22,225

People

est. as @ 17 Jul 2026

2021 Census | 19,014 people

89.35 km²

Land area

248.7 /km²

Density

3.8%

Unemployment

392 /yr

Resi approvals

The suburb of Lara, situated 56 kilometers west-southwest of the Melbourne CBD, offers a unique blend of rural charm and modern convenience. Nestled in a picturesque landscape, the area is home to key local attractions such as the Serendip Sanctuary, where visitors can interact with native wildlife, and the historic You Yangs Regional Park, known for its hiking trails and granite peaks. A thriving community spirit is supported by local sports facilities, events, and a diverse range of shopping and dining options, including cafes and restaurants. Demographic and property indicators show that the suburb of Lara exhibits one of the strongest population growth profiles in the nation. As of May 2026, the population is estimated at around 22,225 residents, representing an increase of 3,211 people (16.9%) since the 2021 Census, which recorded 19,014 people. This growth is driven by market factors that are well above average, including strong representation of mortgage holders, a notable presence of residents aged 35 to 44, and an elevated employment base in construction. The suburb of Lara maintains a fairly standard age composition while supporting development activity and population growth projections that exceed regional averages.

Estimated residents are up from 19,014 at the 2021 Census — a change of 3,211 people, or 16.9%.

Districts View

Data to 17 Jul 2026

Should you spend time looking in Lara?

Metrici

Lara

Latest FY Approvals

395

185,138

1,863

Current FY-to-Date Approvals

582

184,871

2,096

–Detached House Approvals

354/95.8%

89,436/61.9%

1,333/79.9%

–Attached/Other Approvals

16/4.2%

55,043/38.1%

335/20.1%

Average Annual Approvals

392

188,882

2,253

Total 5-Year Approvals

1,961

944,410

11,265

Approvals per 1,000 People (2yr)

6.5

8.7

Approvals per 1,000 People (5yr)

19.8

7.2

10.5

Pop Growth per Approval (2yr)

2.2

2.8

2.1

Pop Growth per Approval (5yr)

1.8

2.1

1.6

Persons per Approval

158

117

Residential Value per Unit

376

342

294

Commercial Development Value

546,802

105,080,908

2,100,608

Development Drivers Ranking

100

Address	Price	Sold	Type	Beds	Baths	Cars	Land	$/m² land
16 verdant st, lara, VIC, 3212	$830K	24 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	590m²	$1,407
15 cadence ave, lara, VIC, 3212	$850K	21 Aug 2026	House	5	2	2	674m²	$1,261
65 matilda cres, lara, VIC, 3212	$730K	20 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	263m²	$2,776
42 wichita grove, lara, VIC, 3212	$805K	20 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	576m²	$1,398
2 keen pl, lara, VIC, 3212	$768K	20 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	595m²	$1,291
165 duggans ln, lara, VIC, 3212	$1.7M	17 Aug 2026	House	4	2	4	263,100m²	$6
39 rigel rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$631K	17 Aug 2026	House	3	2	1	587m²	$1,075
36 floret dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$850K	17 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	718m²	$1,184
48 reflections cres, lara, VIC, 3212	$1.04M	14 Aug 2026	House	5	3	2	512m²	$2,031
5 jania st, lara, VIC, 3212	$740K	13 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	1,010m²	$733
27 springwater dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$728K	13 Aug 2026	House	3	2	2	596m²	$1,221
17 skipton st, lara, VIC, 3212	$813K	12 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	448m²	$1,814
61 archer dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$630K	7 Aug 2026	House	3	2	1	178m²	$3,539
9 archer dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$273K	7 Aug 2026	Land	0	0	0	—	—
14 bibury st, lara, VIC, 3212	$740K	5 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	400m²	$1,850
29 thomas rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$820K	4 Aug 2026	Land	0	0	0	4,283m²	$191
2 coridale blvd, lara, VIC, 3212	$1.05M	1 Aug 2026	House	4	2	2	530m²	$1,981
36 skipton st, lara, VIC, 3212	$690K	30 July 2026	House	4	2	1	238m²	$2,899
80 cedar rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$750K	30 July 2026	House	3	2	2	482m²	$1,556
10 sunlight circuit, lara, VIC, 3212	$810K	29 July 2026	House	4	2	2	448m²	$1,808
14 martain ave, lara, VIC, 3212	—	29 July 2026	House	4	2	3	1,186m²	—
77 cedar rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$730K	28 July 2026	House	4	2	2	—	—
75 patullos rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$670K	28 July 2026	House	4	1	3	—	—
13 felicity ct, lara, VIC, 3212	$708K	27 July 2026	House	3	2	3	630m²	$1,123
27 leafy st, lara, VIC, 3212	$730K	27 July 2026	House	4	2	2	—	—
19 cedar rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$740K	27 July 2026	House	4	2	2	452m²	$1,637
33 manzeene ave, lara, VIC, 3212	$764K	27 July 2026	House	4	2	2	454m²	$1,682
13 penstone cres, lara, VIC, 3212	$750K	24 July 2026	House	4	3	2	392m²	$1,913
67 smeaton cl, lara, VIC, 3212	$635K	23 July 2026	House	3	2	2	663m²	$958
43 koolah dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$825K	21 July 2026	House	4	2	2	575m²	$1,435
24 station lake rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$645K	21 July 2026	House	4	1	1	970m²	$664
269 homestead dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$570K	21 July 2026	House	3	2	1	244m²	$2,336
57 middleham st, lara, VIC, 3212	$710K	20 July 2026	House	4	2	2	—	—
297 homestead dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$720K	20 July 2026	House	4	2	2	—	—
12 lapwing dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$855K	20 July 2026	House	4	2	2	735m²	$1,163
459 ohallorans rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$862K	17 July 2026	House	4	2	2	512m²	$1,684
27 brolga way, lara, VIC, 3212	$807K	17 July 2026	House	4	2	2	617m²	$1,308
7 farndale dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$690K	16 July 2026	House	4	2	1	—	—
69 curletts rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$1.12M	15 July 2026	House	4	3	2	1,041m²	$1,076
4 savanna walk, lara, VIC, 3212	$620K	14 July 2026	House	3	2	2	—	—
5 wharfdale cres, lara, VIC, 3212	$700K	10 July 2026	House	4	2	2	306m²	$2,288
16 richard dr, lara, VIC, 3212	$730K	9 July 2026	House	4	2	2	763m²	$957
70 bates rd, lara, VIC, 3212	$670K	9 July 2026	House	3	2	2	396m²	$1,692

