Middle Brook vs Parkville
Parkville is the younger of the two, with a median age of 41 against 44 in Middle Brook. 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 Middle Brook: a median of $924,000, against $515,000 in Parkville, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Middle Brook tends to suit families with children, while Parkville 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
Too close to call
Nothing among the 6 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Parkville
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- has cheaper houses ($515,000 vs $923,750)
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 25%)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Parkville
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (14% vs 20%)
- has cheaper rent ($285/wk vs $400/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Parkville
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (207 min vs 216 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (285.1 km vs 296.5 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Too close to call
Nothing among the 4 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Middle Brook
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (15.6% vs -8.9%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Middle Brook and Parkville 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
Middle Brook rents higher ($400/wk vs $285/wk); Middle Brook skews older (44 vs 41).
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 260 | 275 +6% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +15.6% | -8.9% |
| Median age | 44 | 41 |
| Median household income | $102,336/yr | $105,508/yr +3% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $400/wk +29% vs other | $285/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.3%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
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 (3.1%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.2%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $923,750 | $515,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | $405,000 | — |
Zoning mix
Parkville has more rural and farming land (99% vs 56%); Middle Brook has more land zoned for conservation (41% vs 0%).
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 56% | 99% |
| Environmental | 41% | 0% |
| Residential | 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
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 41 across Upper Hunter same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -20% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 45% of NSW | Higher than 16% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 70% of NSW | Higher than 72% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 43% of NSW | Higher than 8% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 72% of NSW | Higher than 92% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 14% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 63% of NSW | Higher than 52% of NSW |
Liveability
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | advantaged area decile 7/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Middle Brook carries more bushfire risk (45 vs 17).
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 45/100 | Low 17/100 |
| Crime | Low 23/100 | Low 19/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| 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
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 5 | 10 |
Mobility
Middle Brook sits further from the CBD (296.5 km vs 285.1 km).
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Sydney | 296.5 km +4% vs other | 285.1 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 216 min | 207 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.2% postcode 2337 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 41 postcode 2337 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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (77.0%).
Setting
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 429 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 280 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 99 premises | 0% 117 premises |
Climate
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 631 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 31.6°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 4.1°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | — same for both | |
| PM10 | 14.9 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $968/yr same for both | |
| Council | Upper Hunter same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | New England same for both | |
| Member | Barnaby Joyce same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Middle Brook | Parkville | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Middle Brook
Parkville
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Middle Brook
Other comparisons with Parkville
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.