Lake Bolac sits 232 km from Melbourne CBD in Victoria, around 2 hours 40 minutes by car. Census data records 368 residents with a median age of 48 and a median household income of $63,960 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the middle range nationally. Population grew 11.5% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $150 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $980. The area shows no recorded bushfire exposure and no recorded flood exposure. 1 school sits within the locality boundary, and walkability is low.
This locality is too small to rate.
The Liveability Rating is calculated for suburbs of 500 residents or more, and this one has 368. Below that the school, census and safety figures behind the score cover too few people to rank fairly against the rest of the state. The individual measures further down this page are still shown.
How do you rate the liveability in Lake Bolac?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
Not enough data to score this locality.
Residents say
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Median House Price
Public listings dataThe median house sale price in Lake Bolac sits at $564,000, broadly flat year-on-year. That said, only six sales settled in the quarter, so the median is a noisy signal — treat it as a direction rather than a level.
$563,500
Based on only 6 sales — small sample, take as indicative.
By bedrooms
- 3 bed 6 sales $564K
Rental Market
Rental affordability
June quarter 2025110 Moderately unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 27% of its income on the median rent in postcode 3351.
SGS Rental Affordability Index: a score of 100 means rent takes 30% of income, the usual housing-stress line; lower scores are less affordable. "Region" is the capital city or the rest of the state.
Is Lake Bolac safe? Crime statistics
2026Crime in Lake Bolac sits in the low band, with 5 incidents recorded in 2026 — down roughly 76% on the prior year.
5 offences
76.2% since 2025Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2021–2025No crash in Lake Bolac killed anyone or put anyone in hospital in 2021–2025.
Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the locality carries people passing through; this is not a measure of risk to residents. Roads are listed with 3 or more serious crashes.
Schools
One school serve Lake Bolac, and performance is broadly on par with peer-suburb schools.
- • 92 students in one school (avg 92)
Combined
Walkability
Lake Bolac is car-dependent on foot — at 37/100, most errands require a car.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Lake Bolac.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 0%
- Premises covered
- 188
NBN Co fixed-line and fixed-wireless premises, as at 30 December 2025. Higher-quality technologies (full fibre) score above copper, wireless, and satellite. Actual speeds depend on your plan.
Amenities
Ararat: council population
The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this locality alone — this locality's own population is in the census section above.
Socio-economic profile
Lake Bolac is home to 368 residents, with a median age of 48, a touch above the national 38. Median household income runs at $64,000 a year, with unemployment at 3.0%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
368
Median Age
48
Median Household Income
$63,960/yr
Census Median Rent
$150/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$980/mo
Avg Household Size
2.3
Median Personal Income
$32,864/yr
Unemployment Rate
3.0%
Unoccupied Dwellings
23.8%
Total Dwellings
143
Owner-Occupier Rate
84.5%
Houses
97.2%
Rental Stress
12.2%
Mortgage Stress
18.4%
Work From Home
27.0%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 78.3%
- English Spoken at Home
- 88.0%
- Employment Rate
- 55.9%
- Completed Year 12
- 30.4%
Occupations
Religion
Country of Birth (overseas)
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.
Age Distribution
Family & Household Composition
Commute to Work
Education
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $2,002 a year through Ararat based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Rural and farming 92%
- Parks and recreation 7%
- Zones under 1% 1%
Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the locality around it — the property page shows the zone for one address.
Building Approvals: Ararat
In the year to August 2026, 56 new dwellings were approved across Ararat. That mix is 49 houses and 7 units. Approvals are up 80.0% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
The Registered Aboriginal Party for this area is Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation (appointed 2013).
Registered Aboriginal Parties are appointed by the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006 as the primary guardians, keepers and knowledge holders of Aboriginal cultural heritage for their area. They are the body to contact about cultural heritage here.
Climate & Setting
from Mortlake Racecourse, 40.1 kmModerate rainfall — hot summers, cold winters with occasional frost.
- Elevation
- 217 m
- above sea level, at the locality centre
- Annual rainfall
- 594 mm
- 100 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 26.1°C
- 12 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 4.7°C
- 10 frost days ≤ 0°C
Elevation is the ground at the locality centre, from Geoscience Australia's National Digital Elevation Model. Approximate — it reads high in dense built-up areas. It is a measure of height above sea level and not an indicator of flood risk, which depends on height above nearby waterways.
EV adoption
In postcode 3351, 41 of 9,674 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 1.2% (113 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 1.6%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 3351, 1,849 rooftop-solar systems totalling 11.9 MW have been installed since 2001, against 3,535 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 97 went up in the last year.
Counts every system certified since 2001, so a roof re-fitted with a newer system is counted twice, and small commercial systems are included alongside houses — useful for comparing postcodes, not an estimate of how many homes have working panels today.
2026 covers part of the year only, to 2026-07.
First Home Owner Grant
FY2026-27$10,000 for new homes priced up to $750,000.
The separate First Home Buyer Duty Reduction (stamp-duty concession) runs alongside this grant.
