Place Forecast Update #20: Compare any areas

We’ve updated Place Forecast with Compare any areas: areas from different forecasts in one chart.

Until now, comparing meant every small area in one forecast. That answers one question well and leaves the following three unanswered:

"How do we sit against others?"

Any publicly listed forecast can go on the chart next to yours.

(Comparing the three public forecasts of Whittlesea, Whitehorse, and Hobsons Bay.)

Any area, at any level. A whole council against a whole council. One small area against another small area. A council against three of its own small areas. You can mix them freely, and compare up to 40 at once.

"What's changed with the latest updates?"

Say the ABS has just released a new estimated resident population (ERP). We rebuild your pending forecast on it. Your active forecast stays exactly where it is, based on the data your current plans and reports use.

Put the two side by side to see what the new release does to your numbers, area by area, before deciding whether to make the pending forecast your active one. If active and pending are new to you, here’s how they work.

(The area picker, where you can configure which areas you want to compare, with the active and pending forecast for Hobsons Bay selected)

"How far apart are our scenarios?"

Put one scenario beside another and read the gap directly: high growth against low growth, on population, on dwellings, on any of the data pages. Instead of opening two tabs and holding the difference in your head, the chart shows the difference.

You’ll find it in the Focus control under the page heading, alongside Single area and Compare small areas. The picker shows one row per forecast, with its small areas folded underneath, so you open only what you need; it also includes a search box for area or forecast name.

(A new focus menu item: Compare any areas)

Your selection is stored in the page address, so you can bookmark a comparison or send the link to a colleague, and they’ll open exactly what you were looking at.

If you want to know more about this new feature, you can find the documentation here.

Want to see it in action? Reply to this email to book a walkthrough.

This week, we are trying to find a time and place in our calendar to celebrate Place Info’s third anniversary. Not easy with two blended families, but it matters to us. This anniversary is a major milestone for us, and for startups in general: in a startup’s third year, the initial enthusiasm fades a bit, cash reserves are depleted, and repeatable growth must replace raw survival. We are happy to have this part of the company behind us, largely because we are constantly growing (18 clients by now) while staying adaptive to the challenges we face. In the past, we hoped to continue; now we know we will. Thank you so much for all your trust in us and what we do! We truly appreciate it.

Also, we’re delighted to welcome Bayside (NSW) as a client. Welcome aboard 👋

Andrew and Bernd from Place Info

Enjoyed this update? If you found it helpful, why not share it with a friend or colleague? Simply forward this email, or sign up here.