Suburb Overview
Boolarra South is a regional centre in Victoria, Australia, with a population of approximately 147, making it a boutique locality. Located approximately 135 km from the Melbourne CBD, Boolarra South is a regional area in Victoria. The median household income is $66,456 per year.
Location
Key Indicators
Postcode
3870
Postcode for Boolarra South, from a community postcode dataset cross-checked against Australia Post. A postcode may cover multiple suburbs.
Australia Post Postcode Finder →
Population
147
Usual resident population at the most recent census.
Median weekly rent
$2,077/wk
Median weekly rent recorded at the 2021 Census — market rents have risen since, so treat this as a dated baseline, not a current figure.
Median household income
$66,456
Annual median household income (before tax) across all households.
Distance to CBD
135 km
Straight-line distance from the suburb centroid to the nearest capital city CBD. Actual driving distance will be longer.
Housing
Median monthly mortgage
$1,300/mo
Monthly median mortgage repayment for households currently paying off a mortgage.
Home type
75% houses
Proportion of separate houses versus units, townhouses, and other home types. Useful for investors assessing rental demand mix.
Investment Insight
Boolarra South is a smaller community of 147 — about 2% of the Victoria suburb median (7,416) — so investors should factor in the narrower buyer pool and longer average time-on-market. Boolarra South's median household income of $66,456/year is 30% below the Victoria suburb median ($95,160) — this is an affordability play where returns lean on yield and patient capital growth rather than demographic premium. At the 2021 Census, median weekly rent of $2,077 equated to $9,000/month — about 692% of the then-median mortgage repayment of $1,300/month. Both figures have moved substantially since 2021, so treat the ratio as a historical signal that this suburb leaned cash-flow-friendly, and verify against current listings and rates. Boolarra South is 135 km from Melbourne, so the local market tracks regional employment and lifestyle drivers more than CBD-driven commuter demand.
Boolarra South vs Victoria Median
How Boolarra South stacks up against the median of all Victoria suburbs in our dataset. Positive values mean Boolarra South sits above the state median; negative means below.
| Metric | Boolarra South | VIC median | Δ vs state |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 147 | 7,416 | -98% |
| Median household income | $66,456/yr | $95,160/yr | -30% |
| Median rent (weekly, 2021 Census) | $2,077 | $380 | +447% |
| Median mortgage (monthly, 2021 Census) | $1,300 | $1,950 | -33% |
| Distance to CBD | 135 km | 32 km | +322% |
| Separate houses | 75% | 78% | -3pp |
Investor Checklist
Pre-inspection briefing for Boolarra South — every item is derived from public datasets, with full citations in our data sources page.
- Market depth: 147 residents — 2% of the VIC suburb median (7,416).
- Purchasing power: median household income $66,456/year (-30% vs Victoria suburb median of $95,160).
- Cash-flow coverage (2021 Census): $2,077/week rent (≈ $9,000/month) covered ~692% of the $1,300/month median mortgage at the 2021 Census — verify against current rents and rates.
- CBD access: 135 km straight-line from Melbourne (state suburb median 32 km).
- Dwelling mix: 75% separate houses — house-dominant market (vs 78% state median).
- Rate stress-test: budget ~$130/month extra for a 1-percentage-point RBA rate rise on top of the $1,300/month median repayment.
- Tenant rent burden: 163% of the median household income is spent on rent — above the 30% stress threshold.
Investment Strategy
Limited buy-and-hold upside: a small population of 147 means liquidity is thin and capital growth tends to lag the wider Victoria market over full cycles.
Strong rental coverage at the 2021 Census: $2,077/week (~$9,000/month) covered 692% of the $1,300/month median mortgage, a shortfall of just $0/month. Both rents and repayments have moved since 2021 — verify current figures, though this suburb has historically leaned cash-flow-friendly.
With 75% houses in a 147-person market, renovation margins depend on individual street and aspect rather than any suburb-wide story — do comparable-sales analysis before committing capital.
Risk Factors
- Interest-rate sensitivity: the $1,300/month median mortgage in Boolarra South means a 1-percentage-point RBA rate rise could add roughly $130/month to repayments, reducing buyer borrowing capacity and cooling prices.