10 first-home grants were paid in postcode 3351 in 2025-26, rank 91 of 298 Victorian postcodes. The most was 70, in 2021-22.
Grants on new and established homes; established homes stopped qualifying in mid-2013.
Mortgage repayments
2 mortgage brokers are registered in postcode 3351.
Land transfer duty at the owner-occupier rate, and it excludes first home buyer concessions — those can cut it substantially or remove it entirely. Excludes legal, inspection and lender fees. Check with State Revenue Office Victoria
The First Home Owner Grant applies to newly built homes only, so it isn't available on an established purchase. A first home buyer building or buying new under $750,000 may qualify for $10,000 — see what qualifies with State Revenue Office Victoria.
At $563,500 this is under the $750,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $10,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with State Revenue Office Victoria.
A deposit under 20% usually attracts Lenders Mortgage Insurance, which this doesn't include.
Principal and interest over 30 years, fixed rate. Excludes fees, offset, redraw and LMI. Default rate is the median comparison rate across 1788 advertised products as at 2026-10-27 — indicative only, and not an offer. Your rate depends on the lender, your deposit and your circumstances. Not financial advice.
Federal Electorate
Currently held by Dan Tehan Liberal
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Dan Tehan | 39.1% | 60.9% | -2.3 |
| 2022 | Dan Tehan | 40.9% | 59.1% | -1.1 |
| 2019 | Dan Tehan | 39.6% | 60.4% | +1.2 |
Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact locality's voters across time.
State Electorate
Currently held by Emma Kealy The Nationals
Next state election: 28 November 2026.
| Year | Winner | Won with | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Emma Kealy NP | 58.9% | 28.4% | 71.6% |
| 2018 | Emma Kealy NP | 66.9% | 26.5% | 73.5% |
| 2014 | Emma Kealy NP | 54.1% | 28.7% | 71.3% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2021, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this locality's voters. Results: Victorian Electoral Commission, CC BY 4.0.
Looking at a specific address in Lake Bolac?
Every figure above is a locality average, and an average smooths over the difference between a street of family homes and a block of flats. Look up one address and you get the census for the few hundred people around it, its own nearest schools and stops, and what the state has mapped for that block.
- The census for a few hundred neighbours, not all 368 residents
- Nearest and zoned schools, with the walk from that door
- Flood, bushfire and noise mapping, where the state publishes it
Free to look up. Subscribers see every section in full — $29/month.
Nearby suburbs
Compare Lake Bolac to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other VIC suburb — type a name and pick one.
Or jump straight to a nearby comparison:
Common questions about Lake Bolac
Is Lake Bolac a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Lake Bolac is low (25/100, ranked against other VIC suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Lake Bolac?
Lake Bolac has no recorded bushfire history. No mapped flood overlay applies. These are locality-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
What is the population of Lake Bolac?
Lake Bolac, VIC had a population of 368 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Lake Bolac, VIC?
The postcode for Lake Bolac, VIC is 3351.
How far is Lake Bolac from Melbourne?
Lake Bolac is 232 km from Melbourne CBD by road, about 162 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Lake Bolac?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Lake Bolac was $63,960 a year. It is the most recent suburb-level income figure until 2026 Census results are released in 2027.
What is the median weekly rent in Lake Bolac?
There are too few current rental listings in Lake Bolac for a reliable median. At the 2021 ABS Census the median weekly rent was $150, across all dwelling types.
What is the median age in Lake Bolac?
The median age of residents in Lake Bolac was 48 at the 2021 ABS Census.
How are the schools in Lake Bolac?
There is 1 school inside the Lake Bolac boundary: 1 at similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Lake Bolac walkable?
Lake Bolac scores 37/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it car-dependent. The score is a weighted average of public transport, schools, parks, supermarkets, GPs, pharmacies, childcare, and hospitals within walking distance.
What is the weather like in Lake Bolac?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Lake Bolac, Mortlake Racecourse (40.1 km away), summer days average 26.1°C, winter nights 4.7°C, 594 mm of rain a year over 100 rainy days, and 12 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Lake Bolac?
First-home buyers in VIC may be eligible for $10,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $750,000. The grant is administered by State Revenue Office Victoria; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Lake Bolac belong to?
Lake Bolac sits within the Ararat local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Lake Bolac?
The average residential rates bill through Ararat is $2,002 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Lake Bolac?
Across Ararat, 56 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's up 80.0% on the same period a year earlier. These are LGA-level totals — every suburb in the council shares the same figure.
Which federal electorate is Lake Bolac in?
Lake Bolac sits within the federal Division of Wannon, currently held by Dan Tehan (Liberal).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2024–25
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Crime · 2026
- Road crashes · 2021–2025
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- State electorate · 2022
- Amenities · Sep 2026
- Health & emergency facilities · Sep 2026
- Industrial emissions (NPI) · 2024/2025
- Coastal erosion · 1988–2025
- Aircraft noise · 2024
Vintages show when each source's data is from. See all data sources.
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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.