Lake Cathie is in Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA, NSW, postcode 2445, with population 4,296.
The page has enough signal to be useful, but the story is mixed rather than decisive. Use compare mode to pressure-test it against stronger nearby options, then use the calculator if it still makes the shortlist.
Recent price movement shows visible market momentum. Transport coverage adds a practical access signal.
Houses to Q2'26 · Units to Q3'25 — house and unit medians are released on separate cycles, so their latest period can differ.
At / near its all-time high
Indicative cashflow is interest-only and excludes tax — use the calculator for a full projection. Turnover divides recorded sales by an estimated household count (population over average household size).
Bar = this suburb's percentile · tick = typical (median) peer · stability drivers signed (+ = steadier)
Relative grade across Australian suburbs, combining qp's capital-growth (multi-year CAGR + cycle timing), rental-yield, and stability (price volatility + cycle + affordability) metrics via a three-pillar property-scoring method with an imbalance penalty. Within-Australia relative, indicative only — not financial advice.
79% of homes here are owner-occupied and 17% rented, with 6% of landlords negatively geared.
79% owner-occupied — owner-occupiers hold longer and absorb rate shocks, supporting price stability.
Gross yield 3.3% is thin — returns here lean on capital growth, not cash flow.
ABS Census 2021 tenure (G37), ATO postcode rental statistics, and QuickProperty's investor-exposure index. Owner-occupied = owned outright + with a mortgage.
New-loan repayment $5,071/mo vs median rent $2,817/mo (+80% · +$520/wk)
At 4.2%: $4,049/mo (-1,022) · at 6.2% (current): $5,071/mo · at 8.2%: $6,191/mo (+1,120)
Assumes a 20% deposit and a 30-year principal-and-interest loan at the current RBA new owner-occupier variable rate, against median weekly household income (ABS Census 2021). Stress bands follow the 30% / 45%-of-income thresholds used in ANZ-CoreLogic and AIHW reporting. Rent vs buy compares that repayment with the suburb's median advertised rent; it excludes rates, insurance, maintenance and deposit opportunity cost.
Alternatives are similar-priced suburbs (0.7–1.4x this suburb's median) in other council areas that exceed it on the named metric. Indicative — not financial advice.
This suburb 15.6x · NSW median 11.7x — less affordable than the NSW typical
Nationally · more affordable to buy than 22% of AU suburbs
This suburb 51% · NSW median 21%
Nationally · lighter rent burden than 0% of AU suburbs
Owners with a mortgage repay a median of $1,850/mo, while renters pay about $2,817/mo — renting runs $967/mo higher on these medians.
Serviceability line: a household needs about $3,901/wk to hold a new loan on the median house at 30% of income (20% deposit, 30-year P&I, current RBA rate).
At the median asking rent, about 72% of households here would spend more than 30% of income on rent (rent stress line: $2,167/wk income).
Getting to work: 79% drive, 1% public transport, 2% walk or cycle, 14% worked from home (2021 Census, taken during COVID-era work-from-home arrangements).
Top 41% most liveable of 4,565Australian suburbs.
Bar = this suburb's percentile · tick = typical (median) peer
Suburb-level access-density index (not an address-level walk-time score), normalised within Australian suburbs. Method based on the Urban Liveability Index (Higgs et al. 2019) and Walk Score — three equal-weighted domains combined with an imbalance penalty.
Development screen
Permitted in residential zones under the Housing SEPP; may be approved by consent or as complying development when Housing SEPP and Codes SEPP standards are met.
Rental use: Secondary dwelling rental use is allowed as a dwelling use, subject to planning and tenancy rules.
Open official policy sourceSuburb share of occupied private dwellings recorded as separate houses.
5.6 pp above the state median
State median 77.5% · 1,253 valid suburbs
Broad suburb sampling only; the property zoning and overlays can differ.
13.5 pp below the state median
State median 42.3% · 1,245 valid suburbs
Demand context only; it does not establish permission to rent a secondary dwelling.
8.9 pp below the state median
State median 25.9% · 1,253 valid suburbs
The staged suburb layer indicates a broad-area constraint that needs address-level checking. No broad-area layer staged for this suburb.
Approval pathway
This is an investigation sequence, not a guarantee that every step applies or that approval will be granted.
QuickProperty reviewed the official secondary dwelling / granny flat policy source.
Test consent or complying-development eligibility, including the 450 m² lot marker and all other standards.
Confirm the building approval route after the design, site classifications, services and construction requirements are known.
Confirm long-term rental, short-stay or family-use rules separately from permission to construct the dwelling.
Property due diligence
Every check starts unconfirmed. Progress stays in this browser and suburb evidence never clears an address-level requirement.
Confirm title dimensions, usable site area and any minimum lot threshold.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Test setbacks, private open space, landscaping and maximum site coverage against a concept plan.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Check survey levels, soil classification, retaining needs and likely earthworks.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Obtain current property-level zoning, overlays and applicable planning controls.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Review the title for easements, covenants, restrictions and common property.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Locate assets and connection points, then confirm capacity, clearances and discharge requirements.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Confirm service routes, upgrade needs and whether separate metering is permitted or practical.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Test driveway width, gradients, turning, parking and emergency access requirements.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Order an address-level bushfire assessment and determine any BAL construction response.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Obtain property flood information and check floor levels, flow paths and drainage constraints.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Confirm site classifications that affect structural design, materials and durability.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Confirm exemption, complying pathway or permit requirements with the responsible authority.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Identify required survey, design, engineering, energy, certification and inspection evidence.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Confirm occupation, rental, short-stay and family-use rules plus insurance and tax implications.
