Lysterfield vs Rowville

In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Lysterfield: a median of $1.43 million, against $1.11 million in Rowville. Rowville is closer to the city centre: 31.7 km, against 37.3 km. On these figures, Lysterfield tends to suit couples, while Rowville suits buyers on a tighter budget.

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

Rowville

ahead on 3 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (22 vs 2)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (7 vs 1)
  • has more parks and reserves (22 vs 12)
  • But Lysterfield carries lower crime risk (34/100 vs 52/100)

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

First-home buyers

Rowville

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • has cheaper houses ($1,115,000 vs $1,431,250)
  • has cheaper units ($645,000 vs $752,000)

Weighs house prices, unit prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

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

Commuting to the city

Rowville

ahead on 3 of the 4 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (87/100 vs 4/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (34 min vs 41 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (31.7 km vs 37.3 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Rowville

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (87/100 vs 4/100)
  • has more GPs (12 vs 0)
  • But Lysterfield carries lower crime risk (34/100 vs 52/100)

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

Investors

Rowville

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • returns a higher gross yield on houses (3.6% vs 3.0%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

Lysterfield Rowville
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.

Lysterfield Rowville
Walkability 4 / 87
Lysterfield — Walkability: 4/100 Rowville — Walkability: 87/100
Safety 66 / 48
Lysterfield — Safety: 66/100 Rowville — Safety: 48/100
Low fire risk 31 / 47
Lysterfield — Low fire risk: 31/100 Rowville — Low fire risk: 47/100
Low flood risk 47 / 31
Lysterfield — Low flood risk: 47/100 Rowville — Low flood risk: 31/100

Demographics

Rowville has more residents (33,571 vs 6,681); Lysterfield has higher household incomes ($143,208 vs $114,660).

Lysterfield Rowville
Population 6,681 33,571
+402% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +0.3% -0.3%
Median age 41
same for both
Median household income $143,208/yr
+20% vs other
 $114,660/yr
Median weekly rent $435/wk $441/wk
+1% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Lysterfield Rowville
0-4 4.2% / 4.7%
Lysterfield — 0-4: 4.2% Rowville — 0-4: 4.7%
5-14 13.0% / 12.0%
Lysterfield — 5-14: 13.0% Rowville — 5-14: 12.0%
15-19 8.2% / 6.6%
Lysterfield — 15-19: 8.2% Rowville — 15-19: 6.6%
20-24 8.0% / 7.0%
Lysterfield — 20-24: 8.0% Rowville — 20-24: 7.0%
25-34 9.4% / 11.3%
Lysterfield — 25-34: 9.4% Rowville — 25-34: 11.3%
35-44 11.4% / 12.4%
Lysterfield — 35-44: 11.4% Rowville — 35-44: 12.4%
45-54 17.0% / 14.9%
Lysterfield — 45-54: 17.0% Rowville — 45-54: 14.9%
55-64 16.7% / 15.3%
Lysterfield — 55-64: 16.7% Rowville — 55-64: 15.3%
65-74 8.1% / 9.2%
Lysterfield — 65-74: 8.1% Rowville — 65-74: 9.2%
75-84 3.2% / 4.9%
Lysterfield — 75-84: 3.2% Rowville — 75-84: 4.9%
85+ 0.8% / 1.7%
Lysterfield — 85+: 0.8% Rowville — 85+: 1.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Lysterfield 73.3% couple families
Lysterfield — Couple Families: 73.3% Lysterfield — Lone Person: 13.7% Lysterfield — One Parent Families: 11.6% Lysterfield — Group Household: 1.0% Lysterfield — Other Families: 0.5%
Rowville 62.3% couple families
Rowville — Couple Families: 62.3% Rowville — Lone Person: 20.2% Rowville — One Parent Families: 14.0% Rowville — Group Household: 2.2% Rowville — Other Families: 1.3%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Lysterfield 7.5% renting
Lysterfield — Owned Outright: 38.5% Lysterfield — Mortgage: 54.0% Lysterfield — Renting: 7.5%
Rowville 15.7% renting
Rowville — Owned Outright: 37.5% Rowville — Mortgage: 46.8% Rowville — Renting: 15.7%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Lysterfield Rowville
Bachelor Degree 15.9% / 16.2%
Lysterfield — Bachelor Degree: 15.9% Rowville — Bachelor Degree: 16.2%
Certificate III & IV 14.1% / 12.2%
Lysterfield — Certificate III & IV: 14.1% Rowville — Certificate III & IV: 12.2%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 9.1% / 9.5%
Lysterfield — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.1% Rowville — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.5%
Postgraduate Degree 3.8% / 5.7%
Lysterfield — Postgraduate Degree: 3.8% Rowville — Postgraduate Degree: 5.7%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.9% / 1.9%
Lysterfield — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.9% Rowville — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.2%).

