Summer Hill vs Vacy

In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Summer Hill: a median of $2.51 million, against $1.09 million in Vacy, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Summer Hill tends to suit couples, while Vacy suits 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

They split

one each way, out of the 5 things we measure here

  • Summer Hill is already more of a family suburb (86% vs 72%)
  • Vacy has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)

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

First-home buyers

Vacy

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($1,091,250 vs $2,512,500)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

They split

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

  • Summer Hill has a bigger rental market to choose from (18% vs 7%)
  • Vacy has cheaper rent ($265/wk vs $300/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

Vacy

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (8/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (148 min vs 160 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (191.8 km vs 202.8 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Vacy

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (8/100 vs 0/100)

Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.

Investors

Summer Hill

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (132.7% vs 15.0%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

Summer Hill Vacy
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.

Summer Hill Vacy
Walkability 0 / 8
Summer Hill — Walkability: 0/100 Vacy — Walkability: 8/100
Low fire risk 67 / 67
Summer Hill — Low fire risk: 67/100 Vacy — Low fire risk: 67/100

Demographics

Vacy has more residents (719 vs 128); Summer Hill rents higher ($300/wk vs $265/wk).

Summer Hill Vacy
Population 128 719
+462% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +132.7% +15.0%
Median age 43 42
Median household income $99,112/yr
+5% vs other
 $93,756/yr
Median weekly rent $300/wk
+12% vs other
 $265/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Summer Hill Vacy
0-4 — / 6.7%
Summer Hill — 0-4: not among its largest Vacy — 0-4: 6.7%
5-14 20.3% / 13.8%
Summer Hill — 5-14: 20.3% Vacy — 5-14: 13.8%
15-19 7.8% / 5.1%
Summer Hill — 15-19: 7.8% Vacy — 15-19: 5.1%
20-24 3.9% / 4.6%
Summer Hill — 20-24: 3.9% Vacy — 20-24: 4.6%
25-34 2.3% / 10.2%
Summer Hill — 25-34: 2.3% Vacy — 25-34: 10.2%
35-44 16.4% / 12.4%
Summer Hill — 35-44: 16.4% Vacy — 35-44: 12.4%
45-54 13.3% / 14.9%
Summer Hill — 45-54: 13.3% Vacy — 45-54: 14.9%
55-64 20.3% / 14.3%
Summer Hill — 55-64: 20.3% Vacy — 55-64: 14.3%
65-74 9.4% / 12.8%
Summer Hill — 65-74: 9.4% Vacy — 65-74: 12.8%
75-84 3.9% / 5.0%
Summer Hill — 75-84: 3.9% Vacy — 75-84: 5.0%
85+ 3.1% / 1.3%
Summer Hill — 85+: 3.1% Vacy — 85+: 1.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.3%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Summer Hill 85.7% couple families
Summer Hill — Couple Families: 85.7% Summer Hill — Lone Person: 14.3% Summer Hill — One Parent Families: 0.0% Summer Hill — Other Families: 0.0%
Vacy 61.4% couple families
Vacy — Couple Families: 61.4% Vacy — Lone Person: 26.5% Vacy — One Parent Families: 10.2% Vacy — Other Families: 1.8%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Summer Hill 17.5% renting
Summer Hill — Owned Outright: 35.0% Summer Hill — Mortgage: 47.5% Summer Hill — Renting: 17.5%
Vacy 6.9% renting
Vacy — Owned Outright: 41.6% Vacy — Mortgage: 51.4% Vacy — Renting: 6.9%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Summer Hill 97.3% houses
Summer Hill — Houses: 97.3% Summer Hill — Flats / Apartments: 2.7%
Vacy 100.8% houses
Vacy — Houses: 100.8% Vacy — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Qualifications

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

Summer Hill Vacy
Certificate III & IV 15.6% / 24.6%
Summer Hill — Certificate III & IV: 15.6% Vacy — Certificate III & IV: 24.6%
Bachelor Degree 10.9% / 10.2%
Summer Hill — Bachelor Degree: 10.9% Vacy — Bachelor Degree: 10.2%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.0% / 7.8%
Summer Hill — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.0% Vacy — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.8%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 3.1% / 1.0%
Summer Hill — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.1% Vacy — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.0%
Postgraduate Degree — / 1.7%
Summer Hill — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Vacy — Postgraduate Degree: 1.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.6%).

