Toolijooa vs Willow Vale
Toolijooa is the younger of the two, with a median age of 47 against 50 in Willow Vale. 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 Toolijooa: a median of $1.93 million, against $1.2 million in Willow Vale, though rent is higher in Willow Vale. On these figures, Willow Vale tends to suit 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
Too close to call
Nothing among the 5 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Willow Vale
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (21% vs 33%)
- has cheaper houses ($1,195,000 vs $1,925,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Toolijooa
ahead on 2 of the 2 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (13% vs 33%)
- has cheaper rent ($300/wk vs $600/wk)
Weighs rent and rental stress.
Commuting to the city
They split
one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here
- Toolijooa is more walkable (16/100 vs 8/100)
- Willow Vale sits closer to the CBD (134.1 km vs 136.1 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Toolijooa
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is more walkable (16/100 vs 8/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
Investors
Willow Vale
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (-7.6% vs -18.9%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Toolijooa and Willow Vale 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
Willow Vale rents higher ($600/wk vs $300/wk); Toolijooa has more residents (103 vs 73).
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 103 +29% vs other | 73 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | -18.9% | -7.6% |
| Median age | 47 | 50 |
| Median household income | $117,000/yr +19% vs other | $95,316/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $300/wk | $600/wk +100% vs other |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.4%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.4%).
Property market
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,925,000 | $1,195,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
Willow Vale has more land zoned for conservation (20% vs 8%); Toolijooa has more rural and farming land (87% vs 77%).
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 87% | 77% |
| Environmental | 8% | 20% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 4% | 3% |
| 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
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 159 across Kiama same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | -35% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 84% of NSW | Higher than 62% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 81% of NSW | Higher than 62% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 66% of NSW | Higher than 55% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 28% of NSW | Higher than 47% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 84% of NSW same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 45% of NSW | Higher than 43% of NSW |
Liveability
Toolijooa is more walkable (16 vs 8).
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 same for both | |
Risk profile
Willow Vale carries more bushfire risk (85 vs 0).
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | High 85/100 |
| Crime | None 0/100 | — |
| 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 | 1 within 5 km same for both | |
Schools
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| 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
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 0 | 1 |
Mobility
Toolijooa sits further from the CBD (136.1 km vs 134.1 km).
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 16/100 | 8/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 136.1 km +1% vs other | 134.1 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 113 min same for both | |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.2% postcode 2534 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 46 postcode 2534 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 (64.5%).
Setting
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 6 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 74 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 2.6 km 4.9 km to a named beach | 3.7 km 4.0 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 29/100 | 28/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 41 premises | 0% 33 premises |
Climate
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 974 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 5.1 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 14.3 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | 0.37 pphm same for both | |
Council rates
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,898/yr same for both | |
| Council | Kiama same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Gilmore same for both | |
| Member | Fiona Phillips same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Toolijooa | Willow Vale | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Toolijooa
Other comparisons with Willow Vale
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.