Watsons Creek vs Christmas Hills

Watsons Creek is the younger of the two, with a median age of 35 against 46 in Christmas Hills. In both, the large majority of households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Watsons Creek, about half of households are couple families. In Christmas Hills, most households are couple families. Watsons Creek is closer to the city centre: 38.6 km, against 44.2 km. On these figures, Watsons Creek tends to suit families with children, while Christmas Hills suits couples.

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

Christmas Hills

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • has more parks and reserves (3 vs 0)
  • carries lower crime risk (38/100 vs 93/100)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, 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

Christmas Hills

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($353/wk vs $542/wk)

Weighs rent and rental stress.

Commuting to the city

Watsons Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (38.6 km vs 44.2 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Christmas Hills

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (38/100 vs 93/100)
  • has more residents already 65 and over (16% vs 9%)

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

Investors

Watsons Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (13.7% vs 2.8%)

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Watsons Creek and Christmas Hills drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
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.

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Walkability 10 / 13
Watsons Creek — Walkability: 10/100 Christmas Hills — Walkability: 13/100
Safety 7 / 62
Watsons Creek — Safety: 7/100 Christmas Hills — Safety: 62/100
Low fire risk 3 / 12
Watsons Creek — Low fire risk: 3/100 Christmas Hills — Low fire risk: 12/100
Low flood risk 100 / 58
Watsons Creek — Low flood risk: 100/100 Christmas Hills — Low flood risk: 58/100

Demographics

Christmas Hills has more residents (365 vs 58); Watsons Creek has higher household incomes ($195,000 vs $118,820).

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Population 58 365
+529% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +13.7% +2.8%
Median age 35 46
Median household income $195,000/yr
+39% vs other
 $118,820/yr
Median weekly rent $542/wk
+35% vs other
 $353/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
0-4 8.6% / 4.4%
Watsons Creek — 0-4: 8.6% Christmas Hills — 0-4: 4.4%
5-14 13.8% / 10.4%
Watsons Creek — 5-14: 13.8% Christmas Hills — 5-14: 10.4%
15-19 — / 6.6%
Watsons Creek — 15-19: not among its largest Christmas Hills — 15-19: 6.6%
20-24 6.9% / 6.6%
Watsons Creek — 20-24: 6.9% Christmas Hills — 20-24: 6.6%
25-34 12.1% / 8.2%
Watsons Creek — 25-34: 12.1% Christmas Hills — 25-34: 8.2%
35-44 13.8% / 13.4%
Watsons Creek — 35-44: 13.8% Christmas Hills — 35-44: 13.4%
45-54 17.2% / 15.9%
Watsons Creek — 45-54: 17.2% Christmas Hills — 45-54: 15.9%
55-64 17.2% / 23.0%
Watsons Creek — 55-64: 17.2% Christmas Hills — 55-64: 23.0%
65-74 8.6% / 9.9%
Watsons Creek — 65-74: 8.6% Christmas Hills — 65-74: 9.9%
75-84 — / 4.7%
Watsons Creek — 75-84: not among its largest Christmas Hills — 75-84: 4.7%
85+ — / 1.1%
Watsons Creek — 85+: not among its largest Christmas Hills — 85+: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (23.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Watsons Creek 50.0% couple families
Watsons Creek — Couple Families: 50.0% Watsons Creek — Lone Person: 25.0% Watsons Creek — One Parent Families: 25.0% Watsons Creek — Group Household: 0.0% Watsons Creek — Other Families: 0.0%
Christmas Hills 61.0% couple families
Christmas Hills — Couple Families: 61.0% Christmas Hills — Lone Person: 25.6% Christmas Hills — One Parent Families: 6.1% Christmas Hills — Group Household: 3.7% Christmas Hills — Other Families: 3.7%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Watsons Creek 0.0% renting
Watsons Creek — Owned Outright: 38.5% Watsons Creek — Mortgage: 61.5% Watsons Creek — Renting: 0.0%
Christmas Hills 8.9% renting
Christmas Hills — Owned Outright: 40.3% Christmas Hills — Mortgage: 50.8% Christmas Hills — Renting: 8.9%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

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.

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
England 8.6% / 4.9%
Watsons Creek — England: 8.6% Christmas Hills — England: 4.9%
China — / 1.9%
Watsons Creek — China: not among its largest Christmas Hills — China: 1.9%
New Zealand — / 0.8%
Watsons Creek — New Zealand: not among its largest Christmas Hills — New Zealand: 0.8%
Scotland — / 0.8%
Watsons Creek — Scotland: not among its largest Christmas Hills — Scotland: 0.8%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (8.6%).

