Skip to content
Suburb profile ·Mackay LGA · QLD ·4740

Balberra QLD 4740

Balberra is in Mackay LGA, QLD, postcode 4740, with population 425.

Limited data

Thin-context

The page is still useful for local context, but the evidence stack is too thin for a clean one-page call. Use nearby stronger suburbs or compare mode before treating it as a serious shortlist decision.

What to check

Evidence depth is verify-heavy, so the profile should be treated as provisional. The page is thin enough that nearby alternatives should be checked before shortlisting. Small local population makes the signal set more fragile.

Median house
No local house series
Median rent
$250/wk
Market rent signal
D5 vs AU
Gross yield
Need rent + price
Population
129,253
129K via Mackay LGA · SAL undercount
Schools
No matched school data
Drive to city
Not in commute dataset
Solar
18,900
1,445 added 12mo · 150MW

Price history

No price history available

Price series isn't recorded for this suburb. Census housing data is shown instead.

Median mortgage · mth$1,997
Median rent · wk$250
Investor profile

Who invests in Balberra

Owner-occupied 87%Rented 13%
Investor activityATO
Negatively geared5.5%
3,072 of 5,864 landlords
Avg rental loss$7,214/yr
Landlords (rental income)5,864
Reported capital gains4,538
The read

Owner-occupier stronghold

83% of homes here are owner-occupied and 13% rented, with 6% of landlords negatively geared.

Why it fits

83% owner-occupied — owner-occupiers hold longer and absorb rate shocks, supporting price stability.

ABS Census 2021 tenure (G37), ATO postcode rental statistics, and QuickProperty's investor-exposure index. Owner-occupied = owned outright + with a mortgage.

Affordability

13%
median weekly rent as a share of gross household income (the 30% rule)
Manageable

Owners with a mortgage repay a median of $1,997/mo, while renters pay about $1,083/mo — owning runs $914/mo higher on these medians.

Household income · yr
$97K
Median rent · wk
$250
Owner mortgage · mo
$1,997

Household income

$97K household · yr+21.6% vs QLD suburb median
Personal
$40K
Family
$110K
Household
$97K
Household income distribution (ABS Census 2021 · weekly)
Under $300
9
$300-649
19
$650-999
13
$1,000-1,499
12
$1,500-1,999
13
$2,000-2,999
27
$3,000-3,999
14
$4,000+
13

At the median asking rent, about 31% of households here would spend more than 30% of income on rent (rent stress line: $833/wk income).

Housing stock and tenure

Tenure (143 households)
Owned outright
45%
Owned with mortgage
38%
Rented
13%
Dwelling structure10.8% of dwellings unoccupied on census night
Separate house
98%
Townhouse / semi
0%
Flat / apartment
2%

Getting to work: 80% drive, 0% public transport, 3% walk or cycle, 11% worked from home (2021 Census, taken during COVID-era work-from-home arrangements).

Crime Year ending May 2026
6,627
6,627 per 100k
D8 vs AU

Crime

Rate · per 100k6,627
Total incidents6,627· Year ending May 2026
  • Assault1,23232%
  • Break And Enter71619%
  • Drug Offences1,59141%
  • Fraud3068%

Building due diligence

Construction requirements can change by location.

The National Construction Code is the baseline. Local hazards and site classifications can change the required structure, materials, fixings, insulation and detailing.

Known here

SUBURB CONTEXT

Bushfire-prone land

Low broad-area context

About 11.2% of the suburb intersects mapped bushfire-prone land.

May affect: External construction · Roof and wall systems · Openings, screens and decks

Check the property

ADDRESS + DESIGN

NCC climate zone

Check the property

Confirm the NCC climate zone used for the building design and energy provisions.

May affect: Insulation and glazing · Condensation control · Roof-space ventilation

Wind class and BAL

Site assessment required

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

Corrosion and termite exposure

Check the property

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

Bushfire exposure

Low exposure ~11.2%
~11.2% of the suburb is Bush Fire Prone Land

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.

Population outlook

8,547 people · 20229,026 by 2032 (+5.6%)

ABS population projection (2022 base) for the Walkerston - Eton SA2 statistical area — the finest official projection grain available; suburb-level projections do not exist.

Full data detail Census · ATO · ABS · state datasets
Balberra QLD — Property Data and Demographics

Balberra is a quiet locality in Queensland within the Mackay local government area (postcode 4740). With a population of 425, the suburb has an older-leaning population with a median age of 47. Households earn a median income of $97K per year, with an average household size of 2.6 people. Recent annual estimates show population movement staying broadly stable across the broader catchment, with population growth running at +0.9% year-on-year at the LGA level. QLD employment has moved +1.5% year-on-year in the official ABS Labour Force trend series, which provides the broader jobs backdrop for this suburb. QLD also had 35 Commonwealth-backed major projects under construction, 16 underway, and 30 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 technicians & trades, managers, machinery operators & drivers. Employment in the area leans toward transport & logistics and agriculture. The top ancestries reported are Australian, English, Scottish.

