Longwarry vs Ripplebrook
Longwarry is the younger of the two, with a median age of 34 against 43 in Ripplebrook. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Ripplebrook, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Longwarry tends to suit people living alone, while Ripplebrook 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
Ripplebrook
ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)
- is already more of a family suburb (78% vs 60%)
- carries lower crime risk (56/100 vs 67/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Longwarry
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (23% vs 29%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Ripplebrook
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($300/wk vs $330/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Longwarry
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- sits closer to the CBD (89.1 km vs 98.9 km)
- has a shorter drive in (73 min vs 80 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Ripplebrook
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has more residents already 65 and over (21% vs 14%)
- carries lower crime risk (56/100 vs 67/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Longwarry and Ripplebrook 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
Longwarry has more residents (2,436 vs 268); Ripplebrook skews older (43 vs 34).
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 2,436 +89% vs other | 268 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +21.6% | +21.3% |
| Median age | 34 | 43 |
| Median household income | $76,128/yr | $83,408/yr +10% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $330/wk +9% vs other | $300/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.0%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.1%).
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 (4.5%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $619,000 | — |
| Median unit price | $490,000 | — |
| Median land price | $350,000 | — |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 39 days from 51 sales | — |
Zoning mix
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 93% | 98% |
| Residential | 3% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 2% | 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
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 619 across Baw Baw same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +49% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 4.3% $580/wk on $694K | — |
| Units | — same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 25% of VIC | — |
| Income | Higher than 43% of VIC | Higher than 51% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 80% of VIC same for both | |
| Affordability | Higher than 70% of VIC | — |
| EV adoption | Higher than 22% of VIC | Higher than 55% of VIC |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 82% of VIC | Higher than 62% of VIC |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 86% of VIC | — |
Liveability
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | D | — |
| Score | 23/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 | advantaged area decile 7/10 |
Risk profile
Longwarry carries more bushfire risk (24 vs 0); Longwarry carries more flood risk (90 vs 51).
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Low 24/100 | None 0/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 67/100 | Moderate 56/100 |
| Flood | High 90/100 | Moderate 51/100 |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 3 within 5 km | 1 within 5 km |
Schools
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 1 |
| Rated at peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Longwarry
- Longwarry Primary School Government · Primary at peers
Schools in Ripplebrook
- Ripplebrook Primary School Government · Primary above peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 1 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 3 | 1 |
| Childcare | 3 | 1 |
| GPs | 1 | 0 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 1 | 0 |
Mobility
Ripplebrook sits further from the CBD (98.9 km vs 89.1 km).
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 22/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 89.1 km | 98.9 km +11% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 73 min | 80 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.3% postcode 3816 | 0.6% postcode 3818 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 46 postcode 3816 | 49 postcode 3818 |
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 (77.3%).
Setting
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 44 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 62 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 27.7 km | 23.8 km |
NBN connectivity
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 74/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the premises | Fixed wireless |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 56% 1,169 premises | 0% 102 premises |
Climate
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,350 mm | 1,090 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | — | 25.1°C |
| Winter min (Jul) | — | 3.7°C |
Council rates
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,138/yr same for both | |
| Council | Baw Baw same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Monash same for both | |
| Member | Mary Aldred same for both | |
| Party | Liberal same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Longwarry | Ripplebrook | |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Longwarry
Other comparisons with Ripplebrook
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.