Qualifications

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

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Bachelor Degree 19.0% / 14.0%
Watsons Creek — Bachelor Degree: 19.0% Christmas Hills — Bachelor Degree: 14.0%
Certificate III & IV 13.8% / 15.9%
Watsons Creek — Certificate III & IV: 13.8% Christmas Hills — Certificate III & IV: 15.9%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.2% / 8.8%
Watsons Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.2% Christmas Hills — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.8%
Postgraduate Degree 5.2% / 6.6%
Watsons Creek — Postgraduate Degree: 5.2% Christmas Hills — Postgraduate Degree: 6.6%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate — / 3.3%
Watsons Creek — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: not among its largest Christmas Hills — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 3.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.0%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Watsons Creek 100.0% houses
Watsons Creek — Houses: 100.0%
Christmas Hills 100.0% houses
Christmas Hills — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Property market

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Median house price — $1,115,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both
Typical days to sell (houses) — 84 days
from 3 sales

Zoning mix

Watsons Creek has more land zoned for conservation (88% vs 46%).

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Environmental 88% 46%
Infrastructure and transport 6% 36%
Parks and recreation 6% 16%
Other and special use 0% 2%
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

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
New dwellings approved 98
across Nillumbik
same for both
Approvals change year on year +8%
same for both

Ranking within VIC

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 99% of VIC Higher than 91% of VIC
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 70% of VIC Higher than 75% of VIC
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 89% of VIC Higher than 67% of VIC
NBN connectivity Higher than 34% of VIC Higher than 32% of VIC

Liveability

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band very advantaged area
decile 10/10
same for both

Risk profile

Christmas Hills carries more flood risk (42 vs 0); Watsons Creek carries more crime risk (93 vs 38).

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Bushfire High
97/100
 High
88/100
Crime High
93/100
 Low
38/100
Flood None
0/100
 Moderate
42/100
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 0
within 5 km
 1
within 5 km

Schools

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Watsons Creek

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

Schools in Christmas Hills

  • Christmas Hills Primary School Government · Primary

Amenities in the suburb

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Cafes & restaurants 1 0
Parks & reserves 0 3
Waterways 1 10

Mobility

Christmas Hills sits further from the CBD (44.2 km vs 38.6 km).

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Walkability score 10/100 13/100
Distance to Melbourne 38.6 km 44.2 km
+15% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 52 min 56 min
Electric vehicle share 1.6%
postcode 3097
 0.8%
postcode 3775
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 56
postcode 3097
 48
postcode 3775

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.

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Car (driver) 70.4% / 70.2%
Watsons Creek — Car (driver): 70.4% Christmas Hills — Car (driver): 70.2%
Worked from Home 29.6% / 24.2%
Watsons Creek — Worked from Home: 29.6% Christmas Hills — Worked from Home: 24.2%
Car (passenger) — / 5.6%
Watsons Creek — Car (passenger): not among its largest Christmas Hills — Car (passenger): 5.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (70.4%).

Setting

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Elevation 112 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 167 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 33.9 km 37.8 km

NBN connectivity

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Connectivity score 28/100 27/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
19 premises
 0%
120 premises

Climate

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Annual rainfall 777 mm 1,215 mm
Summer max (Jan) 26.9°C 22.9°C
Winter min (Jul) 6.3°C 3.8°C

Air quality (annual mean)

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
PM2.5 —
same for both
PM10 15.5 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ —
same for both

Council rates

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Average residential rate $2,696/yr
same for both
Council Nillumbik
same for both

Federal electorate

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Division Casey
same for both
Member Aaron Violi
same for both
Party Liberal
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Watsons Creek Christmas Hills
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $750,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Watsons Creek

Family Outer Young Families

Christmas Hills

Outer Quiet

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Watsons Creek

Watsons Creek vs Kangaroo Ground Watsons Creek vs Panton Hill

Other comparisons with Christmas Hills

Christmas Hills vs Chirnside Park Christmas Hills vs Wonga Park Christmas Hills vs Yarra Glen Christmas Hills vs Coldstream Christmas Hills vs Kinglake Christmas Hills vs Kangaroo Ground
Full data on Watsons Creek Full data on Christmas Hills
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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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