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaRest of Vic.	Comparison areaAustralia
Latest Population Est.	22,225	1,643,738	27,798,796
Growth Since Census	16.9%	4.3%	9.3%
Population 2021 Census	19,014	1,576,613	25,422,788
Natural Increase	27.0%	15.0%	20.0%
Overseas Migration	18.0%	47.0%	80.0%
Interstate Migration	55.0%	38.0%	0.0%
Population Forecast Growth (2041)	46.4%	8.2%	19.8%
Persons per Square Kilometer	248	7	3

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Total Employment	10,756	14,651,372	115,746
–Health Care & Social Assistance	13.8%	15.2%	18.1%
–Construction	12.7%	9.3%	11.4%
–Retail Trade	10.0%	9.5%	11.3%
Labour Force	11,183	15,298,546	121,769
Participation Rate	62.4%	67.2%	64.9%
Working from Home	20.2%	23.9%	20.4%
Unemployment	3.8%	4.2%	4.9%
1Yr Emp. Growth	-0.4%	1.5%	-0.4%
5Yr Emp. Growth Forecast	6.2%	6.5%	6.6%
Employment Drivers Ranking	41	100	28

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Median Annual Income Est.	62,266	62,634	61,011
Average Annual Income Est.	73,871	80,499	74,849
ATO Median Taxable Income	56,802	57,137	55,657
ATO Average Taxable Income	67,388	73,435	68,280
Median Household Income	1,969	1,746	1,586
–$0 to 399	298 (4.0%)	638,312 (6.3%)	5,305 (6.1%)
–$400 to 799	1,056 (14.2%)	1,671,771 (16.5%)	16,522 (19.0%)
–$800 to 1,499	1,466 (19.7%)	2,158,104 (21.3%)	19,827 (22.8%)
–$1,500 to 2,999	2,820 (37.9%)	3,201,695 (31.6%)	27,566 (31.7%)
–$3,000 to 3,999	989 (13.3%)	1,114,514 (11.0%)	9,218 (10.6%)
–$4,000+	803 (10.8%)	1,357,681 (13.4%)	8,609 (9.9%)
Median Family Income	2,229	2,120	2,056
–$0 to 399	115 (2.0%)	236,192 (3.3%)	1,519 (2.6%)
–$400 to 799	510 (8.9%)	758,676 (10.6%)	6,542 (11.2%)
–$800 to 1,499	1,065 (18.6%)	1,474,408 (20.6%)	12,908 (22.1%)
–$1,500 to 2,999	2,429 (42.4%)	2,562,321 (35.8%)	21,903 (37.5%)
–$3,000 to 3,999	894 (15.6%)	973,396 (13.6%)	8,177 (14.0%)
–$4,000+	710 (12.4%)	1,145,171 (16.0%)	7,360 (12.6%)
Median Personal Income	834	805	767
–$0 to 399	5,467 (24.6%)	7,303,780 (26.3%)	58,229 (25.5%)
–$400 to 799	5,312 (23.9%)	6,526,191 (23.5%)	59,367 (26.0%)
–$800 to 1,499	5,978 (26.9%)	7,137,153 (25.7%)	60,277 (26.4%)
–$1,500 to 2,999	4,712 (21.2%)	5,359,808 (19.3%)	41,397 (18.2%)
–$3,000 to 3,499	356 (1.6%)	527,649 (1.9%)	3,412 (1.5%)
–$3,500+	400 (1.8%)	944,215 (3.4%)	5,232 (2.3%)
–Low Income (<$800/wk)	18.2%	22.8%	25.1%
–High Income (>$3,000/wk)	24.1%	24.4%	20.5%
Largest Income Group	$1,500 - 2,999	$1,500 - 2,999	$1,500 - 2,999
Household Disposable Income	7,369	6,376	5,810
SEIFA Score	4.8	5.6	5.1

