Scarborough vs Wombarra
Scarborough is the younger of the two, with a median age of 41 against 44 in Wombarra. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Scarborough, most households are couple families. In Wombarra, about half of households are couple families. On these figures, Scarborough tends to suit 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
Scarborough
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is already more of a family suburb (75% vs 66%)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Too close to call
Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Too close to call
Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Wombarra
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has more residents already 65 and over (17% vs 11%)
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
Scarborough and Wombarra 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
Wombarra has more residents (944 vs 325); Wombarra has higher household incomes ($148,720 vs $133,692).
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 325 | 944 +190% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +5.5% | +8.3% |
| Median age | 41 | 44 |
| Median household income | $133,692/yr | $148,720/yr +11% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $575/wk | $600/wk +4% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.9%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.6%).
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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (6.2%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $2,250,000 | $2,150,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — | $1,200,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 52 days from 3 sales | 132 days from 9 sales |
Zoning mix
Scarborough has more land zoned for conservation (82% vs 66%).
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 82% | 66% |
| Residential | 3% | 18% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 7% | 8% |
| Parks and recreation | 8% | 5% |
| Planning zones cover 99% of Scarborough and 96% of Wombarra. The rest is unzoned land such as water or road reserve. | ||
| 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
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 1,476 across Wollongong same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -31% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 78% of NSW | Higher than 84% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 90% of NSW | Higher than 94% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 79% of NSW | Higher than 80% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 49% of NSW | Higher than 45% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 97% of NSW | Higher than 96% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 73% of NSW | Higher than 77% of NSW |
Liveability
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — | B |
| Score | — | 53/100 |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | High 95/100 same for both | |
| Crime | Low 35/100 | Low 33/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | Low 18/100 | Low 28/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Schools in Scarborough
- Scarborough Public School Government · Primary at peers
Schools in Wombarra
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 0 | 1 |
| Childcare | 0 | 1 |
Mobility
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 41/100 | 46/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 65.8 km | 67.7 km +3% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 76 min | 77 min |
| Public transport score | 57/100 Rail · Bus | 67/100 Rail · Bus |
| Peak arrivals per hour | 16.5 7-9am + 5-7pm | 23.2 7-9am + 5-7pm |
| Median peak wait | 1 min scheduled, not actual same for both | |
| Electric vehicle share | 2.8% postcode 2515 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 47 postcode 2515 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.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (57.3%).
Setting
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 150 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 81 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 483 m 712 m to a named beach | 576 m 606 m to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 65/100 | 70/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 36% 130 premises | 45% 436 premises |
Climate
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,038 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 6.2 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 18.2 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | 0.66 pphm same for both | |
Council rates
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,751/yr same for both | |
| Council | Wollongong same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Cunningham same for both | |
| Member | Alison Byrnes same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Scarborough | Wombarra | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Wombarra
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.