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.

Lysterfield Rowville
China 2.5% / 4.8%
Lysterfield — China: 2.5% Rowville — China: 4.8%
England 2.9% / 2.7%
Lysterfield — England: 2.9% Rowville — England: 2.7%
Sri Lanka 1.8% / 3.5%
Lysterfield — Sri Lanka: 1.8% Rowville — Sri Lanka: 3.5%
India 1.2% / 3.2%
Lysterfield — India: 1.2% Rowville — India: 3.2%
Malaysia 1.0% / 2.4%
Lysterfield — Malaysia: 1.0% Rowville — Malaysia: 2.4%
Italy 1.2% / 1.0%
Lysterfield — Italy: 1.2% Rowville — Italy: 1.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (4.8%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Lysterfield 99.8% houses
Lysterfield — Houses: 99.8% Lysterfield — Townhouses: 0.0% Lysterfield — Flats / Apartments: 0.2%
Rowville 91.8% houses
Rowville — Houses: 91.8% Rowville — Townhouses: 7.2% Rowville — Flats / Apartments: 0.9%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Lysterfield Rowville
Median house price $1,431,250 $1,115,000
Median unit price $752,000 $645,000
Median land price $1,050,000 $946,327
Typical days to sell (houses) 27 days
from 70 sales
 24 days
from 350 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.

Lysterfield Rowville
3 bed $938K / $960K
Lysterfield — 3 bed: $938K (20 sales) Rowville — 3 bed: $960K (195 sales)

20 vs 195 sales

4 bed $1.3M / $1.21M
Lysterfield — 4 bed: $1.3M (55 sales) Rowville — 4 bed: $1.21M (250 sales)

55 vs 250 sales

5 bed $1.63M / $1.35M
Lysterfield — 5 bed: $1.63M (38 sales) Rowville — 5 bed: $1.35M (60 sales)

38 vs 60 sales

6 bed $2.48M / $1.58M
Lysterfield — 6 bed: $2.48M (7 sales) Rowville — 6 bed: $1.58M (5 sales)

7 vs 5 sales

Zoning mix

Lysterfield has more rural and farming land (35% vs 1%).

Lysterfield Rowville
Residential 9% 52%
Parks and recreation 43% 7%
Rural and farming 35% 1%
Other and special use 4% 16%
Infrastructure and transport 4% 15%
Environmental 5% 0%
Industrial 0% 4%
Commercial 0% 3%
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

Lysterfield Rowville
New dwellings approved 416
across Yarra Ranges
 577
across Knox
Approvals change year on year -57% -14%

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Lysterfield Rowville
Houses 3.0%
$798/wk on $1.38M
 3.6%
$720/wk on $1.05M
Units — 7.5%
$685/wk on $472K

Ranking within VIC

Lysterfield Rowville
House price Higher than 76% of VIC Higher than 77% of VIC
Income Higher than 97% of VIC Higher than 87% of VIC
Schools — Higher than 81% of VIC
Walkability Higher than 66% of VIC Higher than 95% of VIC
Affordability Higher than 66% of VIC Higher than 39% of VIC
EV adoption Higher than 81% of VIC Higher than 89% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 92% of VIC Higher than 93% of VIC
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 14% of VIC Higher than 40% of VIC
Rental yield (units) — Higher than 99% of VIC

Liveability

Rowville is more walkable (87 vs 4); Rowville scores higher overall (63 vs 52).