Metadata only. QuickProperty does not store or upload the underlying document.
Building due diligence
The National Construction Code is the baseline. Local hazards and site classifications can change the required structure, materials, fixings, insulation and detailing.
About 89.7% of the suburb intersects mapped bushfire-prone land.
May affect: External construction · Roof and wall systems · Openings, screens and decks
Confirm the NCC climate zone used for the building design and energy provisions.
May affect: Insulation and glazing · Condensation control · Roof-space ventilation
A suburb layer cannot determine the site wind classification or Bushfire Attack Level.
May affect: Structure and tie-downs · Cladding and fixings · Openings and bushfire detailing
Confirm marine or corrosive exposure and the applicable termite-management requirements.
May affect: Fasteners and connectors · Roofing and coatings · Termite management
This screen identifies investigation triggers, not building quality or property compliance. Confirm the address, design and current jurisdiction rules with the council, building surveyor or certifier, designer and engineer.
NCC 2022 Housing Provisions: how to use · NCC 2022 Volume Two and Housing Provisions
Estimated exposure to NSW RFS Bush Fire Prone Land (CC BY), point-sampled across the suburb. This shows how much of the suburb sits within the official hazard layer — it is not a Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) rating or a property-level assessment. Obtain a BAL assessment (AS 3959) for an individual property.
Estimated short-let income is 0.4× the $33,800/yr a long-term let would earn at the median rent — before management fees, cleaning, vacancy beyond the occupancy model, and short-stay regulation.
Active Airbnb listings point-mapped to this suburb from Inside Airbnb (CC BY 4.0). Occupancy and revenue are estimates from Inside Airbnb's San Francisco model (review-rate proxy, minimum-stay assumption, occupancy capped at 70%) — they are gross, indicative, and not a guarantee of returns. Short-stay letting is subject to state and local regulation.
Land-use mix estimated by point-sampling the suburb against NSW EPI Land Zoning polygons (CC BY 4.0). This is a suburb-level snapshot of planning zones, not a parcel-level zoning certificate or development advice. Check the relevant planning scheme for an individual property.
ABS population projection (2022 base) for the Laurieton - Bonny Hills SA2 statistical area — the finest official projection grain available; suburb-level projections do not exist.
Lake Cathie (postcode 2445) is a smaller residential area in New South Wales within the Port Macquarie-Hastings local government area. It is home to about 4,296 residents, with a mature demographic and a median age of 52. Households earn a median income of $66K per year, with an average household size of 2.4 people. Recent annual estimates show population movement staying broadly stable across the broader catchment, with population growth running at +1.5% year-on-year at the LGA level. NSW employment has moved +1.2% year-on-year in the official ABS Labour Force trend series, which provides the broader jobs backdrop for this suburb. NSW also had 35 Commonwealth-backed major projects under construction, 17 underway, and 67 in planning as at 2025-09-01, which is useful as a broader delivery backdrop rather than a suburb-specific project count. The most common occupations are professionals, technicians & trades, community & personal service. Employment in the area leans toward healthcare and construction. The top ancestries reported are English, Australian, Scottish.
Lake Cathie has a median house price of $1.0 million, which has jumped by 11.3% year-on-year. Units have a median price of $770,000 (+18.5% YoY). The current median weekly rent is $650. This gives a gross rental yield of approximately 3.3%. The median monthly mortgage repayment is $1,850.
Lake Cathie is served by 1 school, including 1 primary. The average ICSEA score is 1007, which is around the national average of 1,000. Public transport access includes 35 bus stops. The crime rate in the Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA is below average at 3,660 incidents per 100,000 population.
From an investment perspective, Gross rental yield sits at around 3.3% (moderate yield). Property prices sit below the state median ($1.0M/$1.5M), which can point to relative value. The price-to-income ratio of 15.6x is considered stretched. House prices have moved +11.3% year-on-year. Population growth of +1.5% year-on-year points to stable demand fundamentals. Building approvals have changed +0% year-on-year, indicating steady development activity.
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Lake Cathie carries enough direct local evidence for a first-pass decision.
QuickProperty mixes release files, Census baselines, and matched local services on this page. Read the status panel before treating every metric as equally fresh.
Official sale records parsed from cached Bulk PSI ZIP files with parser guardrails for token sales, non-house zoning, and low-value strata component records
Use current rent as a starting signal, not as a fixed underwriting truth.
Schools, transport, and hospitals are useful as presence signals, but they still have different source cadences.
Lake Cathie is in the Port Macquarie-Hastings Local Government Area, NSW, postcode 2445. Council-level context for Port Macquarie-Hastings LGA (suburb mix, population, rent, and price coverage) is available on the QuickProperty LGA page.
The current median house price in Lake Cathie, NSW is $1.0M, based on the latest available sales data from state Valuers General offices and ABS Data by Region.
The median weekly rent in Lake Cathie is $650/wk, based on the current market rent dataset. The current rent signal is rent context available.
Rent context available: Lake Cathie has usable rent context. Use this as a suburb screening signal before comparing candidates or modelling a purchase; the matching rent ranking can provide broader market context.
QuickProperty's investment signals for Lake Cathie show: Moderate Yield, Below Median, Stretched. These are computed from price, rent, income, and population data — not an opaque score.
Property prices come from state Valuers General offices and ABS Data by Region. Demographics are from ABS Census 2021. School ICSEA scores are from ACARA. Crime statistics are from state police agencies. Transport data is sourced from GTFS feeds.
Property prices update quarterly. RBA macro indicators update with each deploy. Demographics are from Census 2021. School ICSEA scores are from ACARA 2025.