Macksville vs Way Way

Macksville is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 55 in Way Way. In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Way Way, about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Way Way: a median of $1.05 million, against $635,000 in Macksville, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Macksville tends to suit families with children and 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

Macksville

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (4 vs 0)
  • has more schools inside the suburb (3 vs 0)
  • But Way Way carries lower crime risk (72/100 vs 88/100)

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

First-home buyers

Macksville

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has cheaper houses ($635,000 vs $1,050,000)
  • has cheaper land ($605,000 vs $770,000)
  • But Way Way leaves households under less mortgage stress (21% vs 32%)

Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Macksville

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (30% vs 8%)
  • has cheaper rent ($320/wk vs $360/wk)
  • But Way Way leaves renters under less rental stress (26% vs 34%)

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

Commuting to the city

Macksville

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (26/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (309 min vs 322 min)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Macksville

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (26/100 vs 0/100)
  • has more GPs (5 vs 0)
  • But Way Way carries lower crime risk (72/100 vs 88/100)

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

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

Macksville Way Way
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.

Macksville Way Way
Walkability 26 / 0
Macksville — Walkability: 26/100 Way Way — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 12 / 28
Macksville — Safety: 12/100 Way Way — Safety: 28/100
Low fire risk 84 / 40
Macksville — Low fire risk: 84/100 Way Way — Low fire risk: 40/100

Demographics

Macksville has more residents (2,782 vs 265); Way Way has higher household incomes ($71,500 vs $49,088).

Macksville Way Way
Population 2,782
+90% vs other
 265
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +7.1% +10.9%
Median age 47 55
Median household income $49,088/yr $71,500/yr
+46% vs other
Median weekly rent $320/wk $360/wk
+12% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Macksville Way Way
0-4 6.3% / 4.5%
Macksville — 0-4: 6.3% Way Way — 0-4: 4.5%
5-14 11.8% / 8.7%
Macksville — 5-14: 11.8% Way Way — 5-14: 8.7%
15-19 5.6% / 6.4%
Macksville — 15-19: 5.6% Way Way — 15-19: 6.4%
20-24 4.0% / 1.5%
Macksville — 20-24: 4.0% Way Way — 20-24: 1.5%
25-34 11.0% / 9.4%
Macksville — 25-34: 11.0% Way Way — 25-34: 9.4%
35-44 9.0% / 6.8%
Macksville — 35-44: 9.0% Way Way — 35-44: 6.8%
45-54 10.0% / 14.3%
Macksville — 45-54: 10.0% Way Way — 45-54: 14.3%
55-64 13.8% / 25.7%
Macksville — 55-64: 13.8% Way Way — 55-64: 25.7%
65-74 13.6% / 20.4%
Macksville — 65-74: 13.6% Way Way — 65-74: 20.4%
75-84 9.7% / 4.2%
Macksville — 75-84: 9.7% Way Way — 75-84: 4.2%
85+ 4.9% / —
Macksville — 85+: 4.9% Way Way — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.7%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Macksville 42.6% lone person
Macksville — Lone Person: 42.6% Macksville — Couple Families: 28.2% Macksville — One Parent Families: 22.9% Macksville — Group Household: 4.6% Macksville — Other Families: 1.7%
Way Way 46.0% lone person
Way Way — Lone Person: 46.0% Way Way — Couple Families: 44.0% Way Way — One Parent Families: 10.0% Way Way — Group Household: 0.0% Way Way — Other Families: 0.0%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Macksville 30.3% renting
Macksville — Owned Outright: 43.6% Macksville — Mortgage: 26.1% Macksville — Renting: 30.3%
Way Way 7.9% renting
Way Way — Owned Outright: 50.6% Way Way — Mortgage: 41.6% Way Way — Renting: 7.9%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Macksville Way Way
England 2.1% / 2.6%
Macksville — England: 2.1% Way Way — England: 2.6%
New Zealand 0.9% / 1.1%
Macksville — New Zealand: 0.9% Way Way — New Zealand: 1.1%
India 0.9% / —
Macksville — India: 0.9% Way Way — India: not among its largest
Malaysia 0.4% / —
Macksville — Malaysia: 0.4% Way Way — Malaysia: not among its largest
Germany 0.4% / —
Macksville — Germany: 0.4% Way Way — Germany: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (2.6%).

