Muckleford vs Newstead

Muckleford is the younger of the two, with a median age of 46 against 51 in Newstead. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Muckleford, about half of households are couple families. In Newstead, about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in Muckleford: a median of $695,000, against $550,000 in Newstead, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Muckleford tends to suit couples, while Newstead suits people living alone, older residents, 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

Muckleford

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is already more of a family suburb (65% vs 47%)

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

First-home buyers

Newstead

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has cheaper houses ($550,000 vs $695,000)
  • has cheaper land ($207,500 vs $247,000)
  • But Muckleford leaves households under less mortgage stress (22% vs 27%)

Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

They split

one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here

  • Muckleford leaves renters under less rental stress (18% vs 27%)
  • Newstead has cheaper rent ($300/wk vs $330/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Muckleford

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (97 min vs 105 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (128.1 km vs 138 km)
  • But Newstead is more walkable (40/100 vs 10/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Newstead

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (40/100 vs 10/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (29% vs 20%)

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

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

Muckleford Newstead
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.

Muckleford Newstead
Walkability 10 / 40
Muckleford — Walkability: 10/100 Newstead — Walkability: 40/100
Safety 54 / 54
Muckleford — Safety: 54/100 Newstead — Safety: 54/100
Low fire risk 62 / 100
Muckleford — Low fire risk: 62/100 Newstead — Low fire risk: 100/100
Low flood risk 53 / 100
Muckleford — Low flood risk: 53/100 Newstead — Low flood risk: 100/100

Demographics

Newstead has more residents (820 vs 426); Muckleford has higher household incomes ($96,096 vs $57,460).

Muckleford Newstead
Population 426 820
+92% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +5.2% +8.8%
Median age 46 51
Median household income $96,096/yr
+40% vs other
 $57,460/yr
Median weekly rent $330/wk
+9% vs other
 $300/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Muckleford Newstead
0-4 2.6% / 5.4%
Muckleford — 0-4: 2.6% Newstead — 0-4: 5.4%
5-14 12.9% / 11.0%
Muckleford — 5-14: 12.9% Newstead — 5-14: 11.0%
15-19 8.2% / 4.6%
Muckleford — 15-19: 8.2% Newstead — 15-19: 4.6%
20-24 4.9% / 3.2%
Muckleford — 20-24: 4.9% Newstead — 20-24: 3.2%
25-34 7.0% / 8.3%
Muckleford — 25-34: 7.0% Newstead — 25-34: 8.3%
35-44 9.6% / 10.0%
Muckleford — 35-44: 9.6% Newstead — 35-44: 10.0%
45-54 17.4% / 12.9%
Muckleford — 45-54: 17.4% Newstead — 45-54: 12.9%
55-64 16.4% / 16.2%
Muckleford — 55-64: 16.4% Newstead — 55-64: 16.2%
65-74 13.4% / 18.8%
Muckleford — 65-74: 13.4% Newstead — 65-74: 18.8%
75-84 5.9% / 8.3%
Muckleford — 75-84: 5.9% Newstead — 75-84: 8.3%
85+ 0.9% / 2.0%
Muckleford — 85+: 0.9% Newstead — 85+: 2.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.8%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Muckleford 49.1% couple families
Muckleford — Couple Families: 49.1% Muckleford — Lone Person: 27.4% Muckleford — One Parent Families: 16.0% Muckleford — Group Household: 4.7% Muckleford — Other Families: 2.8%
Newstead 32.0% couple families
Newstead — Couple Families: 32.0% Newstead — Lone Person: 48.9% Newstead — One Parent Families: 14.7% Newstead — Group Household: 3.4% Newstead — Other Families: 1.1%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Muckleford 11.2% renting
Muckleford — Owned Outright: 44.7% Muckleford — Mortgage: 44.1% Muckleford — Renting: 11.2%
Newstead 9.5% renting
Newstead — Owned Outright: 46.8% Newstead — Mortgage: 43.6% Newstead — Renting: 9.5%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

Muckleford Newstead
Certificate III & IV 15.3% / 14.4%
Muckleford — Certificate III & IV: 15.3% Newstead — Certificate III & IV: 14.4%
Bachelor Degree 9.9% / 13.7%
Muckleford — Bachelor Degree: 9.9% Newstead — Bachelor Degree: 13.7%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 8.2% / 8.4%
Muckleford — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.2% Newstead — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.4%
Postgraduate Degree 5.4% / 3.7%
Muckleford — Postgraduate Degree: 5.4% Newstead — Postgraduate Degree: 3.7%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 4.5% / 4.6%
Muckleford — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 4.5% Newstead — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 4.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.3%).

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.

