The Patch
Only 6.8% of The Patch households rent, one of the lowest renter shares in metropolitan Victoria, and that single figure explains much of what follows. With 40.8% of dwellings owned outright and 52.4% under mortgage, residents are deeply committed to the area, backed by household income in the 79.2nd percentile nationally. Median age sits at 46, which is 6 years above the national figure, reflecting a settled, long-established community of 1,046 people across 3.98 square kilometres. Every dwelling recorded in the 2021 Census is a separate house, a level of detached-housing purity that is rare anywhere in Australia.
Local council: Yarra Ranges
Population
1,046
Median Age
46.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$2,092/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
0
With 100% of dwellings being separate houses, buyers face no apartment or semi-detached alternatives, so demand concentrates on a single product type. Monthly mortgage repayments average $2,085, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 23.0%, well below the 30% stress threshold, which is more manageable than many comparable tree-change suburbs.
For Buyers
With 100% of dwellings being separate houses, buyers face no apartment or semi-detached alternatives, so demand concentrates on a single product type. Monthly mortgage repayments average $2,085, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 23.0%, well below the 30% stress threshold, which is more manageable than many comparable tree-change suburbs.
For Investors
The investment case is complicated by a very low 6.8% renter share, meaning landlords compete for a thin tenant pool. Weekly rent averages $415 and the vacancy rate is 4.3%, above the 3% threshold that signals a balanced market. The suburb recorded zero development applications in the past 12 months, so no new supply is entering the market. Owner-occupier dominance means that when properties do trade, they are driven by personal decisions rather than investor cycles, which can support price stability but limits liquidity for sellers.
Schools in The Patch
Open-register school locations for education access. This is not a school-quality ranking.
The Patch Primary School
Demographics
The median age of 46 is 6 years above the national average, placing The Patch firmly in an aging-resident profile. University qualifications reach 39.8% of residents, which is 9.7 percentage points above the national figure, a gap that reflects the professional and managerial workforce living here. Overseas-born residents account for 18.4%, which is 3.2 points below the national rate. Ancestry is strongly Anglo-Celtic, led by English (477), Scottish (180) and Irish (141). Average household size of 2.7 is 0.2 above national, and 43.0% of families are couples with children, consistent with the large 4-plus bedroom homes that make up 44.6% of dwellings.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
100.0%
Houses
0.0%
Townhouse
0.0%
Apartment
Tenure
The Patch is unusual in that 100% of its 916 dwellings recorded in the Census are separate houses. No apartments or semi-detached dwellings appear in the data, which concentrates both demand and value into a single housing type. The bedroom profile skews large: 44.6% of homes have 4 or more bedrooms and 43.8% have 3, leaving fewer than 12% with 2 or fewer bedrooms. Ownership is entrenched, with 40.8% owned outright and 52.4% under mortgage, totalling 93.2% owner-occupier rate, far higher than state and national averages.
Mortgage / mo
$2,085
Rent / wkiABS Census 2021 median across all dwelling types. Current market rents are typically higher.
$415
Census 2021
HH Size
2.7
Personal Income / wk
$874
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
4.3%
Unoccupied
17
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
19.8%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
23.0%
Community Profile
Ancestry
Household Composition
46.7%
Couples with children
43.8%
Couples, no children
12.0%
Single parent
317
Total families
Economy & Employment
Healthcare leads local employment at 19.4% of workers (75 people), followed closely by Education at 17.9% (69 people) and Construction at 12.2% (47 people). Professional/Technical services add a further 11.1% (43 people). By occupation, Professionals form the largest group at 169 workers, followed by Managers at 89. The unemployment rate of 3.7% sits below national levels, and full-time employment runs at 53.3%. Household income sits in the 79.2nd percentile nationally, above the majority of Australian suburbs. The participation rate of 61.6% is moderate, partly explained by the older median age of 46, with 270 residents not in the labour force.
Unemployment
3.4%
Labour Force
561
Unemployed
19
Source: ABS Census 2021
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
49.3%
Part-time
43.2%
Participation
66.5%
Employed
542
Full-time and part-time are shares of the employed. Source: ABS Census 2021
Occupations
Top Industries
University
39.8%
Postgraduate
11.1%
Born Overseas
18.4%
Dwellings
373
Transport to Work
Car dependence is near-total: 91.1% of residents drive to work, compared to national averages well below 80%, reflecting the suburb's rural-fringe location with limited public transport. Walking or cycling accounts for 4.3% of commuters. Crime is very low at 13.4 incidents per 1,000 residents, with only 14 recorded offences in the most recent period, mostly property and deception (10 incidents) and crimes against the person (4 incidents). The volunteering rate of 23.4% is high, consistent with a stable, long-term community. Mortgage-to-income sits at 23.0% and rent-to-income at 19.8%, meaning neither owners nor renters face housing stress relative to their income.
Drive
51.8%
Public Transport
N/A
Walk / Cycle
2.4%
Work from Home
43.1%
Growth Outlook
The turnover rate of 14.1% is low, and 85.9% of residents remained in the same address over the Census period, signalling very low churn and limited supply coming to market in any given year. No development applications were lodged in the 12 months to the survey, so supply growth is effectively zero. The low renter share and high outright-ownership rate mean future price movements will be driven by owner-occupier decisions rather than investor sentiment.
Population trend: Yarra Ranges council area
The Patch sits in the Yarra Ranges council area. These are the council area's residents, not The Patch's.
Residents 2025
160,906
Growth, 5 yr average
+0.2%/yr
2020 to 2025
Growth, last year
+0.7%
2024 to 2025
ABS Estimated Resident Population by LGA, 30 June each year; council area, not this suburb
Safety & Crime
Total Offences
14
Year ending June 2024
Rate per 1,000 People
13.4
Offence Categories
Source: Crime Statistics Agency Victoria / SA Police
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How The Patch compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is The Patch a good suburb to live in?
The Patch offers a low-crime environment with just 13.4 incidents per 1,000 residents and housing stress well below typical benchmarks, with mortgage-to-income at 23.0%. Household income sits in the 79.2nd percentile nationally. The trade-offs are near-total car dependence (91.1% drive) and limited rental stock, as 93.2% of dwellings are owner-occupied.
What schools are in The Patch?
No schools are recorded inside the The Patch suburb boundary in this dataset. The suburb has a population of around 1,046 residents, and families typically use schools in neighbouring Yarra Ranges localities. University qualifications are held by 39.8% of residents, which is 9.7 points above the national average.
Is The Patch safe?
The Patch has very low crime at 13.4 incidents per 1,000 residents, with only 14 total offences recorded. Of those, 10 were property and deception offences and 4 were crimes against the person. By comparison, most suburban areas record rates well above 20 per 1,000, making this one of the safer localities in Victoria.
How is The Patch's population changing?
The Patch has a small population of 1,046 across 3.98 square kilometres. The median age of 46 is 6 years above the national average, indicating an aging resident base. The turnover rate is very low at 14.1%, with 85.9% of residents staying at the same address, suggesting population change is gradual rather than driven by new arrivals.
How to read these comparisons
Phrases like "above the national average" reference the unweighted median across Australian suburbs with more than 1,000 residents, not population-weighted national figures. Suburb-level medians are more useful for ranking suburbs against each other; ABS census headlines are population-weighted (so dominated by Sydney and Melbourne) and can read very differently.
Current baseline (refreshed 2026-05-10): median age 40, university-educated 30.1%, born overseas 21.6%, average household size 2.5 people.
Data sources: ABS 2021 Census (demographics, income, tenure), state education open registers (school locations), state Crime Statistics agencies (offences), council DA portals (development applications).
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