Mount Doran vs Lal Lal
Lal Lal is the younger of the two, with a median age of 42 against 53 in Mount Doran. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Mount Doran, most households are people living alone. In Lal Lal, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Lal Lal: a median of $749,000, against $605,000 in Mount Doran, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Mount Doran tends to suit people living alone and buyers on a tighter budget, while Lal Lal suits families with children and couples.
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
They split
one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here
- Mount Doran carries lower crime risk (15/100 vs 69/100)
- Lal Lal is already more of a family suburb (66% vs 41%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Mount Doran
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($605,000 vs $749,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Mount Doran
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($0/wk vs $290/wk)
Weighs rent.
Commuting to the city
They split
one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here
- Mount Doran sits closer to the CBD (112.8 km vs 116 km)
- Lal Lal has a shorter drive in (87 min vs 92 min)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Mount Doran
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- carries lower crime risk (15/100 vs 69/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Lal Lal
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (30.5% vs -9.2%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Mount Doran and Lal Lal 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
Lal Lal rents higher ($290/wk vs $0/wk); Lal Lal has more residents (621 vs 118).
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 118 | 621 +426% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -9.2% | +30.5% |
| Median age | 53 | 42 |
| Median household income | $79,040/yr | $93,808/yr +19% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | — | $290/wk (not reported on the other side) |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (29.7%).
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 (4.2%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.0%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $605,000 | $749,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | — | 83 days from 5 sales |
Zoning mix
Mount Doran has more rural and farming land (96% vs 66%).
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 96% | 66% |
| Parks and recreation | 0% | 22% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 4% | 10% |
| 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 Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 338 across Moorabool same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +4% same for both | |
Ranking within VIC
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 46% of VIC | Higher than 63% of VIC |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 23% of VIC | Higher than 37% of VIC |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 46% of VIC | Higher than 38% of VIC |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 23% of VIC | Higher than 43% of VIC |
Liveability
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — | C |
| Score | — | 33/100 |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 3/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 |
Risk profile
Lal Lal carries more crime risk (69 vs 15); Mount Doran carries more bushfire risk (85 vs 65).
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 85/100 | Moderate 65/100 |
| Crime | Low 15/100 | Moderate 69/100 |
| Flood | None 0/100 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 | 1 within 5 km |
Schools
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 | 1 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 | 1 |
Schools in Mount Doran
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Schools in Lal Lal
- Lal Lal Primary School Government · Primary below peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 2 |
| Childcare | 0 | 1 |
| Waterways | 0 | 2 |
Mobility
Lal Lal sits further from the CBD (116 km vs 112.8 km).
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Melbourne | 112.8 km | 116 km +3% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 92 min | 87 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.5% postcode 3334 | 0.4% postcode 3352 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 36 postcode 3334 | 51 postcode 3352 |
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 (73.1%).
Setting
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 430 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 469 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
NBN connectivity
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 24/100 | 29/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 34 premises | 0% 265 premises |
Climate
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 578 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,979/yr same for both | |
| Council | Moorabool same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Ballarat same for both | |
| Member | Catherine King same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Mount Doran | Lal Lal | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $750,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Mount Doran
Other comparisons with Lal Lal
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.