Median house price
—
No data available
VIC · Hepburn Council
Smeaton, 3364
Est. population · Jun 2025
243
Growth (1 yr)
+0.8%
Growth (5 yr)
+0.4%
Median age
51
Median income
$1,354/wk
Employment rate
53%
Languages at home
6.1%non-English
Most common: Afrikaans, Greek
2021 Census · usual residence
Desirability score
- Heritage area
- Excellent transport
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Smeaton is a quieter smaller community in Hepburn Council, where peace, space and a country-town pace still dominate. A mature community gives the area a calm, settled social fabric, with families and grandchildren still a visible part of community life. The pace is unhurried, with local businesses and community spots doing the heavy lifting.
Parks and open space are a real strength relative to many regional towns, easy for walks, sport and weekend downtime. A car helps for most daily errands, though buses still link the suburb further afield. Housing sits in the middle of the local market: neither cheap nor premium.
Crime reports are up on the previous period. The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.
Versus similar regional towns, the suburb reads below average on desirability, chiefly because community and employment trail behind. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
At a glance
Smeaton snapshot
A quick read of housing, growth, livability, and risk
Median rent
—
No data available
Population (ERP)
243
+0.8% annual growth
Dwelling vacancy
9.9%
Census unoccupied dwellings
Livability profile
Desirability pillars vs the peer median (50th percentile)
How it compares
Relative standing using percentiles, ranks, and national deciles
Desirability
#258
among Country & regional · Mature
Safety
3rd
percentile in state (higher = safer)
Pop. growth
63rd
percentile in VIC
Advantage (IRSAD)
6/10
national SEIFA decile
Population growth
Recent ERP change over 1 and 5 years
Housing mix
Dwelling types from the 2021 Census
Risks & flags
Quick scan — open a section below for full context
Living here
Desirability
Ranks & confidence
- Desirability score
- 31.6/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 5311th in Australia
- State rank
- 1026th in VIC
- Peer rank
- #258 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #528 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 65%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
Population
Estimated resident population
243(June 2025)
+0.8% annual · +0.4% over 5 years · 63th percentile in VIC
Growth figures & methodology
- Annual growth
- +0.8%
- 5-year growth
- +0.4%
- Change in 1 year
- +2
- Change in 5 years
- +1
- Growth rank in VIC
- 63th percentile
ABS Estimated Resident Population allocated to this suburb from SA2-level data. Not an official ABS suburb count.
Methodology
Figures are allocated from ABS Estimated Resident Population at Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), using 2021 Census share within overlapping SA2 regions. Where Census data is unavailable, area overlap is used instead.
The dashed chart line is a simple growth-trend estimate to June 2030 (~250), extrapolated at +0.5% average annual growth since 2011. It is illustrative only — not an official ABS forecast.
2021 Census figures
2021 Census
- Population
- 245
- Median age
- 51
- Median household income / week
- $1,354
- Dwelling vacancy
- 9.9%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 12 of 121
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,463
- Employment rate
- 53%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 110 / 0 / 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 · Updated
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
- Estimated Resident Population — Australian Bureau of Statistics · 2025 · Updated · SA2 ERP allocated to suburb boundaries
Community & culture
No 2021 Census cultural diversity data for this suburb yet.
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Crime & safety
Reported offences increased compared with the previous period.
Offence counts & rates
- Total offences (2026)
- 2
- Against the person
- 1
- Against property
- 1
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 8.2
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 245 residents
- State safety percentile
- 3.2th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate)
- +100%
Most common offence types
- A212 Non-Fv Serious Assault1
- B49 Other Theft1
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) · 2025 · Updated
Family & Lifestyle
Public transport
2 public transport stops in this suburb
- Cumberland Hotel/Creswick-Newstead Rd
- Cumberland Hotel/Creswick-Newstead Rd
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · current · Updated
Amenities
1 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
Local character & venue list
Local character
- Limited walkable amenities nearby
- Great for outdoor family life — 1 parks mapped in suburb
- Walkability proxy
- 3/100
- Cafés per 1,000 residents
- 0
- Food & drink per 1,000 residents
- 0
- Parks per 1,000 residents
- 4.08
Sport & outdoors(1)
- Sports field
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe). Transport stops are summarised by type rather than listed individually.