- Income vulnerability: household incomes in Boolarra South are 30% below the Victoria median ($66,456 vs $95,160), which tends to compress rent growth and increases exposure to local unemployment shocks.
- Liquidity risk: with 147 residents, Boolarra South has a thinner pool of buyers and tenants than larger suburbs. Expect longer days-on-market on resale and budget for potential vacancy gaps between tenancies.
- Commute distance: at 135 km from the nearest CBD, Boolarra South depends on local employment rather than city-driven commuter demand, which amplifies the market's sensitivity to regional industry slowdowns.
- Rental stress (2021 Census): a median rent of $2,077/week consumed about 163% of the $66,456/year median household income at the Census — past the 30% stress threshold — signalling tenants may resist further rises and vacancy risk lifts in downturns. Both figures have moved since 2021; confirm with current data.
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Start your first-home journey →2026 Outlook
Capital-growth expectations for Boolarra South are modest for 2026 — incomes 30% below the VIC median of $95,160 and a population of 147 suggest gains will lag headline metro markets. At the 2021 Census, rental coverage ran at ~692% of the typical mortgage ($9,000/month rent vs $1,300/month repayment), keeping cash flow in positive or near-neutral territory. Verify against current rents and rates. Overall investor sentiment for Boolarra South is cautious heading into the second half of 2026, based on its income, rent and mortgage profile relative to the Victoria median.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Boolarra South a good suburb for investment?
Whether Boolarra South suits you depends on your strategy, but the fundamentals are concrete: a population of 147, a median household income of $66,456/year and median weekly rent of $2,077. Weigh those against your goal — cash flow, capital growth, or a value-add renovation — each of which we break down with suburb-specific ABS numbers elsewhere on this page.
What drives property demand in Boolarra South?
The main demand drivers in Boolarra South are a median household income of $66,456/year, a dwelling mix that is 75% separate houses. Together these shape both owner-occupier and tenant demand.
What is the population of Boolarra South?
Boolarra South has a usual resident population of approximately 147, compared with a Victoria suburb median of 7,416 — placing it in the lower half of the state's suburbs by size. Population is the clearest proxy for market depth: more residents mean more transactions and typically a shorter average days-on-market on resale.
How far is Boolarra South from the Melbourne CBD?
Boolarra South sits 135 km straight-line from the Melbourne CBD. This is a regional market where CBD distance is only indicative — local industry diversity and commute alternatives matter more.
What is the median rent in Boolarra South?
The most recent census recorded a median weekly rent of $2,077 in Boolarra South, equating to approximately $108,004/year in gross rental income (state median $380/week). Market rents have typically drifted above the recorded figure — verify against current listings on realestate.com.au and Domain before making an offer.
What is the typical mortgage repayment in Boolarra South?
The median monthly mortgage repayment in Boolarra South is $1,300, or approximately $15,600/year (vs $1,950/month state median). Stress-test your own borrowing at rates 1–2 percentage points above today's to make sure you can still service the loan through an RBA tightening cycle.
Is Boolarra South cash-flow positive for investors?
A median weekly rent of $2,077 works out to $9,000/month, covering 692% of the median mortgage repayment of $1,300/month. That means rent exceeds the median repayment by roughly $7,700/month, so on these numbers Boolarra South leans cash-flow-positive before accounting for strata, council rates, insurance and maintenance. Actual cash flow depends on your deposit, loan terms, ownership costs and marginal tax rate — run the full numbers in our rental yield calculator.
What are the main risks of investing in Boolarra South?
The main risks are a thin buyer pool (147 residents), interest-rate sensitivity on the $1,300 median mortgage, below-median household incomes ($66,456 vs $95,160 state median), the broader Victoria market cycle. Each of these is covered in the Risk Factors section above with suburb-specific numbers rather than generic warnings.
How we built this Boolarra South profile
The population, postcode, median household income, and dwelling mix on this page are real figures from the ABS 2021 Census (income is the ABS median weekly household income annualised) and Australia Post. Distance to the CBD is calculated from the suburb's ABS centroid. The Census median rent and mortgage repayment are 2021 figures and are clearly labelled as such wherever they appear — they are five years old and have moved substantially since. We do not publish an investment score or school/park counts for this suburb. See our methodology and data sources for exactly what's measured and what's estimated.