The Bight vs Bootawa

In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Bootawa, most households are couple families. Houses cost more in The Bight: a median of $1 million, against $705,000 in Bootawa, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Bootawa tends to suit people living alone, couples, and 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

The Bight

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (27/100 vs 51/100)
  • is already more of a family suburb (75% vs 56%)

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

First-home buyers

They split

one each way, out of the 2 things we measure here

  • The Bight leaves households under less mortgage stress (15% vs 25%)
  • Bootawa has cheaper houses ($705,000 vs $1,000,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Bootawa

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • leaves renters under less rental stress (24% vs 30%)
  • has cheaper rent ($285/wk vs $320/wk)
  • But The Bight has a bigger rental market to choose from (26% vs 5%)

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

They split

one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here

  • The Bight carries lower crime risk (27/100 vs 51/100)
  • Bootawa has more residents already 65 and over (31% vs 23%)

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

Investors

Bootawa

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (3.0% vs -9.1%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

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

The Bight Bootawa
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.

The Bight Bootawa
Walkability 14 / 14
The Bight — Walkability: 14/100 Bootawa — Walkability: 14/100
Safety 73 / 49
The Bight — Safety: 73/100 Bootawa — Safety: 49/100
Low fire risk 100 / 100
The Bight — Low fire risk: 100/100 Bootawa — Low fire risk: 100/100

Demographics

Bootawa has more residents (174 vs 60); Bootawa has higher household incomes ($62,608 vs $55,224).

The Bight Bootawa
Population 60 174
+190% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -9.1% +3.0%
Median age 57
same for both
Median household income $55,224/yr $62,608/yr
+13% vs other
Median weekly rent $320/wk
+11% vs other
 $285/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

The Bight Bootawa
0-4 8.3% / 3.4%
The Bight — 0-4: 8.3% Bootawa — 0-4: 3.4%
5-14 5.0% / 8.0%
The Bight — 5-14: 5.0% Bootawa — 5-14: 8.0%
15-19 6.7% / 5.7%
The Bight — 15-19: 6.7% Bootawa — 15-19: 5.7%
20-24 — / 5.7%
The Bight — 20-24: not among its largest Bootawa — 20-24: 5.7%
25-34 8.3% / 6.9%
The Bight — 25-34: 8.3% Bootawa — 25-34: 6.9%
35-44 10.0% / 5.7%
The Bight — 35-44: 10.0% Bootawa — 35-44: 5.7%
45-54 11.7% / 10.3%
The Bight — 45-54: 11.7% Bootawa — 45-54: 10.3%
55-64 33.3% / 25.9%
The Bight — 55-64: 33.3% Bootawa — 55-64: 25.9%
65-74 5.0% / 19.5%
The Bight — 65-74: 5.0% Bootawa — 65-74: 19.5%
75-84 11.7% / 9.8%
The Bight — 75-84: 11.7% Bootawa — 75-84: 9.8%
85+ 6.7% / 1.7%
The Bight — 85+: 6.7% Bootawa — 85+: 1.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (33.3%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

The Bight 25.0% couple families
The Bight — Couple Families: 25.0% The Bight — Lone Person: 25.0% The Bight — One Parent Families: 50.0%
Bootawa 56.5% couple families
Bootawa — Couple Families: 56.5% Bootawa — Lone Person: 43.5% Bootawa — One Parent Families: 0.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

The Bight 26.1% renting
The Bight — Owned Outright: 47.8% The Bight — Mortgage: 26.1% The Bight — Renting: 26.1%
Bootawa 4.8% renting
Bootawa — Owned Outright: 59.7% Bootawa — Mortgage: 35.5% Bootawa — Renting: 4.8%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

The Bight 100.0% houses
The Bight — Houses: 100.0%
Bootawa 100.0% houses
Bootawa — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

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

The Bight Bootawa
Certificate III & IV 30.0% / 17.8%
The Bight — Certificate III & IV: 30.0% Bootawa — Certificate III & IV: 17.8%
Bachelor Degree 11.7% / 11.5%
The Bight — Bachelor Degree: 11.7% Bootawa — Bachelor Degree: 11.5%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.7% / 10.9%
The Bight — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.7% Bootawa — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 10.9%
Postgraduate Degree — / 3.4%
The Bight — Postgraduate Degree: not among its largest Bootawa — Postgraduate Degree: 3.4%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 3.4%
The Bight — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Bootawa — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (30.0%).

Property market

The Bight Bootawa
Median house price $1,000,000 $705,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Zoning mix

The Bight Bootawa
Rural and farming 92% 95%
Environmental 8% 0%
Infrastructure and transport 0% 4%
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

The Bight Bootawa
New dwellings approved 743
across Mid-Coast
same for both
Approvals change year on year +327%
same for both

Ranking within NSW

The Bight Bootawa
House price Higher than 51% of NSW Higher than 57% of NSW
Income Higher than 15% of NSW Higher than 25% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 65% of NSW Higher than 63% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 22% of NSW Higher than 24% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 25% of NSW Higher than 36% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 62% of NSW Higher than 56% of NSW

Liveability

The Bight Bootawa
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 5/10
same for both

Risk profile

Bootawa carries more crime risk (51 vs 27).

The Bight Bootawa
Bushfire None
0/100
same for both
Crime Low
27/100
 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 4
within 5 km
 1
within 5 km

Schools

The Bight Bootawa
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

The Bight Bootawa
Waterways 0 6

Mobility

The Bight Bootawa
Walkability score 14/100
same for both
Distance to Sydney 322.1 km 320.2 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 228 min 225 min
Electric vehicle share 0.2%
postcode 2429
 0.4%
postcode 2430
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 62
postcode 2429
 54
postcode 2430

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.

The Bight Bootawa
Car (driver) 40.0% / 67.6%
The Bight — Car (driver): 40.0% Bootawa — Car (driver): 67.6%
Worked from Home 60.0% / 23.5%
The Bight — Worked from Home: 60.0% Bootawa — Worked from Home: 23.5%
Car (passenger) — / 4.4%
The Bight — Car (passenger): not among its largest Bootawa — Car (passenger): 4.4%
Walked Only — / 4.4%
The Bight — Walked Only: not among its largest Bootawa — Walked Only: 4.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (67.6%).

Setting

The Bight Bootawa
Elevation 47 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
same for both
Distance to the ocean 21.2 km
same for both

NBN connectivity

The Bight Bootawa
Connectivity score 30/100
same for both
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
32 premises
 0%
83 premises

Climate

The Bight Bootawa
Annual rainfall 1,331 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) —
same for both
Winter min (Jul) —
same for both

Council rates

The Bight Bootawa
Average residential rate $1,560/yr
same for both
Council Mid-Coast
same for both

Federal electorate

The Bight Bootawa
Division Lyne
same for both
Member Alison Penfold
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

The Bight Bootawa
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

The Bight

Rural

Bootawa

Retirees River Rural

More comparisons

Other comparisons with The Bight

The Bight vs Taree The Bight vs Wingham The Bight vs Mondrook

Other comparisons with Bootawa

Bootawa vs Wingham Bootawa vs Tinonee Bootawa vs Hillville Bootawa vs Burrell Creek Bootawa vs Killawarra Bootawa vs Mondrook
Full data on The Bight Full data on Bootawa
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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