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Suburb profile ·Glenelg LGA · VIC ·3305

Bolwarra VIC 3305

Bolwarra is in Glenelg LGA, VIC, postcode 3305, with population 647.

The read

Verify-first

The page has enough signal to be useful, but the story is mixed rather than decisive. Use compare mode to pressure-test it against stronger nearby options, then use the calculator if it still makes the shortlist.

What to check

Small local population makes the signal set more fragile.

Median house
No local house series
Median rent
$420/wk
Rent context available
D9 vs AU
Gross yield
Need rent + price
Population
647
647 local footprint
D7 vs AU
Schools
1
Matched school context
D1 vs AU
Drive to city
Not in commute dataset
Solar
1,992
57 added 12mo · 12MW

Price history

No price history available

Price series isn't recorded for this suburb. Census housing data is shown instead.

Median mortgage · mth$1,603
Median rent · wk$220

Rental vacancy rate

Rental vacancy rate · Regional Victoria
1.9%
Tight (landlord) market

Official vacancy is published at the Regional Victoria level, not per suburb. Shaded band marks a balanced market (2.5–3.5%).

Source: Homes Victoria Rental Report (DFFH) · Latest: Sep 2025
Investor profile

Who invests in Bolwarra

Owner-occupied 90%Rented 10%
Investor activityATO
Negatively geared4.2%
325 of 770 landlords
Avg rental loss$7,120/yr
Landlords (rental income)770
Reported capital gains589
Investor exposure index(low vs national)37.3/100
The read

Owner-occupier stronghold

88% of homes here are owner-occupied and 10% rented, with 4% of landlords negatively geared.

Why it fits

88% owner-occupied — owner-occupiers hold longer and absorb rate shocks, supporting price stability.

ABS Census 2021 tenure (G37), ATO postcode rental statistics, and QuickProperty's investor-exposure index. Owner-occupied = owned outright + with a mortgage.

Affordability

30%
median weekly rent as a share of gross household income (the 30% rule)
Stretched

Owners with a mortgage repay a median of $1,603/mo, while renters pay about $1,820/mo — renting runs $217/mo higher on these medians.

Household income · yr
$72K
Median rent · wk
$420
Owner mortgage · mo
$1,603

Household income

$72K household · yr-11.9% vs VIC suburb median
Personal
$30K
Family
$89K
Household
$72K
Household income distribution (ABS Census 2021 · weekly)
Under $300
0
$300-649
46
$650-999
36
$1,000-1,499
31
$1,500-1,999
22
$2,000-2,999
48
$3,000-3,999
25
$4,000+
9

At the median asking rent, about 50% of households here would spend more than 30% of income on rent (rent stress line: $1,400/wk income).

Housing stock and tenure

Tenure (242 households)
Owned outright
52%
Owned with mortgage
36%
Rented
10%
Dwelling structure14.4% of dwellings unoccupied on census night
Separate house
94%
Townhouse / semi
0%
Flat / apartment
0%

Getting to work: 81% drive, 0% public transport, 1% walk or cycle, 9% worked from home (2021 Census, taken during COVID-era work-from-home arrangements).

Schools

Total1
Avg ICSEA979
Students36
Government1
  • Bolwarra Primary SchoolPrimary · Government · ICSEA 979
Crime Year ending Mar 2026
2,365
11,862 per 100k
D9 vs AU

Crime

Rate · per 100k11,862
Total incidents2,365· Year ending Mar 2026
  • Assault24155%
  • Sexual Offences7217%
  • Robbery72%
  • Break And Enter11627%

Building due diligence

Construction requirements can change by location.

The National Construction Code is the baseline. Local hazards and site classifications can change the required structure, materials, fixings, insulation and detailing.

Known here

SUBURB CONTEXT

Bushfire-prone designation

Severe broad-area context

About 100.0% of the suburb is within Victoria's mapped Bushfire Prone Area.

May affect: External construction · Roof and wall systems · Openings, screens and decks

Flood and moisture context

No mapped flood exposure

About 0.0% of the suburb intersects VIC LSIO.

May affect: Floor levels and drainage · Water-resistant assemblies · Material durability

Check the property

ADDRESS + DESIGN

NCC climate zone

Check the property

Confirm the NCC climate zone used for the building design and energy provisions.

May affect: Insulation and glazing · Condensation control · Roof-space ventilation

Wind class and BAL

Site assessment required

A suburb layer cannot determine the site wind classification or Bushfire Attack Level.

May affect: Structure and tie-downs · Cladding and fixings · Openings and bushfire detailing

Corrosion and termite exposure

Check the property

Confirm marine or corrosive exposure and the applicable termite-management requirements.

