Owens Creek vs Dows Creek

In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Owens Creek, about half of households are couple families. In Dows Creek, most households are couple families. On these figures, Owens Creek tends to suit people living alone, while Dows Creek 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

  • Owens Creek carries lower crime risk (16/100 vs 44/100)
  • Dows Creek is already more of a family suburb (85% vs 60%)

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

First-home buyers

Dows Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (13% vs 21%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Owens Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($165/wk vs $180/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Dows Creek

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (694 min vs 705 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (1006.8 km vs 1016.3 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Owens Creek

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (16/100 vs 44/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (18% vs 9%)

Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Owens Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (23.7% vs 7.4%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Owens Creek Dows Creek
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.

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Walkability 0 / 0
Owens Creek — Walkability: 0/100 Dows Creek — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 84 / 56
Owens Creek — Safety: 84/100 Dows Creek — Safety: 56/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Owens Creek — Low fire risk: 100/100 Dows Creek — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Dows Creek has higher household incomes ($133,224 vs $87,724); Owens Creek has more residents (193 vs 146).

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Population 193
+24% vs other
 146
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +23.7% +7.4%
Median age 42 41
Median household income $87,724/yr $133,224/yr
+52% vs other
Median weekly rent $165/wk $180/wk
+9% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Owens Creek Dows Creek
0-4 4.7% / 8.2%
Owens Creek — 0-4: 4.7% Dows Creek — 0-4: 8.2%
5-14 15.0% / 16.4%
Owens Creek — 5-14: 15.0% Dows Creek — 5-14: 16.4%
15-19 11.9% / 3.4%
Owens Creek — 15-19: 11.9% Dows Creek — 15-19: 3.4%
20-24 1.6% / 6.2%
Owens Creek — 20-24: 1.6% Dows Creek — 20-24: 6.2%
25-34 6.2% / 9.6%
Owens Creek — 25-34: 6.2% Dows Creek — 25-34: 9.6%
35-44 17.6% / 11.0%
Owens Creek — 35-44: 17.6% Dows Creek — 35-44: 11.0%
45-54 10.9% / 17.1%
Owens Creek — 45-54: 10.9% Dows Creek — 45-54: 17.1%
55-64 11.4% / 17.1%
Owens Creek — 55-64: 11.4% Dows Creek — 55-64: 17.1%
65-74 13.5% / 8.9%
Owens Creek — 65-74: 13.5% Dows Creek — 65-74: 8.9%
75-84 4.1% / —
Owens Creek — 75-84: 4.1% Dows Creek — 75-84: not among its largest
85+ — / —
Owens Creek — 85+: not among its largest Dows Creek — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.6%).

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.

Owens Creek Dows Creek
New Zealand 3.6% / —
Owens Creek — New Zealand: 3.6% Dows Creek — New Zealand: not among its largest
England — / 2.1%
Owens Creek — England: not among its largest Dows Creek — England: 2.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (3.6%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Owens Creek 52.5% couple families
Owens Creek — Couple Families: 52.5% Owens Creek — Lone Person: 40.0% Owens Creek — One Parent Families: 7.5%
Dows Creek 73.1% couple families
Dows Creek — Couple Families: 73.1% Dows Creek — Lone Person: 15.4% Dows Creek — One Parent Families: 11.5%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Owens Creek 100.0% houses
Owens Creek — Houses: 100.0%
Dows Creek 100.0% houses
Dows Creek — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

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

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Certificate III & IV 16.6% / 30.1%
Owens Creek — Certificate III & IV: 16.6% Dows Creek — Certificate III & IV: 30.1%
Bachelor Degree 5.2% / 5.5%
Owens Creek — Bachelor Degree: 5.2% Dows Creek — Bachelor Degree: 5.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 3.6% / 4.1%
Owens Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 3.6% Dows Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 4.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (30.1%).

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Owens Creek 6.5% renting
Owens Creek — Owned Outright: 34.8% Owens Creek — Mortgage: 58.7% Owens Creek — Renting: 6.5%
Dows Creek 8.1% renting
Dows Creek — Owned Outright: 37.8% Dows Creek — Mortgage: 54.1% Dows Creek — Renting: 8.1%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Development activity

Owens Creek Dows Creek
New dwellings approved 574
across Mackay
same for both
Approvals change year on year -6%
same for both

Ranking within QLD

Owens Creek Dows Creek
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 61% of QLD Higher than 94% of QLD
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 19% of QLD Higher than 7% of QLD
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 9% of QLD Higher than 14% of QLD
NBN connectivity Higher than 35% of QLD Higher than 28% of QLD

Liveability

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 4/10
same for both

Risk profile

Dows Creek carries more crime risk (44 vs 16).

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Low
16/100
 Moderate
44/100
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

Owens Creek Dows Creek
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

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Waterways 7 6

Mobility

Owens Creek sits further from the CBD (1016.3 km vs 1006.8 km).

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Brisbane 1016.3 km 1006.8 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 705 min 694 min
Electric vehicle share 0.1%
postcode 4741
 0.1%
postcode 4754
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 70
postcode 4741
 78
postcode 4754

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.

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Car (driver) 70.7% / 86.7%
Owens Creek — Car (driver): 70.7% Dows Creek — Car (driver): 86.7%
Worked from Home 16.0% / 8.3%
Owens Creek — Worked from Home: 16.0% Dows Creek — Worked from Home: 8.3%
Car (passenger) 5.3% / 5.0%
Owens Creek — Car (passenger): 5.3% Dows Creek — Car (passenger): 5.0%
Walked Only 8.0% / —
Owens Creek — Walked Only: 8.0% Dows Creek — Walked Only: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (86.7%).

Setting

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Elevation 104 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 80 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 27.6 km 24.7 km

NBN connectivity

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Connectivity score 27/100 21/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Satellite (Sky Muster)
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
74 premises
 0%
53 premises

Climate

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Annual rainfall 1,517 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 30.8°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 12.4°C
same for both

Council rates

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Average residential rate $1,873/yr
same for both
Council Mackay
same for both

Federal electorate

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Division Capricornia
same for both
Member Michelle Landry
same for both
Party Liberal National Party of Queensland
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Owens Creek Dows Creek
Grant amount $30,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Owens Creek

Rural

Dows Creek

Family River Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Owens Creek

Owens Creek vs Finch Hatton Owens Creek vs Pinnacle Owens Creek vs Gargett

Other comparisons with Dows Creek

Dows Creek vs Gargett Dows Creek vs Mount Martin Dows Creek vs Mount Charlton Dows Creek vs Benholme
Full data on Owens Creek Full data on Dows Creek
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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