Muckleford Newstead
England 2.8% / 5.5%
Muckleford — England: 2.8% Newstead — England: 5.5%
New Zealand 0.9% / 1.3%
Muckleford — New Zealand: 0.9% Newstead — New Zealand: 1.3%
Ireland 0.7% / 0.4%
Muckleford — Ireland: 0.7% Newstead — Ireland: 0.4%
South Africa 0.9% / —
Muckleford — South Africa: 0.9% Newstead — South Africa: not among its largest
India 0.7% / —
Muckleford — India: 0.7% Newstead — India: not among its largest
Netherlands — / 0.5%
Muckleford — Netherlands: not among its largest Newstead — Netherlands: 0.5%
Germany — / 0.4%
Muckleford — Germany: not among its largest Newstead — Germany: 0.4%
Thailand — / 0.4%
Muckleford — Thailand: not among its largest Newstead — Thailand: 0.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (5.5%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Muckleford 100.0% houses
Muckleford — Houses: 100.0% Muckleford — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Newstead 96.1% houses
Newstead — Houses: 96.1% Newstead — Flats / Apartments: 3.9%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Muckleford Newstead
Median house price $695,000 $550,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price $247,000 $207,500
Typical days to sell (houses) — 58 days
from 4 sales

Zoning mix

Muckleford has more rural and farming land (80% vs 64%).

Muckleford Newstead
Rural and farming 80% 64%
Parks and recreation 18% 25%
Residential 0% 6%
Infrastructure and transport 1% 5%
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

Muckleford Newstead
New dwellings approved 102
across Mount Alexander
same for both
Approvals change year on year -7%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Muckleford Newstead
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 66% of VIC Higher than 16% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 72% of VIC Higher than 84% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 82% of VIC Higher than 64% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 73% of VIC Higher than 56% of VIC

Liveability

Newstead is more walkable (40 vs 10).

Muckleford Newstead
Grade — B
Score — 56/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 7/10
 mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10

Risk profile

Muckleford carries more flood risk (47 vs 0); Muckleford carries more bushfire risk (38 vs 0).

Muckleford Newstead
Bushfire Low
38/100
 None
0/100
Crime Moderate
46/100
same for both
Flood Moderate
47/100
 None
0/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 4
within 5 km
 0
within 5 km

Schools

Muckleford Newstead
Inside the suburb 1
same for both
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 1
same for both

Schools in Muckleford

  • Castlemaine Steiner School & Kindergarten Independent · Combined below peers

Schools in Newstead

  • Newstead Primary School Government · Primary below peers

Amenities in the suburb

Muckleford Newstead
Cafes & restaurants 0 1
Parks & reserves 3 5
Childcare 1 2
Pharmacies 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Waterways 12 4

Mobility

Newstead sits further from the CBD (138 km vs 128.1 km).

Muckleford Newstead
Walkability score 10/100 40/100
Distance to Melbourne 128.1 km 138 km
+8% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 97 min 105 min
Electric vehicle share 1.2%
postcode 3451
 0.7%
postcode 3462
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 59
postcode 3451
 56
postcode 3462

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.

Muckleford Newstead
Car (driver) 61.7% / 63.6%
Muckleford — Car (driver): 61.7% Newstead — Car (driver): 63.6%
Worked from Home 30.6% / 25.9%
Muckleford — Worked from Home: 30.6% Newstead — Worked from Home: 25.9%
Walked Only 2.2% / 7.2%
Muckleford — Walked Only: 2.2% Newstead — Walked Only: 7.2%
Car (passenger) 5.6% / 1.6%
Muckleford — Car (passenger): 5.6% Newstead — Car (passenger): 1.6%
Bicycle — / 1.6%
Muckleford — Bicycle: not among its largest Newstead — Bicycle: 1.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (63.6%).

Setting

Muckleford Newstead
Elevation 286 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 213 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Muckleford Newstead
Connectivity score 43/100 30/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 20%
224 premises
 0%
429 premises

Climate

Muckleford Newstead
Annual rainfall 598 mm 531 mm
Summer max (Jan) 27.9°C —
Winter min (Jul) 3.7°C —

Council rates

Muckleford Newstead
Average residential rate $1,885/yr
same for both
Council Mount Alexander
same for both

Federal electorate

Muckleford Newstead
Division Bendigo
same for both
Member Lisa Chesters
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Muckleford Newstead
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Muckleford

Rural

Newstead

Affordable Quiet Retirees Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Muckleford

Muckleford vs Castlemaine Muckleford vs Campbells Creek Muckleford vs McKenzie Hill Muckleford vs Barkers Creek Muckleford vs Yapeen Muckleford vs Walmer

Other comparisons with Newstead

Newstead vs Welshmans Reef Newstead vs Strangways Newstead vs Sandon Newstead vs Green Gully
Full data on Muckleford Full data on Newstead
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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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