 18 premises |
Council rates
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,627/yr same for both | |
| Council | Southern Downs same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Maranoa same for both | |
| Member | David Littleproud same for both | |
| Party | Liberal National Party of Queensland same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Karara | Thanes Creek | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $30,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Karara
Other comparisons with Thanes Creek
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.