VIC · Mitchell Council
Puckapunyal, 3662
Current weather
11.2°CLight drizzle
96% humidity · 23.2 km/h wind · 12.3° / 9.9° today · 9.3 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Puckapunyal is a quieter smaller community in Mitchell, where peace, space and a country-town pace still dominate. A strong local centre anchors daily routines, while the surrounding region adds variety for weekends away. The landscape itself is part of the lifestyle: open paddocks, big skies and room to breathe.
The community skews younger, with plenty of young families in the mix. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice, and that is part of the charm. Reasonable public transport access helps with commuting and getting around locally.
Homes here are sought-after, with many people drawn to the lifestyle the area offers. The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits below average overall, mainly because local dining and lifestyle amenities and housing affordability lag similar regional towns, despite relative strength in community and employment and safety. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 1,108
- Median age
- 24
- Median household income / week
- $2,510
- Dwelling vacancy
- 16.3%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 45 of 276
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,714
- Employment rate
- 82.1%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 16 / 6 / 0
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Crime & safety
- Total offences (2026)
- 22
- Against the person
- 11
- Against property
- 9
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 19.9
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 101 residents
- State safety percentile
- 13.2th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate)
- -26.7%
Reported offences decreased compared with the previous period.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- A89 Other Dangerous Or Negligent Acts Endangering People2
- B21 Criminal Damage3
- B49 Other Theft3
- B53 Obtain Benefit By Deception2
- Other Crimes Against The Person6
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- Recorded offences by suburb/town — Crime Statistics Agency (Victoria) · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Year ending March release
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 1
- Median school ICSEA
- 1,003
- Puckapunyal Primary SchoolPrimary
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
Public transport
16 public transport stops in this suburb
- Bridges Barracks/Morobe Rd
- Family Store/Malaya Rd
- Medical Centre/Pozieres Pde
- Monash Cl/Alamein Rd
- Ramu Cres/Malaya Rd
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
Amenities
No OpenStreetMap amenities mapped for this suburb yet.
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 9/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 10/10
SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- Overlay applies
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via Victorian Bushfire Management Overlay mapping.
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Bushfire hazard overlays
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 5
- Parks (OSM)
- 0
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)
Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability Index
- Desirability score
- 34.1/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 4565th in Australia
- State rank
- 860th in VIC
- Peer rank
- #201 among Country & regional · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #403 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 74%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- A89 Other Dangerous Or Negligent Acts Endangering Peoplecrime2
- B21 Criminal Damagecrime3
- B49 Other Theftcrime3
- B53 Obtain Benefit By Deceptioncrime2
- Other Crimes Against The Personcrime6
- Bridges Barracks/Morobe Rdtransport
- Family Store/Malaya Rdtransport
- Medical Centre/Pozieres Pdetransport
- Monash Cl/Alamein Rdtransport
- Ramu Cres/Malaya Rdtransport
Data sources & freshness
- Recorded offences by suburb/town — Crime Statistics Agency (Victoria) · Updated on site · Year ending March release
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
More in Mitchell Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Victoria.