May affect: Fasteners and connectors · Roofing and coatings · Termite management

This screen identifies investigation triggers, not building quality or property compliance. Confirm the address, design and current jurisdiction rules with the council, building surveyor or certifier, designer and engineer.

NCC 2022 Housing Provisions: how to use · NCC 2022 Volume Two and Housing Provisions

Bushfire-prone area

Designated ~100.0%
~100.0% of the suburb is within Victoria's designated Bushfire Prone Area

Share of the suburb within Victoria's gazetted Bushfire Prone Area (Vicmap, CC BY), point-sampled across the suburb. A Bushfire Prone Area is a planning designation that triggers the building code's bushfire construction provisions — it is not a graduated hazard rating or a property-level Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) assessment. Obtain a BAL assessment (AS 3959) for an individual property.

Flood exposure

No mapped exposure ~0.0%
~0.0% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood-hazard area

Estimated exposure to the official flood-hazard layer (VIC LSIO), point-sampled across the suburb. This shows how much of the suburb sits within mapped flood-planning areas — it is not a property-level flood certificate. Areas without a completed flood study may be unmapped. Check the local council's flood maps for an individual property.

Short-term rentals

5
active listings · ~7.7 per 1,000 residents
100%
entire homes (vs private rooms)
60%
run by multi-listing operators

Active Airbnb listings point-mapped to this suburb from Inside Airbnb (CC BY 4.0). Occupancy and revenue are estimates from Inside Airbnb's San Francisco model (review-rate proxy, minimum-stay assumption, occupancy capped at 70%) — they are gross, indicative, and not a guarantee of returns. Short-stay letting is subject to state and local regulation.

Planning zones

Dominant zone Rural Living (RLZ)
Residential 47% Rural / Green wedge 42% Public / Open space 11%
Residential density: Low

Land-use mix estimated by point-sampling the suburb against Vicmap Planning scheme-zone polygons (CC BY 4.0). This is a suburb-level snapshot of planning zones, not a parcel-level zoning certificate or development advice. Check the relevant planning scheme for an individual property.

Growth outlook · Glenelg LGA

Dwellings
+7.1%
10,170 → 10,890
+720 dwellings
Population
+0.6%
20,050 → 20,170
Households
+9%
8,990 → 9,800

LGA-level official projection (Victoria in Future 2023, DTP). Indicative of the wider council area, not a suburb-level forecast.

Population outlook

8,869 people · 20228,985 by 2032 (+1.3%)

ABS population projection (2022 base) for the Glenelg (Vic.) SA2 statistical area — the finest official projection grain available; suburb-level projections do not exist.

Full data detail Census · ATO · ABS · state datasets
Bolwarra VIC — Property Data and Demographics

Bolwarra is a close-knit residential community in Victoria within the Glenelg local government area (postcode 3305). The area has roughly 647 residents and a settled, mature resident base, with a median age of 49. Households earn a median income of $72K per year, with an average household size of 2.5 people. Recent annual estimates show population movement staying broadly stable across the broader catchment, with population growth running at +0.0% year-on-year at the LGA level. VIC employment has moved +0.8% year-on-year in the official ABS Labour Force trend series, which provides the broader jobs backdrop for this suburb. VIC also had 41 Commonwealth-backed major projects under construction, 18 underway, and 24 in planning as at 2025-09-01, which is useful as a broader delivery backdrop rather than a suburb-specific project count. The most common occupations are technicians & trades, labourers, professionals. Employment in the area leans toward healthcare and manufacturing. The top ancestries reported are English, Australian, Scottish.

The current median weekly rent is $420. The median monthly mortgage repayment is $1,603.

Bolwarra is served by 1 school, including 1 primary. The average ICSEA score is 979, which is around the national average of 1,000. The crime rate in the Glenelg LGA is higher than average at 11,862 incidents per 100,000 population.

Looking at the investment signals, Population growth of +0.0% year-on-year points to stable demand fundamentals. Building approvals have changed +0% year-on-year, indicating steady development activity.