Qualifications

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

Macksville Way Way
Certificate III & IV 17.1% / 20.4%
Macksville — Certificate III & IV: 17.1% Way Way — Certificate III & IV: 20.4%
Bachelor Degree 5.8% / 14.3%
Macksville — Bachelor Degree: 5.8% Way Way — Bachelor Degree: 14.3%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.6% / 10.2%
Macksville — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.6% Way Way — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.2%
Postgraduate Degree 0.9% / 2.6%
Macksville — Postgraduate Degree: 0.9% Way Way — Postgraduate Degree: 2.6%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 0.9% / 1.5%
Macksville — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 0.9% Way Way — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.4%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Macksville 90.8% houses
Macksville — Houses: 90.8% Macksville — Townhouses: 5.6% Macksville — Flats / Apartments: 3.6%
Way Way 100.0% houses
Way Way — Houses: 100.0% Way Way — Townhouses: 0.0% Way Way — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Townhouses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Macksville Way Way
Median house price $635,000 $1,050,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $605,000 $770,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 60 days
from 37 sales
 —

Zoning mix

Way Way has more land zoned for conservation (34% vs 4%); Way Way has more rural and farming land (62% vs 40%).

Macksville Way Way
Rural and farming 40% 62%
Residential 37% 4%
Environmental 4% 34%
Parks and recreation 8% 0%
Industrial 7% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 2% 0%
Commercial 1% 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

Macksville Way Way
New dwellings approved 109
across Nambucca Valley
same for both
Approvals change year on year -64%
same for both

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.

Macksville Way Way
Houses 3.8%
$600/wk on $820K
 —
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Macksville Way Way
House price Higher than 21% of NSW Higher than 54% of NSW
Income Higher than 10% of NSW Higher than 36% of NSW
Schools Higher than 64% of NSW —
Walkability Higher than 73% of NSW Higher than 7% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 46% of NSW Higher than 36% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 33% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 71% of NSW Higher than 41% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 62% of NSW —

Liveability

Macksville is more walkable (26 vs 0).

Macksville Way Way
Grade C —
Score 34/100 —
Socio-economic band high-need area
decile 1/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10

Risk profile

Way Way carries more bushfire risk (60 vs 16); Macksville carries more crime risk (88 vs 72).

Macksville Way Way
Bushfire Low
16/100
 Moderate
60/100
Crime High
88/100
 High
72/100
Flood Not mapped
no mapped data here
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
 Low
15/100
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Macksville Way Way
Inside the suburb 3 0
Rated above peers 1 0
Rated at peers 1 0
Rated below peers 1 0

Schools in Macksville

  • St Patrick's Primary School Catholic · Primary above peers
  • Macksville Public School Government · Primary at peers
  • Macksville High School Government · Secondary below peers

Schools in Way Way

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

Amenities in the suburb

Macksville Way Way
Supermarkets 2 0
Cafes & restaurants 12 0
Parks & reserves 4 2
Childcare 4 0
GPs 5 0
Pharmacies 1 0
Police stations 1 0
Banks & Bank@Post 3 0
Fuel stations 3 0
EV chargers 2 0
Waterways 1 12

Mobility

Macksville Way Way
Walkability score 26/100 0/100
Distance to Sydney 471.6 km 473 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 309 min 322 min
Public transport score 58/100
Bus
 22/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 24.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 3.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 1 min
scheduled, not actual
 12 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 0.3%
postcode 2447
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 62
postcode 2447
same for both

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.

Macksville Way Way
Car (driver) 79.3% / 62.6%
Macksville — Car (driver): 79.3% Way Way — Car (driver): 62.6%
Worked from Home 7.8% / 30.8%
Macksville — Worked from Home: 7.8% Way Way — Worked from Home: 30.8%
Car (passenger) 6.2% / 3.3%
Macksville — Car (passenger): 6.2% Way Way — Car (passenger): 3.3%
Walked Only 5.9% / 3.3%
Macksville — Walked Only: 5.9% Way Way — Walked Only: 3.3%
Bicycle 0.9% / —
Macksville — Bicycle: 0.9% Way Way — Bicycle: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.3%).

Setting

Macksville Way Way
Elevation 6 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 156 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 6.8 km 5.5 km

NBN connectivity

Macksville Way Way
Connectivity score 62/100 28/100
Most common technology Fibre to the premises Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 34%
1,711 premises
 0%
106 premises

Council rates

Macksville Way Way
Average residential rate $1,175/yr
same for both
Council Nambucca Valley
same for both

Federal electorate

Macksville Way Way
Division Cowper
same for both
Member Pat Conaghan
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Macksville Way Way
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Macksville

Acreage Affordable Retirees

Way Way

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Macksville

Macksville vs North Macksville Macksville vs Gumma Macksville vs Congarinni North Macksville vs Congarinni Macksville vs Talarm

Other comparisons with Way Way

Way Way vs Scotts Head Way Way vs Gumma Way Way vs Eungai Creek Way Way vs Congarinni Way Way vs Warrell Creek Way Way vs Eungai Rail
Full data on Macksville Full data on Way Way
Unlock full address-level data — $29/month

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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