Wamberal vs Tumbi Umbi
Wamberal is the younger of the two, with a median age of 40 against 45 in Tumbi Umbi. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Wamberal, most households are couple families. In Tumbi Umbi, about half of households are couple families. Houses cost more in Wamberal: a median of $1.55 million, against $1.02 million in Tumbi Umbi, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Wamberal tends to suit couples, while Tumbi Umbi suits older residents 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
Wamberal
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- has more childcare (8 vs 5)
- carries lower crime risk (45/100 vs 56/100)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Tumbi Umbi
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has cheaper houses ($1,022,500 vs $1,550,000)
- has cheaper land ($2,225,000 vs $2,750,000)
- But Wamberal leaves households under less mortgage stress (24% vs 30%)
Weighs house prices, land prices, and mortgage stress.
Renters
Tumbi Umbi
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper rent ($410/wk vs $500/wk)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Wamberal
ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here
- is more walkable (49/100 vs 31/100)
- sits closer to the CBD (88.3 km vs 94.9 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, rail access, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Wamberal
ahead on 2 of the 5 things we measure here
- is more walkable (49/100 vs 31/100)
- carries lower crime risk (45/100 vs 56/100)
- But Tumbi Umbi has more residents already 65 and over (25% vs 17%)
Weighs smaller dwellings, who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Too close to call
Nothing among the 2 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs house yield and population growth.
Where they sit
Wamberal and Tumbi Umbi 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
Wamberal has higher household incomes ($125,164 vs $86,164); Wamberal has more residents (6,991 vs 5,369).
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 6,991 +23% vs other | 5,369 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +6.7% | +5.1% |
| Median age | 40 | 45 |
| Median household income | $125,164/yr +31% vs other | $86,164/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $500/wk +18% vs other | $410/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (14.9%).
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 (18.7%).
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 (5.1%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,550,000 | $1,022,500 |
| Median unit price | $1,100,000 | — |
| Median land price | $2,750,000 | $2,225,000 |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 40 days from 97 sales | 29 days from 49 sales |
House price by bedroom count
Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.
38 vs 29 sales
65 vs 40 sales
23 vs 13 sales
Zoning mix
Tumbi Umbi has more land zoned for conservation (86% vs 69%).
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental | 69% | 86% |
| Residential | 21% | 10% |
| Parks and recreation | 4% | 3% |
| Infrastructure and transport | 4% | 0% |
| Planning zones cover 99% of Wamberal and 100% of Tumbi Umbi. 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
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 1,441 across Central Coast (NSW) same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +67% same for both | |
Gross rental yield
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 3.7% $908/wk on $1.27M | 3.7% $790/wk on $1.12M |
| Units | — same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 76% of NSW | Higher than 60% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 87% of NSW | Higher than 55% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 81% of NSW | Higher than 75% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 48% of NSW | Higher than 42% of NSW |
| EV adoption | Higher than 89% of NSW | Higher than 64% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 76% of NSW | Higher than 98% of NSW |
| Rental yield (houses) | Higher than 58% of NSW | Higher than 53% of NSW |
Liveability
Wamberal is more walkable (49 vs 31); Wamberal scores higher overall (53 vs 38).
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | B | C |
| Score | 53/100 | 38/100 |
| Socio-economic band | very advantaged area decile 10/10 | advantaged area decile 7/10 |
Risk profile
Tumbi Umbi carries more crime risk (56 vs 45).
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | Moderate 67/100 | Moderate 63/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 45/100 | Moderate 56/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | Moderate 52/100 | None 0/100 |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 1 within 5 km | 2 within 5 km |
Schools
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 2 |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 | 2 |
| Rated below peers | 1 | 0 |
Schools in Wamberal
- Wamberal Public School Government · Primary below peers
Schools in Tumbi Umbi
- St John Fisher Catholic Primary School Catholic · Primary at peers
- Tuggerah Lakes Secondary College Tumbi Umbi Campus Government · Secondary at peers
Amenities in the suburb
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Cafes & restaurants | 2 | 0 |
| Parks & reserves | 5 | 3 |
| Childcare | 8 | 5 |
| GPs | 0 | 1 |
| Pharmacies | 1 same for both | |
| Banks & Bank@Post | 1 same for both | |
| Fuel stations | 1 same for both | |
| EV chargers | 0 | 1 |
| Beaches | 2 | 0 |
| Waterways | 3 | 2 |
Mobility
Tumbi Umbi sits further from the CBD (94.9 km vs 88.3 km).
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 49/100 | 31/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 88.3 km | 94.9 km +7% vs other |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 84 min | 83 min |
| Public transport score | 79/100 Bus same for both | |
| Peak arrivals per hour | 185.0 7-9am + 5-7pm | 80.0 7-9am + 5-7pm |
| Median peak wait | 0 min scheduled, not actual same for both | |
| Electric vehicle share | 1.4% postcode 2260 | 0.6% postcode 2261 |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 37 postcode 2260 | 33 postcode 2261 |
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 (62.1%).
Setting
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 70 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 56 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 1.3 km 1.5 km to a named beach | 4.8 km 4.8 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 68/100 | 98/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the node | Fibre to the premises |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 42% 2,829 premises | 97% 2,244 premises |
Climate
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,272 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | 26.4°C same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | 10.6°C same for both | |
Air quality (annual mean)
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 | 5.1 µg/m³ same for both | |
| PM10 | 14.8 µg/m³ same for both | |
| NO₂ | 0.36 pphm same for both | |
Council rates
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,409/yr same for both | |
| Council | Central Coast (NSW) same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Dobell same for both | |
| Member | Emma Mcbride same for both | |
| Party | Australian Labor Party same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Wamberal | Tumbi Umbi | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
Wamberal
Tumbi Umbi
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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.