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Total Dwellings (Census)	6,358	9,275,218	80,968
–Owned Outright	31.2%	32.1%	33.2%
–Owned with Mortgage	46.8%	36.2%	35.7%
–Rented	22.0%	31.7%	31.1%
–Detached Houses	89.6%	72.5%	84.6%
–Semi-Detached	9.4%	12.6%	11.8%
–Apartments	0.9%	14.3%	3.0%
–Other Dwellings	0.1%	0.6%	0.6%
–Median Monthly Mortgage	1,733	1,863	1,712
–Median Weekly Rent	370	375	335
–$0-149/wk	1.4%	7.3%	7.6%
–$150-349/wk	36.2%	33.4%	46.3%
–$350-649/wk	60.1%	50.9%	44.3%
–$650-949/wk	2.0%	6.6%	1.5%
–>$950/wk	0.3%	1.8%	0.3%
–Aggregate Housing Cost	1,163	1,189	1,062
–Mortgage / Income	20.3%	24.6%	24.9%
–Rent / Income	18.8%	21.5%	21.1%
–Persons per Bedroom	0.8	0.8	0.8

Lara (Vic.)

Should you spend time looking in Lara?

Why look here

What could hold it back

Property sales trends in Lara (Vic.)

Housing development & building approvals in Lara (Vic.)

Development applications

Infrastructure & major projects in Lara (Vic.)

1.Lara West Precinct Structure Plan

2.Prospect Hill Energy from Waste Facility

3.Ingenia Lifestyle Lakeside Lara

4.Lara Lakes Estate

5.Austin Lara Master Planned Community

For sale in Lara (Vic.)

Recent sales in Lara (Vic.)

Indexed properties

Surrounding suburbs in Lara (Vic.)

Population growth in Lara (Vic.)

Jobs and industry in Lara (Vic.)

Household income in Lara (Vic.)

Housing & dwellings in Lara (Vic.)

Household composition in Lara (Vic.)

Schools & education in Lara (Vic.)

Services and amenities in Lara (Vic.)

Transport & commuting in Lara (Vic.)

Health services in Lara (Vic.)

Cultural diversity in Lara (Vic.)

Age profile in Lara (Vic.)

Child care in Lara (Vic.)

Dwelling mix

How homes are held

Ancestry

Suburb	Distance	People	Median	Growth	Sales
Lara	—	22,225	—	—	—
Corio	6.3 km	15,839	—	—	—
Lovely Banks	7.9 km	2,698	—	—	—
Norlane	8.6 km	8,910	—	—	—
Bell Post Hill	10.4 km	5,012	—	—	—
Bell Park	10.7 km	5,558	—	—	—
North Geelong	11.7 km	3,366	—	—	—
Hamlyn Heights	12.6 km	7,170	—	—	—
Geelong West	13.9 km	8,140	—	—	—
Herne Hill (Vic.)	13.9 km	3,773	—	—	—
Manifold Heights	13.9 km	2,952	—	—	—
Geelong	14.6 km	5,801	—	—	—
East Geelong	15.4 km	3,986	—	—	—
Newtown (Greater Geelong - Vic.)	15.6 km	10,443	—	—	—
Newcomb	16.1 km	4,665	—	—	—
Thomson (Greater Geelong - Vic.)	16.5 km	1,595	—	—	—
Moolap	17.1 km	1,831	—	—	—
Whittington	17.4 km	3,908	—	—	—
Highton	18.2 km	22,529	—	—	—
Belmont (Vic.)	18.2 km	15,293	—	—	—
St Albans Park	18.6 km	4,822	—	—	—