Property market

Summer Hill Vacy
Median house price $2,512,500 $1,091,250
Median unit price $930,000 —
Median land price — $873,000
Typical days to sell (houses) — 72 days
from 8 sales

Zoning mix

Summer Hill has more rural and farming land (99% vs 86%).

Summer Hill Vacy
Rural and farming 99% 86%
Residential 0% 9%
Environmental 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

Summer Hill Vacy
New dwellings approved 55
across Dungog
same for both
Approvals change year on year -23%
same for both

Ranking within NSW

Summer Hill Vacy
House price Higher than 90% of NSW Higher than 58% of NSW
Income — Higher than 61% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 3% of NSW Higher than 54% of NSW
Affordability — Higher than 51% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 28% of NSW
same for both
NBN connectivity Higher than 50% of NSW Higher than 57% of NSW

Liveability

Vacy is more walkable (8 vs 0).

Summer Hill Vacy
Grade — C
Score — 44/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
 advantaged area
decile 7/10

Risk profile

Summer Hill Vacy
Bushfire Low
33/100
same for both
Crime — Moderate
45/100
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

Summer Hill Vacy
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0 1
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Summer Hill

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

Schools in Vacy

  • Vacy Public School Government · Primary above peers

Amenities in the suburb

Summer Hill Vacy
Cafes & restaurants 0 1
Childcare 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Waterways 4 9

Mobility

Summer Hill sits further from the CBD (202.8 km vs 191.8 km).

Summer Hill Vacy
Walkability score 0/100 8/100
Distance to Sydney 202.8 km
+5% vs other
 191.8 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 160 min 148 min
Electric vehicle share 0.3%
postcode 2421
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 78
postcode 2421
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.

Summer Hill Vacy
Car (driver) 60.0% / 71.2%
Summer Hill — Car (driver): 60.0% Vacy — Car (driver): 71.2%
Worked from Home 40.0% / 25.0%
Summer Hill — Worked from Home: 40.0% Vacy — Worked from Home: 25.0%
Car (passenger) — / 2.4%
Summer Hill — Car (passenger): not among its largest Vacy — Car (passenger): 2.4%
Walked Only — / 1.4%
Summer Hill — Walked Only: not among its largest Vacy — Walked Only: 1.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (71.2%).

Setting

Summer Hill Vacy
Elevation 75 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 31 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 46.9 km 38.5 km

NBN connectivity

Summer Hill Vacy
Connectivity score 30/100
same for both
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
60 premises
 0%
287 premises

Climate

Summer Hill Vacy
Annual rainfall 1,026 mm 996 mm
Summer max (Jan) 29.9°C 30.0°C
Winter min (Jul) 6.8°C 7.1°C

Council rates

Summer Hill Vacy
Average residential rate $1,646/yr
same for both
Council Dungog
same for both

Federal electorate

Summer Hill Vacy
Division Lyne
same for both
Member Alison Penfold
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Summer Hill Vacy
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Summer Hill

Rural

Vacy

Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Summer Hill

Summer Hill vs Glendon Brook Summer Hill vs Lambs Valley Summer Hill vs Gresford Summer Hill vs Fishers Hill

Other comparisons with Vacy

Vacy vs Paterson Vacy vs Martins Creek Vacy vs Lambs Valley Vacy vs Hilldale Vacy vs Torryburn Vacy vs Fishers Hill
Full data on Summer Hill Full data on Vacy
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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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