Rushes Creek vs Orange Grove

Orange Grove is the younger of the two, with a median age of 37 against 48 in Rushes Creek. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Rushes Creek, about half of households are people living alone. In Orange Grove, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Rushes Creek tends to suit people living alone, while Orange Grove suits 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

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Rushes Creek carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 51/100)
  • Orange Grove is already more of a family suburb (71% vs 50%)

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

First-home buyers

Orange Grove

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (16% vs 37%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Rushes Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($190/wk vs $350/wk)

Weighs rent and rental stress.

Commuting to the city

Orange Grove

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (454.9 km vs 470.3 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Rushes Creek

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (21/100 vs 51/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (20% vs 13%)

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

Investors

Orange Grove

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (81.8% vs -7.5%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
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.

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Walkability 0 / 0
Rushes Creek — Walkability: 0/100 Orange Grove — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 79 / 49
Rushes Creek — Safety: 79/100 Orange Grove — Safety: 49/100
Low fire risk 67 / 76
Rushes Creek — Low fire risk: 67/100 Orange Grove — Low fire risk: 76/100

Demographics

Orange Grove rents higher ($350/wk vs $190/wk); Orange Grove has higher household incomes ($110,500 vs $66,612).

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Population 98
+39% vs other
 60
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -7.5% +81.8%
Median age 48 37
Median household income $66,612/yr $110,500/yr
+66% vs other
Median weekly rent $190/wk $350/wk
+84% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
0-4 5.1% / 8.3%
Rushes Creek — 0-4: 5.1% Orange Grove — 0-4: 8.3%
5-14 12.2% / 13.3%
Rushes Creek — 5-14: 12.2% Orange Grove — 5-14: 13.3%
15-19 6.1% / —
Rushes Creek — 15-19: 6.1% Orange Grove — 15-19: not among its largest
20-24 — / —
Rushes Creek — 20-24: not among its largest Orange Grove — 20-24: not among its largest
25-34 9.2% / 6.7%
Rushes Creek — 25-34: 9.2% Orange Grove — 25-34: 6.7%
35-44 4.1% / 13.3%
Rushes Creek — 35-44: 4.1% Orange Grove — 35-44: 13.3%
45-54 14.3% / 20.0%
Rushes Creek — 45-54: 14.3% Orange Grove — 45-54: 20.0%
55-64 25.5% / 10.0%
Rushes Creek — 55-64: 25.5% Orange Grove — 55-64: 10.0%
65-74 13.3% / 5.0%
Rushes Creek — 65-74: 13.3% Orange Grove — 65-74: 5.0%
75-84 4.1% / 8.3%
Rushes Creek — 75-84: 4.1% Orange Grove — 75-84: 8.3%
85+ 3.1% / —
Rushes Creek — 85+: 3.1% Orange Grove — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.5%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Rushes Creek 50.0% couple families
Rushes Creek — Couple Families: 50.0% Rushes Creek — Lone Person: 50.0% Rushes Creek — One Parent Families: 0.0%
Orange Grove 50.0% couple families
Orange Grove — Couple Families: 50.0% Orange Grove — Lone Person: 28.6% Orange Grove — One Parent Families: 21.4%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Rushes Creek 0.0% renting
Rushes Creek — Owned Outright: 75.0% Rushes Creek — Mortgage: 25.0% Rushes Creek — Renting: 0.0%
Orange Grove 25.0% renting
Orange Grove — Owned Outright: 37.5% Orange Grove — Mortgage: 37.5% Orange Grove — Renting: 25.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Rushes Creek 90.2% houses
Rushes Creek — Houses: 90.2% Rushes Creek — Flats / Apartments: 9.8%
Orange Grove 83.3% houses
Orange Grove — Houses: 83.3% Orange Grove — Flats / Apartments: 16.7%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Qualifications

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

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Certificate III & IV 13.3% / 5.0%
Rushes Creek — Certificate III & IV: 13.3% Orange Grove — Certificate III & IV: 5.0%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 10.2% / 6.7%
Rushes Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.2% Orange Grove — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.7%
Postgraduate Degree — / 10.0%
Rushes Creek — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Orange Grove — Postgraduate Degree: 10.0%
Bachelor Degree — / 6.7%
Rushes Creek — Bachelor Degree: not among its largest Orange Grove — Bachelor Degree: 6.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (13.3%).

Property market

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Median house price $505,000 —
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Zoning mix

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Rural and farming 100%
same for both
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

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
New dwellings approved 390
across Tamworth
 25
across Gunnedah
Approvals change year on year -35% -17%

Ranking within NSW

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
House price Higher than 16% of NSW —
Income Higher than 29% of NSW Higher than 76% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 32% of NSW Higher than 35% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 81% of NSW —
EV adoption Higher than 5% of NSW Higher than 1% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 40% of NSW Higher than 43% of NSW

Liveability

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
same for both

Risk profile

Orange Grove carries more crime risk (51 vs 21).

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Bushfire Low
33/100
 Low
24/100
Crime Low
21/100
 Moderate
51/100
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

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
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

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Waterways 2 1

Mobility

Rushes Creek sits further from the CBD (470.3 km vs 454.9 km).

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Sydney 470.3 km
+3% vs other
 454.9 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 330 min 332 min
Electric vehicle share 0.1%
postcode 2346
 0.1%
postcode 2380
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 50
postcode 2346
 50
postcode 2380

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.

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Car (driver) 46.9% / 73.7%
Rushes Creek — Car (driver): 46.9% Orange Grove — Car (driver): 73.7%
Worked from Home 38.8% / 26.3%
Rushes Creek — Worked from Home: 38.8% Orange Grove — Worked from Home: 26.3%
Walked Only 8.2% / —
Rushes Creek — Walked Only: 8.2% Orange Grove — Walked Only: not among its largest
Bus 6.1% / —
Rushes Creek — Bus: 6.1% Orange Grove — Bus: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (73.7%).

Setting

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Elevation 397 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 370 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre

NBN connectivity

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Connectivity score 27/100 28/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
36 premises
 0%
25 premises

Climate

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Annual rainfall 626 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 32.8°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 6.0°C
same for both

Council rates

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Average residential rate $1,397/yr $1,093/yr
Council Tamworth Gunnedah

Federal electorate

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Division New England Parkes
Member Barnaby Joyce Jamie Chaffey
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Rushes Creek Orange Grove
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Rushes Creek

Affordable Rural

Orange Grove

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Rushes Creek

Rushes Creek vs Manilla Rushes Creek vs Carroll Rushes Creek vs Somerton Rushes Creek vs New Mexico Rushes Creek vs Klori

Other comparisons with Orange Grove

Orange Grove vs Gunnedah Orange Grove vs Carroll Orange Grove vs Kelvin
Full data on Rushes Creek Full data on Orange Grove
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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