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Current Household Est.	7,432	10,142,077	87,047
Median Household Size	2.7	2.5	2.4
Total Households (Census)	6,358	9,275,217	80,964
–Lone Person Households	20.7%	25.6%	28.7%
–Group Households	2.3%	3.9%	4.2%
–Other Households	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
–Family Households	77.0%	70.5%	67.1%
–Couple with Children	37.3%	31.4%	28.5%
–Couple No Children	27.4%	26.8%	25.9%
–One Parent Family	11.4%	11.1%	11.6%
–Avg Children per Family	1.7	1.6	1.6
Currently Married	48.4%	46.5%	43.3%
Never Married	36.2%	36.5%	38.8%

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
University Qualifications	19.6%	30.4%	27.3%
–Bachelor Degree	13.6%	20.0%	18.1%
–Postgraduate Degree	3.5%	7.6%	6.0%
–Advanced Diploma	11.5%	10.8%	11.3%
–Certificate	25.7%	22.0%	23.3%
No Tertiary Qualifications	43.2%	36.8%	38.1%
Number of Schools	4	11,054	98
Total School Attendance	2,347	4,176,099	37,959
ICSEA Score	1,005	1,001	1,037
Education Drivers Ranking	52	100	65

#	School name	Type	Places	ICSEA	Distance (km)
1	St Anthony's School	Primary	450	1041	0.58
2	Lara Lake Primary School	Primary	812	1018	1.18
3	Lara Primary School	Primary	455	994	1.78
4	Lara Secondary College	Secondary	630	970	1.86

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Transport Stops	68	171,981	1,070
Routes	6	12,966	69
Weekly Trips	1,399	1,140,068	12,559
Avg Dist. Between Stops (m)	141	235	101
Avg Dist. to Local Pop. (m)	486	7,586	262
Population per Stop	328	161	213
Population per Trip	16	24.3	18.1
Population per Route	3,720	2,136	3,298
Public Transport Access Ranking	30	100	42
Vehicles per Dwelling	1.7	1.4	1.4
Work from Home	20.2%	23.9%	20.4%
Single Mode Commute	77.9%	73.8%	78.3%
Two Mode	1.6%	1.9%	1.2%
Three+ Mode	0.3%	0.3%	0.2%
–Car	92.1%	84.1%	90.7%
–Train	4.4%	4.9%	2.0%
–Bus	0.8%	3.6%	2.0%
–Walk	1.2%	3.7%	2.9%
–Cycle	0.2%	1.0%	1.0%
–Ferry	0.1%	0.1%	0.0%
–Tram/Light Rail	0.1%	0.5%	0.1%
–Other	0.6%	1.1%	0.6%

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Private Health Cover Rate	53.5%	55.7%	53.3%
Need for Assistance	5.4%	5.8%	6.8%
Zero L/T Health Conditions	66.2%	69.8%	65.9%
One Long Term Condition	22.8%	20.5%	22.8%
Two Long Term Conditions	7.6%	6.4%	7.3%
3+ Long Term Conditions	3.5%	3.3%	3.9%
–Arthritis	8.0%	7.7%	7.8%
–Asthma	9.3%	7.4%	8.8%
–Cancer	2.5%	2.6%	2.6%
–Dementia / Alzheimers	0.6%	0.7%	0.8%
–Diabetes	4.5%	4.3%	4.4%
–Heart Disease	3.5%	3.6%	3.7%
–Kidney Disease	0.9%	0.8%	0.9%
–Lung Condition	1.5%	1.6%	1.7%
–Mental Health Issue	9.6%	8.0%	10.1%
–Stroke	0.9%	0.8%	1.0%
–Other Condition	8.0%	7.3%	7.9%

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Born Overseas	18.0%	29.3%	19.6%
Born in Australia	82.0%	70.7%	80.4%
Australian Citizens	85.1%	83.8%	86.9%
Speak English Only	88.2%	76.4%	85.7%
Speak Other Language	11.8%	23.6%	14.3%
Indigenous Population	1.2%	2.2%	1.0%
Largest Ethnic Group	Australian	English	English
Main Religion	Christianity	Christianity	Christianity
–Buddhism	1.1%	2.6%	1.2%
–Christianity	48.1%	47.5%	47.4%
–Hinduism	1.2%	2.9%	1.7%
–Islam	1.4%	3.5%	2.0%
–Judaism	0.1%	0.4%	0.1%
–Other	1.7%	1.4%	1.2%
–No Religion	46.6%	41.6%	46.4%

Metrici	Lara	Comparison areaAustralia	Comparison areaSA3
Median Age	36	38	38
Largest Age Group	35 to 44	25 to 34	25 to 34
Children (0-14)	19.2%	17.5%	17.5%
Working Age (15-64)	66.7%	64.7%	65.6%
Seniors (65+)	14.2%	17.8%	16.9%
Age Distribution Variance	23.0%	16.0%	19.0%
Dependency Ratio	50.0%	55.0%	52.0%
Fastest Growing Age Group	85+	85+	25 to 34