Lysterfield Rowville
Grade B
same for both
Score 52/100 63/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Rowville carries more crime risk (52 vs 34); Lysterfield carries more bushfire risk (69 vs 53).

Lysterfield Rowville
Bushfire Moderate
69/100
 Moderate
53/100
Crime Low
34/100
 Moderate
52/100
Flood Moderate
53/100
 Moderate
69/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 3
within 5 km
 9
within 5 km

Schools

Lysterfield Rowville
Inside the suburb 1 7
Rated above peers 0 3
Rated at peers 1 3
Rated below peers 0
same for both
Universities within 10 km None 1
Monash Clayton, 10.0 km

Schools in Lysterfield

  • Lysterfield Primary School Government · Primary at peers

Schools in Rowville

  • Karoo Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • Park Ridge Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • Rowville Primary School Government · Primary above peers
  • Heany Park Primary School Government · Primary at peers
  • Rowville Secondary College Government · Secondary at peers
  • St Simon's School Catholic · Primary at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Lysterfield Rowville
Supermarkets 0 5
Cafes & restaurants 3 18
Parks & reserves 12 22
Childcare 2 22
GPs 0 12
Pharmacies 0 6
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 3
Fuel stations 3 5
EV chargers 0 1
Waterways 3 9

Mobility

Lysterfield sits further from the CBD (37.3 km vs 31.7 km).

Lysterfield Rowville
Walkability score 4/100 87/100
Distance to Melbourne 37.3 km
+15% vs other
 31.7 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 41 min 34 min
Public transport score 76/100
Bus
 79/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 29.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 372.0
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
 0 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 1.2%
postcode 3156
 1.6%
postcode 3178
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 37
postcode 3156
 47
postcode 3178

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.

Lysterfield Rowville
Car (driver) 64.5% / 64.1%
Lysterfield — Car (driver): 64.5% Rowville — Car (driver): 64.1%
Worked from Home 29.6% / 29.3%
Lysterfield — Worked from Home: 29.6% Rowville — Worked from Home: 29.3%
Car (passenger) 4.1% / 4.0%
Lysterfield — Car (passenger): 4.1% Rowville — Car (passenger): 4.0%
Train 0.9% / 1.4%
Lysterfield — Train: 0.9% Rowville — Train: 1.4%
Bus 0.4% / 0.7%
Lysterfield — Bus: 0.4% Rowville — Bus: 0.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (64.5%).

Setting

Lysterfield Rowville
Elevation 151 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 86 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 20.4 km 16.8 km

NBN connectivity

Lysterfield Rowville
Connectivity score 82/100 86/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 45%
2,331 premises
 40%
13,198 premises

Climate

Lysterfield Rowville
Annual rainfall 781 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Lysterfield Rowville
PM2.5 6.3 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 20.8 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.98 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Lysterfield Rowville
Average residential rate $2,161/yr $1,732/yr
Council Yarra Ranges Knox

Federal electorate

Lysterfield Rowville
Division Casey Aston
Member Aaron Violi Mary Doyle
Party Liberal Australian Labor Party

First Home Owner Grant

Lysterfield Rowville
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Lysterfield

Acreage Outer Premium

Rowville

Large Blocks Outer

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Lysterfield

Lysterfield vs Ferntree Gully Lysterfield vs Narre Warren North Lysterfield vs Upwey Lysterfield vs Upper Ferntree Gully Lysterfield vs Tecoma Lysterfield vs Belgrave South

Other comparisons with Rowville

Rowville vs Ferntree Gully Rowville vs Endeavour Hills Rowville vs Dandenong North Rowville vs Wheelers Hill Rowville vs Mulgrave Rowville vs Knoxfield
Full data on Lysterfield Full data on Rowville
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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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