Murray River - Swan Hill

The area is noticeably older than the state and national figures, with 24% of people aged 65 and over. The population grew by 2.9% to 38,264 people since 2011, and 3.5% of residents are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, which is a little above the Victorian average.

Most residents were born in Australia, and the area has a much lower proportion of overseas-born people (11.9%) compared to the national figure of 27.7%. The most common ancestries are Australian, English, Irish, and Scottish.

English is the primary language for 81.1% of the community, which is far above the state average. However, the proportion of people using another language at home rose to 10.3% since 2011.

Christianity remains the most common faith at 47.9%. The number of people reporting no religion rose 16 points since 2011 to reach 37.3%, though this is still a little below the national figure.

Qualifications are much lower than in most areas, with only 10.6% of adults holding a bachelor degree or higher. Year 12 completion rose to 36.9% since 2011, but this remains far below the Victorian average of 61.8%.

Typical weekly household income is $1,231, which is well below the national figure of $1,746. While the number of households earning $3,000 or more per week rose 7.6 points since 2011, overall incomes remain much lower than in most other areas.

Residents are more likely to have long-term health conditions than people in most areas, with 31.9% affected. About 6.7% of people need help with daily activities, which is slightly higher than the national average.

Volunteering is very common here, with 21.3% of people participating, which is well above the national figure. This high level of community help is consistent with a higher rate of people providing unpaid care (13.7%).

First Nations people make up a small part of the community, with a typical personal income of $497, which is much lower than in most areas. The unemployment rate for this group is 14.9%, well above the state average.

Homes here are smaller than usual, with 2.3 people per home. There is a much higher proportion of people living alone (30.7%) compared to the national average of 25.6%.

The area is dominated by separate houses, which make up 90.3% of dwellings. Home ownership is very high, with 44.6% of homes owned outright, and typical weekly rents are among the lowest in the region at $200.

Cars are the primary way to get around, as only 0.8% of people use public transport to commute. Working from home is far less common here (10.4%) than it is across the rest of the state.

The community is relatively stable, with far fewer people moving house in the last five years compared to the national average. Interestingly, 30.6% of recent arrivals came from overseas, a figure far above the state average.

Agriculture, forestry and fishing are the main industries, employing 22.7% of the workforce. While unemployment is very low at 3.5%, the proportion of adults working or looking for work is much lower than in most other areas.

Recent population estimates suggest a decline of 2.5% since 2021, which is among the lowest growth rates for areas at this level and far below the state average.

The region is quite dry, with average annual rainfall of 354mm, which is well below the Victorian average. Temperatures are slightly warmer than the state average, with a typical maximum of 24.1 degrees.

Walking to amenities is difficult, as the walkability score is well below the state average. Only 55.4% of homes are within a 15-minute walk of groceries, and just 42.2% are near health services.