Lake Boga vs Pental Island

Pental Island is the younger of the two, with a median age of 42 against 45 in Lake Boga. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Pental Island, most households are couple families. On these figures, Lake Boga tends to suit people living alone, while Pental Island suits couples.

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

  • Lake Boga has more parks and reserves (5 vs 0)
  • Pental Island carries lower crime risk (14/100 vs 31/100)

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

First-home buyers

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Lake Boga

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($200/wk vs $340/wk)

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Lake Boga

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (226 min vs 237 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (322.9 km vs 334.2 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Pental Island

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • carries lower crime risk (14/100 vs 31/100)

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

Investors

Pental Island

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (17.8% vs -0.3%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Lake Boga and Pental Island drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Lake Boga Pental Island
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.

Lake Boga Pental Island
Walkability 0 / 0
Lake Boga — Walkability: 0/100 Pental Island — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 69 / 86
Lake Boga — Safety: 69/100 Pental Island — Safety: 86/100
Low fire risk 89 / 76
Lake Boga — Low fire risk: 89/100 Pental Island — Low fire risk: 76/100
Low flood risk 12 / 3
Lake Boga — Low flood risk: 12/100 Pental Island — Low flood risk: 3/100

Demographics

Lake Boga has more residents (982 vs 159); Pental Island rents higher ($340/wk vs $200/wk).

Lake Boga Pental Island
Population 982
+84% vs other
 159
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -0.3% +17.8%
Median age 45 42
Median household income $73,632/yr $106,860/yr
+45% vs other
Median weekly rent $200/wk $340/wk
+70% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Lake Boga Pental Island
0-4 5.5% / 4.4%
Lake Boga — 0-4: 5.5% Pental Island — 0-4: 4.4%
5-14 12.2% / 13.2%
Lake Boga — 5-14: 12.2% Pental Island — 5-14: 13.2%
15-19 6.1% / 6.3%
Lake Boga — 15-19: 6.1% Pental Island — 15-19: 6.3%
20-24 5.2% / 3.8%
Lake Boga — 20-24: 5.2% Pental Island — 20-24: 3.8%
25-34 11.1% / 3.8%
Lake Boga — 25-34: 11.1% Pental Island — 25-34: 3.8%
35-44 9.6% / 15.1%
Lake Boga — 35-44: 9.6% Pental Island — 35-44: 15.1%
45-54 11.6% / 11.9%
Lake Boga — 45-54: 11.6% Pental Island — 45-54: 11.9%
55-64 15.9% / 14.5%
Lake Boga — 55-64: 15.9% Pental Island — 55-64: 14.5%
65-74 13.0% / 13.8%
Lake Boga — 65-74: 13.0% Pental Island — 65-74: 13.8%
75-84 8.4% / 6.9%
Lake Boga — 75-84: 8.4% Pental Island — 75-84: 6.9%
85+ 1.2% / 1.9%
Lake Boga — 85+: 1.2% Pental Island — 85+: 1.9%

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

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Lake Boga 41.7% couple families
Lake Boga — Couple Families: 41.7% Lake Boga — Lone Person: 36.8% Lake Boga — One Parent Families: 14.0% Lake Boga — Other Families: 3.9% Lake Boga — Group Household: 3.5%
Pental Island 64.7% couple families
Pental Island — Couple Families: 64.7% Pental Island — Lone Person: 26.5% Pental Island — One Parent Families: 8.8% Pental Island — Other Families: 0.0% Pental Island — Group Household: 0.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Other Families Group Household

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Lake Boga 16.4% renting
Lake Boga — Owned Outright: 41.6% Lake Boga — Mortgage: 41.9% Lake Boga — Renting: 16.4%
Pental Island 20.4% renting
Pental Island — Owned Outright: 46.9% Pental Island — Mortgage: 32.7% Pental Island — Renting: 20.4%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Lake Boga 96.3% houses
Lake Boga — Houses: 96.3% Lake Boga — Flats / Apartments: 3.7%
Pental Island 94.6% houses
Pental Island — Houses: 94.6% Pental Island — Flats / Apartments: 5.4%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Qualifications

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

Lake Boga Pental Island
Certificate III & IV 19.2% / 22.6%
Lake Boga — Certificate III & IV: 19.2% Pental Island — Certificate III & IV: 22.6%
Bachelor Degree 6.6% / 6.9%
Lake Boga — Bachelor Degree: 6.6% Pental Island — Bachelor Degree: 6.9%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.3% / 3.8%
Lake Boga — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.3% Pental Island — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 3.8%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.7% / 1.9%
Lake Boga — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.7% Pental Island — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.9%
Postgraduate Degree 1.3% / —
Lake Boga — Postgraduate Degree: 1.3% Pental Island — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.6%).

