Russell Lea vs Wareemba

In both, most households own their home, most homes are detached houses, and about half of households are couple families. Russell Lea is closer to the city centre: 8.5 km, against 9.6 km.

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

Russell Lea

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more childcare (3 vs 0)
  • has more separate houses rather than flats (68% vs 55%)

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

First-home buyers

Too close to call

Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs house prices, unit prices, and mortgage stress.

Renters

Russell Lea

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (20% vs 26%)
  • has cheaper rent ($520/wk vs $600/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Wareemba

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (85/100 vs 76/100)

Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Wareemba

ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here

  • has more units and townhouses to downsize into (45% vs 32%)
  • is more walkable (85/100 vs 76/100)

Weighs smaller dwellings, 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

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

Russell Lea Wareemba
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.

Russell Lea Wareemba
Walkability 76 / 85
Russell Lea — Walkability: 76/100 Wareemba — Walkability: 85/100
Safety 75 / 73
Russell Lea — Safety: 75/100 Wareemba — Safety: 73/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
Russell Lea — Low fire risk: 100/100 Wareemba — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Russell Lea has more residents (4,920 vs 1,519); Russell Lea has higher household incomes ($138,216 vs $119,288).

Russell Lea Wareemba
Population 4,920
+69% vs other
 1,519
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -1.6% -1.7%
Median age 43
same for both
Median household income $138,216/yr
+14% vs other
 $119,288/yr
Median weekly rent $520/wk $600/wk
+15% vs other

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Russell Lea Wareemba
0-4 4.8% / 5.9%
Russell Lea — 0-4: 4.8% Wareemba — 0-4: 5.9%
5-14 13.8% / 12.4%
Russell Lea — 5-14: 13.8% Wareemba — 5-14: 12.4%
15-19 5.5% / 5.5%
Russell Lea — 15-19: 5.5% Wareemba — 15-19: 5.5%
20-24 4.8% / 4.2%
Russell Lea — 20-24: 4.8% Wareemba — 20-24: 4.2%
25-34 10.4% / 10.7%
Russell Lea — 25-34: 10.4% Wareemba — 25-34: 10.7%
35-44 12.9% / 13.5%
Russell Lea — 35-44: 12.9% Wareemba — 35-44: 13.5%
45-54 16.6% / 15.1%
Russell Lea — 45-54: 16.6% Wareemba — 45-54: 15.1%
55-64 12.5% / 12.2%
Russell Lea — 55-64: 12.5% Wareemba — 55-64: 12.2%
65-74 9.3% / 9.5%
Russell Lea — 65-74: 9.3% Wareemba — 65-74: 9.5%
75-84 5.5% / 7.3%
Russell Lea — 75-84: 5.5% Wareemba — 75-84: 7.3%
85+ 3.8% / 3.8%
Russell Lea — 85+: 3.8% Wareemba — 85+: 3.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.6%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Russell Lea 52.0% couple families
Russell Lea — Couple Families: 52.0% Russell Lea — Lone Person: 30.1% Russell Lea — One Parent Families: 12.5% Russell Lea — Group Household: 3.6% Russell Lea — Other Families: 1.8%
Wareemba 48.1% couple families
Wareemba — Couple Families: 48.1% Wareemba — Lone Person: 33.0% Wareemba — One Parent Families: 14.0% Wareemba — Group Household: 2.3% Wareemba — Other Families: 2.7%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Russell Lea 26.1% renting
Russell Lea — Owned Outright: 38.2% Russell Lea — Mortgage: 35.7% Russell Lea — Renting: 26.1%
Wareemba 29.0% renting
Wareemba — Owned Outright: 42.2% Wareemba — Mortgage: 28.8% Wareemba — Renting: 29.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Russell Lea Wareemba
Italy 6.3% / 9.3%
Russell Lea — Italy: 6.3% Wareemba — Italy: 9.3%
England 3.3% / 2.4%
Russell Lea — England: 3.3% Wareemba — England: 2.4%
China 1.8% / 1.7%
Russell Lea — China: 1.8% Wareemba — China: 1.7%
New Zealand 1.5% / 1.5%
Russell Lea — New Zealand: 1.5% Wareemba — New Zealand: 1.5%
Greece 1.7% / 1.0%
Russell Lea — Greece: 1.7% Wareemba — Greece: 1.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (9.3%).