Market & money
Investment signalsHeuristics
Pop. Growth+0.0%· Stable
Development+0%· Steady
InvestmentVIC
Mortgage · mth$1,603
Rent · wk(Census)$220
Market rent · wk(Sep 2025)$420
Population growth · Glenelg LGAABS ERP
Population (2025)19,908
5-year growth-0.1% CAGR
YoY change+0%
20012025
Development · Glenelg LGAABS Approvals
Approvals (2026)64
Houses 61%Units 39%
YoY change+0%
Employment · Glenelg LGASALM
Unemployment (Dec-25)3.1%
YoY change+0.1pp
Dec-10Dec-25
Property investors · Postcode 3305ATO
Negatively geared4.2%
325 of filers
Avg rental loss$7,120/yr
Landlords (rental income)770
Reported capital gains589
People & prosperity
DemographicsCensus 21
Population647
Median age49
Household size2.5
HH income · wk$1,394
Personal income · wk$581
Persons / bedroom0.8
SEIFA indexABS
Advantage (IRSAD)5/10
Education (IEO)2/10
Economic (IER)7/10
Disadvantage (IRSD)4/10
Income momentumCensus 16→21
HH income · wk$1,319 → $1,394
Change+5.7%
vs VIC median-17.8 pp
Median rent+29.4%
softeningvs VIC 2016–21
Area & amenity
Hospitals · Glenelg LGAAIHW
Public3
Private0
Casterton Memorial Hospitalpublic
Heywood Rural Healthpublic
Portland District Healthpublic
Aged care · Glenelg LGAGEN
Facilities5
Residential places283
Bayview Haven118 places
Edgarley Home60 places
The Sydney-Lynne Quayle & Fitzroy Lodge Hostels45 places
Casterton Memorial Hospital Nursing Home30 places
Harbourside Lodge30 places
Childcare · Glenelg LGAACECQA
Services14
Approved places635
Exceeding NQS2
The Karreeta Peeneeyt Mara Portland Child & Family Complex105 places
Goodstart Early Learning Portland90 places
Kathleen Millikan Centre73 places
Bundarra Uniting Kindergarten66 places
Early Learning Victoria Thookay Yarkeen (Portland South)57 places
Heywood Kindergarten37 places
+8 more in Glenelg LGA
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Current status
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Sources & freshness
Strong evidence

Bolwarra has enough direct local evidence for a first-pass decision.

QuickProperty mixes release files, Census baselines, and matched local services on this page. Read the status panel before treating every metric as equally fresh.

PRICE POSTURE
Manual release files still matter here.

DataVic-discovered annual suburb price workbooks parsed into suburb prices. Quarterly VIC resources are discovered and cached, but not yet used as current-price anchors.

RENT POSTURE
Rent is using a state market dataset when available.

Use current rent as a starting signal, not as a fixed underwriting truth.

SERVICE POSTURE
Service coverage is matched locally, not inferred nationally.

Schools, transport, and hospitals are useful as presence signals, but they still have different source cadences.

Data status
Property prices
VIC Property Sales Report · DataVic-discovered annual suburb price workbooks parsed into suburb prices. Quarterly VIC resources are discovered and cached, but not yet used as current-price anchors.
medium stability · mixed acquisition · every update · quarterly
Missing
Market rent
Homes Victoria · Sep 2025 · State market dataset
medium stability · automated · every update · quarterly
Available
Crime
VIC Crime Statistics Agency · Year ending Mar 2026 · Area-level release dataset
Available
Schools
ACARA 2025 · 1 schools matched
stable source · automated · every update · annual
Available
Hospitals
AIHW · No linked local hospital coverage
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Transport
GTFS feeds · No matched local transport stops
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Population growth
ABS ERP · 2025 · Annual estimate series
stable source · automated · every update · annual
Available
Building approvals
ABS Building Approvals · 2026 · Annual release series
stable source · automated · every update · monthly
Available
Available means a direct local dataset is linked. Verify means coverage exists but freshness or precision is weaker, such as ABS price fallback, Census rent fallback, or low-confidence hospital matching.

Bolwarra FAQ

Common questions
  1. What LGA is Bolwarra in?

    Bolwarra is in the Glenelg Local Government Area, VIC, postcode 3305. Council-level context for Glenelg LGA (suburb mix, population, rent, and price coverage) is available on the QuickProperty LGA page.

  2. What is the typical weekly rent in Bolwarra?

    The median weekly rent in Bolwarra is $420/wk, based on the current market rent dataset. The current rent signal is rent context available.

  3. What does the rent signal say about Bolwarra?

    Rent context available: Bolwarra has usable rent context. Use this as a suburb screening signal before comparing candidates or modelling a purchase; the matching rent ranking can provide broader market context.

  4. Is Bolwarra a good investment?

    QuickProperty's investment signals for Bolwarra show: Stable, Steady. These are computed from price, rent, income, and population data — not an opaque score.

  5. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Bolwarra?

    Property prices come from state Valuers General offices and ABS Data by Region. Demographics are from ABS Census 2021. School ICSEA scores are from ACARA. Crime statistics are from state police agencies. Transport data is sourced from GTFS feeds.

  6. How often is the Bolwarra data updated?

    Property prices update quarterly. RBA macro indicators update with each deploy. Demographics are from Census 2021. School ICSEA scores are from ACARA 2025.