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Suburb comparison

Meadowbank vs North RydeTwo Sydney suburbs compared for a home loan

Meadowbank (NSW 2114) is approximately 14 km north-west of the Sydney CBD, on the Parramatta River. North Ryde (NSW 2113) is approximately 13 km north-west of the Sydney CBD, on the Metro line. At the 2021 Census, Meadowbank had 5,089 residents with a median age of 34, and North Ryde had 14,043 residents with a median age of 37.

The most common occupied dwelling was flats and apartments in Meadowbank and separate houses in North Ryde. Flats and apartments made up 97% of occupied dwellings in Meadowbank and 30% in North Ryde, while 60% of Meadowbank households rented compared with 37% in North Ryde. These differences matter for finance, because lenders assess apartments, strata buildings and houses on land differently.

Both suburbs are in the same state, so transfer duty is calculated on the same scale and the difference in upfront cost comes from the purchase price. The panel below applies that scale, and an estimate of lenders mortgage insurance, to the prices you enter.

What buying in Meadowbank and North Ryde would mean for the loan

The difference between two suburbs is usually a difference in price, and price drives the deposit, the transfer duty, any lenders mortgage insurance and the repayment. Enter the prices you are seeing and the panel works out each of those for Meadowbank and North Ryde.

Your prices and deposit

Enter the price you are seeing in each suburb. BorrowWise does not quote prices, so the comparison uses yours.

Meadowbank

Enter a price for Meadowbank to see the repayment, transfer duty and upfront cash.

North Ryde

Enter a price for North Ryde to see the repayment, transfer duty and upfront cash.

Warning: The interest rate used here is an example only. It is not a comparison rate and is not a rate offered by any lender, and it does not include fees and charges. Different rates, terms, fees or loan amounts will give a different result.

Estimates only. Repayments assume a principal and interest loan at a constant rate, which is an assumption and not a current market rate. Transfer duty is indicative for established homes, first home buyer relief depends on eligibility, and upfront cash includes an allowance of $3,000 for conveyancing and inspections. Lenders mortgage insurance is an estimate and is added to the loan. A lender makes its own assessment.

Meadowbank and North Ryde: Census profile compared

Figures are from the 2021 Census, so rents, repayments and incomes have moved since. They are most useful for comparing one suburb with another and with Australia as a whole.

2021 Census profile of Meadowbank and North Ryde
MeasureMeadowbankNorth Ryde
People and households
Residents5,08914,043
Median ageAustralia 383437
Average household sizeAustralia 2.52.02.6
Median household income, weeklyAustralia $1,746$1,993$2,383
Housing costs at the 2021 Census
Median rent, weeklyAustralia $375$430$520
Median mortgage repayment, monthlyAustralia $1,863$2,148$2,700
Who owns and who rents
Households rentingAustralia 31%60%37%
Owned with a mortgageAustralia 35%26%33%
Owned outrightAustralia 31%13%29%
Types of home
Separate housesAustralia 72%2%58%
Townhouses, terraces and semi-detachedAustralia 13%1%12%
Flats and apartmentsAustralia 14%97%30%
Homes with two bedrooms or fewer82%35%
Homes with four bedrooms or more2%34%
Dwellings unoccupied on Census night12%6%

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 Census (CC BY 4.0). Tenure shares exclude households that did not state their tenure. Dwelling shares are of occupied private dwellings.

Home loan considerations in Meadowbank and North Ryde

Lenders treat houses on land, townhouses and apartments differently, and some apply extra conditions to small apartments, high-density buildings or particular postcodes. These are the points each guide raises.

Meadowbank

  • Investors
  • First home buyers
  • Downsizers
  • Single-development exposure limits can be reached in a suburb of large complexes.
  • One-bedroom dwellings and studios can fall below lenders' minimum internal floor areas.
  • Special levies for defect rectification can be significant in newer buildings.
  • Former industrial land means contamination history is worth reading on the 10.7 certificate.
  • A section 66W certificate waives cooling-off and exposes a buyer to the full 10 per cent deposit.

North Ryde

  • Upgraders
  • Investors
  • First home buyers
  • Downsizers
  • Apartments and houses attract different lending policies in the same suburb.
  • One-bedroom dwellings can fall below lenders' minimum internal floor areas.
  • Student accommodation near the university is specialised security many lenders refuse.
  • Land on the Lane Cove National Park interface may be recorded as bush fire prone.
  • A section 66W certificate waives cooling-off and exposes a buyer to the full 10 per cent deposit.

Housing stock in Meadowbank and North Ryde compared

Meadowbank

Riverside apartments
The 2,364 flats counted at the 2021 Census, 96.8 per cent of occupied homes.
One and two bedroom dwellings
At the 2021 Census, 1,282 dwellings had two bedrooms, 699 had one and 31 were studios.
Very few houses
Only 57 separate houses and 15 townhouse dwellings were counted at the 2021 Census.

North Ryde

Detached family houses
Separate houses numbered 2,906 at the 2021 Census, 58.0 per cent of occupied homes.
Apartments near the metro
The 1,514 flats counted at the 2021 Census, 30.2 per cent of occupied homes.
A broad bedroom range
At the 2021 Census, 783 dwellings had one bedroom and 596 had five or more.

Official sale price and rent figures for Meadowbank and North Ryde

Only figures published free of charge by a government agency are shown. Where none is published the space is left empty rather than filled with an estimate. Each guide charts the full series.

Meadowbank

No government agency publishes a free median sale price or rent series for Meadowbank, so none is shown. A broker can supply recent comparable sales for a specific property as part of a free assessment.

North Ryde

No government agency publishes a free median sale price or rent series for North Ryde, so none is shown. A broker can supply recent comparable sales for a specific property as part of a free assessment.

Transport, schools and amenities in Meadowbank and North Ryde

Meadowbank

Transport

  • Meadowbank Station (train)
  • Meadowbank Wharf (ferry)
  • Victoria Road (road)

Amenities

  • Parramatta River foreshore
  • Top Ryde City
  • Meadowbank Park

North Ryde

Transport

  • North Ryde Metro (metro)
  • Macquarie Park Metro (metro)
  • Sydney buses (bus)
  • Epping Road (road)

Amenities

  • Lane Cove National Park
  • Macquarie Centre
  • North Ryde local shops

School listings show name, level and sector only. Enrolment areas change, so confirm eligibility for a specific address with the school or the New South Wales education department.

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