Lower Plenty vs Templestowe Lower
In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Lower Plenty: a median of $1.55 million, against $1.34 million in Templestowe Lower, though rent is higher in Templestowe Lower. Templestowe Lower is closer to the city centre: 16.3 km, against 24.2 km. On these figures, Lower Plenty tends to suit people living alone.
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
Templestowe Lower
ahead on 4 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more schools inside the suburb (5 vs 1)
- has more childcare (13 vs 4)
- has more parks and reserves (23 vs 10)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Lower Plenty
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- has cheaper units ($645,000 vs $839,000)
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 30%)
- But Templestowe Lower has cheaper houses ($1,344,000 vs $1,550,000)
Weighs house prices, unit prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.
Renters
Lower Plenty
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (18% vs 25%)
- has cheaper rent ($400/wk vs $475/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Templestowe Lower
ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (80/100 vs 27/100)
- sits closer to the CBD (16.3 km vs 24.2 km)
- has a shorter drive in (23 min vs 34 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Templestowe Lower
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- has more GPs (6 vs 0)
- is more walkable (80/100 vs 27/100)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Templestowe Lower
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- returns a higher gross yield on houses (3.2% vs 2.2%)
Weighs house yield and population growth.
Where they sit
Lower Plenty and Templestowe Lower 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
Templestowe Lower has more residents (14,098 vs 3,962); Templestowe Lower rents higher ($475/wk vs $400/wk).
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 3,962 | 14,098 +256% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +1.8% | +5.0% |
| Median age | 45 same for both | |
| Median household income | $112,320/yr +11% vs other | $99,840/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $400/wk | $475/wk +19% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (14.7%).
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 (8.4%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,550,000 | $1,344,000 |
| Median unit price | $645,000 | $839,000 |
| Median land price | $1,085,000 | $1,051,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 34 days from 42 sales | 26 days from 173 sales |
Unit price by bedroom count
Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.
27 vs 9 sales
11 vs 20 sales
House price by bedroom count
Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.
23 vs 83 sales
32 vs 127 sales
7 vs 34 sales
Zoning mix
Lower Plenty has more land zoned for conservation (22% vs 1%).
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Residential | 44% | 77% |
| Environmental | 22% | 1% |
| Parks and recreation | 17% | 14% |
| Other and special use | 14% | 0% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 3% | 8% |
| 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
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 722 across Banyule | 486 across Manningham |
| Approvals change year on year | -75% | -2% |
Gross rental yield
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 2.2% $620/wk on $1.45M | 3.2% $820/wk on $1.35M |
| Units | — | 4.2% $638/wk on $790K |
Ranking within VIC
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 85% of VIC | Higher than 83% of VIC |
| Income | Higher than 85% of VIC | Higher than 72% of VIC |
| Schools | — | Higher than 80% of VIC |
| Walkability | Higher than 82% of VIC | Higher than 93% of VIC |
| Affordability | Higher than 22% of VIC | Higher than 17% of VIC |
| EV adoption | Higher than 94% of VIC same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 84% of VIC | Higher than 85% of VIC |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 2% of VIC | Higher than 20% of VIC |
| Rental yield (units) | — | Higher than 16% of VIC |
Liveability
Templestowe Lower is more walkable (80 vs 27); Templestowe Lower scores higher overall (79 vs 68).
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | A same for both | |
| Score | 68/100 | 79/100 |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 | very advantaged area decile 9/10 |
Risk profile
Lower Plenty carries more flood risk (77 vs 62).
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Moderate 41/100 | Low 37/100 |
| Flood | High 77/100 | Moderate 62/100 |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km | 1 within 5 km |
Schools
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 5 |
| Rated above peers | 0 | 2 |
| Rated at peers | 0 | 1 |
| Rated below peers | 1 same for both | |
| Universities within 10 km | 2 Melbourne (Bundoora) Campus, 6.7 km | 3 Melbourne (Bundoora) Campus, 8.6 km |
| Full-time students aged 15–24 | 2.9% same for both | |
Schools in Lower Plenty
- Lower Plenty Primary School Government · Primary below peers
Schools in Templestowe Lower
- Templestowe Heights Primary School Government · Primary above peers
- Templestowe Valley Primary School Government · Primary above peers
- Templestowe College Government · Secondary at peers
- St Kevin's School Catholic · Primary below peers
- Bulleen Heights School-Manningham Road Campus Government · Secondary · Special school
Amenities in the suburb
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | 2 | 6 |
| Cafes & restaurants | 2 | 9 |
| Parks & reserves | 10 | 23 |
| Childcare | 4 | 13 |
| GPs | 0 | 6 |
| Pharmacies | 1 | 2 |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel stations | 0 | 2 |
| Waterways | 2 | 5 |
Mobility
Lower Plenty sits further from the CBD (24.2 km vs 16.3 km).
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 27/100 | 80/100 |
| Distance to Melbourne | 24.2 km +33% vs other | 16.3 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 34 min | 23 min |
| Public transport score | 79/100 Bus same for both | |
| Peak arrivals per hour | 72.0 7-9am + 5-7pm | 304.0 7-9am + 5-7pm |
| Median peak wait | 1 min scheduled, not actual | 0 min scheduled, not actual |
| Electric vehicle share | 2.0% postcode 3093 | 2.0% postcode 3107 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 30 postcode 3093 | 25 postcode 3107 |
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 (55.8%).
Setting
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 53 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 45 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 18.7 km | 16.5 km |
NBN connectivity
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 76/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Hybrid fibre-coaxial same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 17% 1,739 premises | 3% 5,999 premises |
Climate
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 534 mm | 777 mm |
| Summer max (Jan) | 26.7°C | 26.9°C |
| Winter min (Jul) | 6.5°C | 6.3°C |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 3.9 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | — same for both | |
| NO₂ | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,787/yr | $2,000/yr |
| Council | Banyule | Manningham |
Federal electorate
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Jagajaga | Menzies |
| Member | Kate Thwaites | Gabriel Ng |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Lower Plenty | Templestowe Lower | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Lower Plenty
Templestowe Lower
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Lower Plenty
Other comparisons with Templestowe Lower
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.