Qualifications

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

Russell Lea Wareemba
Bachelor Degree 21.0% / 19.9%
Russell Lea — Bachelor Degree: 21.0% Wareemba — Bachelor Degree: 19.9%
Certificate III & IV 8.7% / 8.6%
Russell Lea — Certificate III & IV: 8.7% Wareemba — Certificate III & IV: 8.6%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.6% / 9.3%
Russell Lea — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.6% Wareemba — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 9.3%
Postgraduate Degree 7.6% / 6.7%
Russell Lea — Postgraduate Degree: 7.6% Wareemba — Postgraduate Degree: 6.7%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 2.6% / 1.3%
Russell Lea — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 2.6% Wareemba — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.0%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Russell Lea 68.3% houses
Russell Lea — Houses: 68.3% Russell Lea — Flats / Apartments: 24.0% Russell Lea — Townhouses: 7.8%
Wareemba 55.4% houses
Wareemba — Houses: 55.4% Wareemba — Flats / Apartments: 35.3% Wareemba — Townhouses: 9.3%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

Russell Lea Wareemba
Median house price $3,007,500 $2,975,000
Median unit price $1,265,000 $1,207,500
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) 30 days
from 14 sales
 32 days
from 9 sales

House price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

Russell Lea Wareemba
3 bed $2.9M / $2.8M
Russell Lea — 3 bed: $2.9M (18 sales) Wareemba — 3 bed: $2.8M (9 sales)

18 vs 9 sales

4 bed $3.4M / $3.6M
Russell Lea — 4 bed: $3.4M (12 sales) Wareemba — 4 bed: $3.6M (9 sales)

12 vs 9 sales

Zoning mix

Russell Lea Wareemba
Residential 97% 93%
Commercial 2% 6%
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

Russell Lea Wareemba
New dwellings approved 1,600
across Canada Bay
same for both
Approvals change year on year +72%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

Russell Lea Wareemba
Houses 2.5%
$1,300/wk on $2.7M
 —
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Russell Lea Wareemba
House price Higher than 95% of NSW Higher than 94% of NSW
Income Higher than 91% of NSW Higher than 83% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 91% of NSW Higher than 94% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 10% of NSW Higher than 8% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 94% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 93% of NSW
same for both
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 7% of NSW —

Liveability

Wareemba is more walkable (85 vs 76).

Russell Lea Wareemba
Grade A+
same for both
Score 88/100 90/100
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
same for both

Risk profile

Russell Lea Wareemba
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Low
25/100
 Low
27/100
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 2
within 5 km
 0
within 5 km

Schools

Russell Lea Wareemba
Inside the suburb 1 0
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 1 0
Rated below peers 0
same for both
Universities within 10 km 3
The University of Sydney, 5.0 km
 3
Strathfield Campus, 5.2 km
Full-time students aged 15–24 2.6% 2.0%

Schools in Russell Lea

  • Russell Lea Public School Government · Primary at peers

Schools in Wareemba

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Amenities in the suburb

Russell Lea Wareemba
Supermarkets 0 1
Cafes & restaurants 5 1
Parks & reserves 0 1
Childcare 3 0
Pharmacies 0 2
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1

Mobility

Russell Lea Wareemba
Walkability score 76/100 85/100
Distance to Sydney 8.5 km 9.6 km
+13% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 15 min 17 min
Public transport score 94/100
Bus
 79/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 101.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 36.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 0 min
scheduled, not actual
 1 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 2.1%
postcode 2046
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 16
postcode 2046
same for both

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.

Russell Lea Wareemba
Worked from Home 56.5% / 56.6%
Russell Lea — Worked from Home: 56.5% Wareemba — Worked from Home: 56.6%
Car (driver) 36.8% / 35.7%
Russell Lea — Car (driver): 36.8% Wareemba — Car (driver): 35.7%
Car (passenger) 2.0% / 2.8%
Russell Lea — Car (passenger): 2.0% Wareemba — Car (passenger): 2.8%
Bus 2.2% / 1.8%
Russell Lea — Bus: 2.2% Wareemba — Bus: 1.8%
Walked Only 1.4% / 1.5%
Russell Lea — Walked Only: 1.4% Wareemba — Walked Only: 1.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (56.6%).

Setting

Russell Lea Wareemba
Elevation 22 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 20 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 10.1 km
3.4 km to a named beach
 10.5 km
4.0 km to a named beach

NBN connectivity

Russell Lea Wareemba
Connectivity score 87/100
same for both
Most common technology Fibre to the curb
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 40%
2,076 premises
 34%
688 premises

Climate

Russell Lea Wareemba
Annual rainfall 1,176 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Russell Lea Wareemba
PM2.5 6.5 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 15.7 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.62 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Russell Lea Wareemba
Average residential rate $1,217/yr
same for both
Council Canada Bay
same for both

Federal electorate

Russell Lea Wareemba
Division Reid
same for both
Member Sally Sitou
same for both
Party Australian Labor Party
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Russell Lea Wareemba
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Russell Lea

Easy Commute Inner Parks Premium Professionals Transport Hub Urban

Wareemba

Apartments Inner Parks Premium Professionals Urban

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Russell Lea

Russell Lea vs Drummoyne Russell Lea vs Five Dock Russell Lea vs Abbotsford Russell Lea vs Chiswick Russell Lea vs Rodd Point

Other comparisons with Wareemba

Wareemba vs Five Dock Wareemba vs Abbotsford
Full data on Russell Lea Full data on Wareemba
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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