Mount Barker Summit vs Petwood
Petwood is the younger of the two, with a median age of 42 against 50 in Mount Barker Summit. 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. Mount Barker Summit is closer to the city centre: 41 km, against 46.4 km. On these figures, Petwood tends to suit families with children.
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
Mount Barker Summit
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is already more of a family suburb (63% vs 48%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Petwood
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (19% vs 37%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Petwood
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (14% vs 21%)
- has cheaper rent ($248/wk vs $335/wk)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
Mount Barker Summit
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (41 km vs 46.4 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
Petwood
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (32.4% vs -2.0%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Mount Barker Summit and Petwood 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
Mount Barker Summit rents higher ($335/wk vs $248/wk); Mount Barker Summit skews older (50 vs 42).
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 100 +10% vs other | 90 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -2.0% | +32.4% |
| Median age | 50 | 42 |
| Median household income | $84,500/yr | $94,224/yr +12% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $335/wk +26% vs other | $248/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.0%).
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 (10.0%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.1%).
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,150,000 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 92% | 100% |
| Environmental | 8% | 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
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 657 across Mount Barker same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -7% same for both | |
Ranking within SA
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 62% of SA | Higher than 73% of SA |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 59% of SA | Higher than 38% of SA |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 80% of SA | Higher than 74% of SA |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 63% of SA | Higher than 40% of SA |
Liveability
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 9/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Petwood carries more bushfire risk (60 vs 0).
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Moderate 60/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 41/100 | Low 37/100 |
| Flood | — same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 4 within 5 km | 2 within 5 km |
Schools
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 0 | 5 |
Mobility
Petwood sits further from the CBD (46.4 km vs 41 km).
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 4/100 | 0/100 |
| Distance to Adelaide | 41 km | 46.4 km +13% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 46 min | 50 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.1% postcode 5251 | 0.9% postcode 5252 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 82 postcode 5251 | 73 postcode 5252 |
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 (67.4%).
Setting
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 452 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 244 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 37.1 km | 40.6 km |
NBN connectivity
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 27/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 45 premises | 0% 21 premises |
Climate
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 730 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 27.8°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 5.7°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $2,485/yr same for both | |
| Council | Mount Barker same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Mayo same for both | |
| Member | Rebekha Sharkie same for both | |
| Party | Centre Alliance same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Mount Barker Summit | Petwood | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $15,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | — same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Petwood
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Mount Barker Summit
Other comparisons with Petwood
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.