Property market

Lake Boga Pental Island
Median house price $360,000 —
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $320,000 —
Typical days to sell (houses) 43 days
from 5 sales
 —

Zoning mix

Lake Boga Pental Island
Rural and farming 72% 77%
Parks and recreation 24% 23%
Residential 2% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 2% 0%
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

Lake Boga Pental Island
New dwellings approved 91
across Swan Hill
same for both
Approvals change year on year -86%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Lake Boga Pental Island
House price Higher than 6% of VIC —
Income Higher than 39% of VIC Higher than 79% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 15% of VIC Higher than 6% of VIC
Affordability Higher than 97% of VIC —
EV adoption Higher than 19% of VIC —
NBN connectivity Higher than 53% of VIC Higher than 33% of VIC

Liveability

Lake Boga Pental Island
Grade D —
Score 30/100 —
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 6/10

Risk profile

Lake Boga carries more crime risk (31 vs 14); Pental Island carries more bushfire risk (24 vs 11).

Lake Boga Pental Island
Bushfire Low
11/100
 Low
24/100
Crime Low
31/100
 Low
14/100
Flood High
88/100
 High
97/100
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

Lake Boga Pental Island
Inside the suburb 1 0
Rated above peers 1 0
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Lake Boga

  • Lake Boga Primary School Government · Primary above peers

Schools in Pental Island

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Amenities in the suburb

Lake Boga Pental Island
Cafes & restaurants 1 0
Parks & reserves 5 0
Childcare 2 0
Pharmacies 1 0
Police stations 1 0
Banks & Bank@Post 1 0
Fuel stations 1 0
Waterways 6 3

Mobility

Pental Island sits further from the CBD (334.2 km vs 322.9 km).

Lake Boga Pental Island
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Melbourne 322.9 km 334.2 km
+3% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 226 min 237 min
Electric vehicle share 0.3%
postcode 3584
 0.0%
postcode 3586
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 50
postcode 3584
 50
postcode 3586

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.

Lake Boga Pental Island
Car (driver) 82.7% / 83.1%
Lake Boga — Car (driver): 82.7% Pental Island — Car (driver): 83.1%
Worked from Home 10.8% / 16.9%
Lake Boga — Worked from Home: 10.8% Pental Island — Worked from Home: 16.9%
Car (passenger) 4.3% / —
Lake Boga — Car (passenger): 4.3% Pental Island — Car (passenger): not among its largest
Walked Only 1.2% / —
Lake Boga — Walked Only: 1.2% Pental Island — Walked Only: not among its largest
Bus 1.0% / —
Lake Boga — Bus: 1.0% Pental Island — Bus: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (83.1%).

Setting

Lake Boga Pental Island
Elevation 69 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 71 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Lake Boga Pental Island
Connectivity score 30/100 28/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
448 premises
 0%
60 premises

Climate

Lake Boga Pental Island
Annual rainfall 364 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 32.1°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 4.5°C
same for both

Council rates

Lake Boga Pental Island
Average residential rate $2,333/yr
same for both
Council Swan Hill
same for both

Federal electorate

Lake Boga Pental Island
Division Mallee
same for both
Member Anne Webster
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Lake Boga Pental Island
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Lake Boga

Affordable River Rural

Pental Island

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Lake Boga

Lake Boga vs Tresco Lake Boga vs Tresco West Lake Boga vs Castle Donnington

Other comparisons with Pental Island

Pental Island vs Swan Hill Pental Island vs Castle Donnington Pental Island vs Benjeroop
Full data on Lake Boga Full data on Pental Island
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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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