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- Local amenity insights — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 2
- Parks (OSM)
- 1
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 — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated
Health access
- Nearest hospital
- Creswick Hospital and Nursing Home (14.2 km)
- Nearest hospital type
- Hospital
- Nearest hospital emergency
- Emergency department
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Hospitals and GP clinics
Data sources & freshness
- Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · current · Updated
NDIS participation
- NDIS participants (31 March 2026)
- 6
- Participants per 1,000 residents
- 24.7
Active NDIS participants allocated from NDIA Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2, ASGS 2016) counts to this suburb boundary. Not an official suburb-level NDIS figure · as at 31 March 2026.
For NDIS spend and service-demand exploration by SA2 or postcode, see the Care Sector Demand Map.
Data sources & freshness
- NDIS participants by SA2 — National Disability Insurance Agency · 2026-Q1 · Updated · Quarterly SA2 counts allocated to suburb boundaries
Weather
Typical conditions by season for suburbs in the same ~44 km climate area. Rainfall totals are summed from monthly WorldClim layers; rainy-day counts are approximate.
Summer (Dec–Feb)
- Usual max / min
- 27° / 12°
- Rainfall
- 115 mm · ~14 rainy days
Autumn (Mar–May)
- Usual max / min
- 21° / 8°
- Rainfall
- 133 mm · ~17 rainy days
Winter (Jun–Aug)
- Usual max / min
- 13° / 4°
- Rainfall
- 180 mm · ~22 rainy days
Spring (Sep–Nov)
- Usual max / min
- 19° / 7°
- Rainfall
- 172 mm · ~22 rainy days
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Temperature and humidity comfort
Data sources & freshness
- Seasonal climate normals — WorldClim 2.1 · Updated
Future & Planning
Heritage
4 heritage places
- ANDERSONS MILL COMPLEXNH1521
- BRIDGENH1425
- HEPBURN GRAVESNH0287
- SMEATON HOUSENH0286
Data sources & freshness
- State heritage register — State heritage authority · current · Updated
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- No overlay at centroid
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 · current · Updated
Politics & representation
- Federal electorate
- Ballarat
- Member of Parliament
- Catherine KING (Australian Labor Party)
- Results from
- 2025 federal election
- Electorate enrolment (2025)
- 116,238
- Turnout (2025)
- 93.3%
- Swing since 2022 (2025)
- -2.3 pp toward Coalition
Two-party preferred (2025)
Coalition 39.3%Labor 60.7%
Estimated suburb voting profile
Estimated from 8 nearby ordinary polling places (up to 24.2 km away).
Coalition 40.4%Labor 59.6%
1.0 percentage points more Coalition-leaning than the electorate
Estimated swing since 2022: -2.5 pp toward Coalition
Nearest polling places
- NewlynLabor 44.2% · Coalition 55.8% TPP (2025)11.9 km away
- Creswick NorthLabor 60.6% · Coalition 39.4% TPP (2025)13.1 km away
- CreswickLabor 64.3% · Coalition 35.7% TPP (2025)14.6 km away
- Hepburn SpringsLabor 71.0% · Coalition 29.0% TPP (2025)15.0 km away
- YandoitLabor 63.0% · Coalition 37.0% TPP (2025)15.1 km away
Federal electorate from AEC federal division boundaries (2025 redistribution). Division-level results are official AEC figures from the latest general election, with by-election updates where applicable. The estimated suburb profile blends up to eight nearest ordinary polling booths in the same electorate using inverse-distance weighting from the suburb centroid — an approximation, not official AEC data. Nearest polling places are shown for reference.
Data sources & freshness
- Federal election results — Australian Electoral Commission · Updated · 2025 election with by-election overlays
Socio-economic
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 6/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 7/10
ABS Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA), 2021 release — the latest available, derived from the 2021 Census. Deciles rank suburbs nationally from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
What do IRSAD and IRSD measure?
IRSAD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage. Combines indicators of advantage (e.g. high income, skilled occupations) and disadvantage. Higher decile = more advantaged relative to other Australian areas.
IRSD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage. Focuses on disadvantage only (e.g. low income, unemployment, limited education). Higher decile = less disadvantage nationally.
A new SEIFA edition typically follows each census; the ABS has not announced a release date beyond 2021.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
More in Hepburn Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Victoria.