Tomahawk vs Waterhouse
Waterhouse is the younger of the two, with a median age of 32 against 62 in Tomahawk. In both, the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Tomahawk, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of households are people living alone. In Waterhouse, about half of households rent. On these figures, Tomahawk tends to suit people living alone and older residents, while Waterhouse suits renters.
Waterhouse and Tomahawk are both small, remote Tasmanian communities with notably different demographics and economics. Waterhouse has double the population at 100 people compared to Tomahawk's 54, and a significantly younger median age of 32 years versus Tomahawk's 62 years. The income gap is substantial: Waterhouse's median household income of $84,500 per year is more than double Tomahawk's $40,924. Waterhouse may suit those seeking a younger, more economically active community, while Tomahawk's established, older population reflects a different character entirely.
Written by an AI language model from the figures below. Every number in it is checked against those figures before it is published.
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
Waterhouse
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is already more of a family suburb (57% vs 23%)
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Too close to call
Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
Waterhouse
ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a bigger rental market to choose from (53% vs 14%)
- leaves renters under less rental stress (8% vs 20%)
- has cheaper rent ($130/wk vs $160/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
They split
one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here
- Tomahawk has a shorter drive in (228 min vs 234 min)
- Waterhouse sits closer to the CBD (306.2 km vs 314.5 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Tomahawk
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has more residents already 65 and over (46% vs 11%)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
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
Tomahawk and Waterhouse 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
Waterhouse has higher household incomes ($84,500 vs $40,924); Tomahawk skews older (62 vs 32).
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 54 | 100 +85% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +12.5% | +11.1% |
| Median age | 62 | 32 |
| Median household income | $40,924/yr | $84,500/yr +106% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $160/wk +19% vs other | $130/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (24.1%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
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 (8.0%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.4%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Zoning mix
Waterhouse has more land zoned for conservation (31% vs 6%); Tomahawk has more rural and farming land (94% vs 69%).
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 94% | 69% |
| Environmental | 6% | 31% |
| 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
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 18 across Dorset same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -60% same for both | |
Ranking within TAS
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | — same for both | |
| Income | Higher than 9% of TAS | Higher than 77% of TAS |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 43% of TAS | Higher than 11% of TAS |
| Affordability | — same for both | |
| EV adoption | Higher than 7% of TAS same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 12% of TAS | Higher than 3% of TAS |
Liveability
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | high-need area decile 1/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 54/100 | Moderate 46/100 |
| Crime | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | High 94/100 | High 80/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 0 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Parks & reserves | 2 same for both | |
| Beaches | 1 | 2 |
| Waterways | 1 | 9 |
Mobility
Tomahawk sits further from the CBD (314.5 km vs 306.2 km).
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 0/100 same for both | |
| Distance to Hobart | 314.5 km +3% vs other | 306.2 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 228 min | 234 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.2% postcode 7262 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 24 postcode 7262 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 (78.6%).
Setting
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 24 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 63 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 2.8 km 4.3 km to a named beach | 7.5 km |
NBN connectivity
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 15/100 same for both | |
| Most common technology | Satellite (Sky Muster) same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 31 premises | 0% 27 premises |
Climate
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 894 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 22.6°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 4.2°C same for both | |
Council rates
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,486/yr same for both | |
| Council | Dorset same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Bass same for both | |
| Member | Jess Teesdale same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Tomahawk | Waterhouse | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $20,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | — same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
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.