The median weekly rent is $250 (Census 2021). The median monthly mortgage repayment is $1,997.

The crime rate in the Mackay LGA is moderate at 6,627 incidents per 100,000 population.

On the investment side, Population growth of +0.9% year-on-year points to stable demand fundamentals. Building approvals have changed +0% year-on-year, indicating steady development activity.

Market & money
Investment signalsHeuristics
Pop. Growth+0.9%· Stable
Development+0%· Steady
InvestmentQLD
Mortgage · mth$1,997
Rent · wk(Census)$250
Population growth · Mackay LGAABS ERP
Population (2025)129,253
5-year growth+1.3% CAGR
YoY change+0.9%
20012025
Development · Mackay LGAABS Approvals
Approvals (2026)525
Houses 92%Units 8%
YoY change+0%
Employment · Mackay LGASALM
Unemployment (Dec-25)2.8%
YoY change+0.4pp
Dec-10Dec-25
Property investors · Postcode 4740ATO
Negatively geared5.5%
3,072 of filers
Avg rental loss$7,214/yr
Landlords (rental income)5,864
Reported capital gains4,538
People & prosperity
DemographicsCensus 21
Population425
Median age47
Household size2.6
HH income · wk$1,862
Personal income · wk$773
Persons / bedroom0.8
SEIFA indexABS
Advantage (IRSAD)4/10
Education (IEO)2/10
Economic (IER)7/10
Disadvantage (IRSD)4/10
Income momentumCensus 16→21
HH income · wk$1,660 → $1,862
Change+12.2%
vs QLD median-5.8 pp
Median rent+25%
stablevs QLD 2016–21
Area & amenity
Local amenitiesOSM
Supermarkets0
Pharmacies0
GP / clinics0
Fuel stations1
Cafes & dining0
Hospitals · Mackay LGAAIHW
Public2
Private3
Mackay Base Hospitalpublic
Sarina Hospitalpublic
Icon Cancer Centre Mackayprivate
Mater Misericordiae Day Unitprivate
Mater Misericordiae Hospital Mackayprivate
Aged care · Mackay LGAGEN
Facilities12
Residential places890
Good Shepherd Lodge168 places
Francis Of Assisi Home148 places
Ozcare Mackay120 places
Glenella Care108 places
Kerrisdale Gardens107 places
Blue Care Mackay Homefield Aged Care Facility74 places
+6 more in Mackay LGA
Childcare · Mackay LGAACECQA
Services85
Approved places5,364
Exceeding NQS8
Green Leaves Early Learning Mount Pleasant143 places
Moreton Drive Early Learning Centre134 places
PCYC Marian Fun Squad120 places
Eden Academy Beaconsfield108 places
Eden Academy Kerrisdale108 places
Goodstart Early Learning Mackay - Bridge Road 1105 places
+79 more in Mackay LGA
Shortlist workspace

Save suburbs here while you browse. Once the shortlist has two or more names, hand it straight into compare.

Current status
Add Balberra if it deserves a shortlist slot.

No saved AU suburbs yet.

EMPTY SET

No saved suburbs yet. Start with one ranking or suburb page, then compare once you have two candidates.

Open rankings to save the first candidates.

Sources & freshness
Verify-heavy evidence

Balberra leans on evidence that should be verified before a 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.

PRICE POSTURE
Prices come from release-based suburb series.

QVAS residential dwelling sales aggregated to SA2 and mapped to suburb pages

RENT POSTURE
Rent is falling back to Census, not a market feed.

This gives you directional coverage, but it is weaker than a current rent release.

SERVICE POSTURE
Service coverage is matched locally, not inferred nationally.

Schools, transport, and hospitals are useful as presence signals, but they still have different source cadences.

Data status
Property prices
QGSO Housing Profiles · QVAS residential dwelling sales aggregated to SA2 and mapped to suburb pages
medium stability · automated · every update · quarterly
Missing
Market rent
ABS Census 2021 · Using Census rent fallback
stable source · manual file · snapshot · census-cycle
Verify
Crime
State crime dataset · Year ending May 2026 · Area-level release dataset
Available
Schools
ACARA 2025 · No local school matches exposed
stable source · automated · every update · annual
Missing
Hospitals
AIHW · No linked local hospital coverage
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Transport
GTFS feeds · No matched local transport stops
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Population growth
ABS ERP · 2025 · Annual estimate series
stable source · automated · every update · annual
Available
Building approvals
ABS Building Approvals · 2026 · Annual release series
stable source · automated · every update · monthly
Available
Available means a direct local dataset is linked. Verify means coverage exists but freshness or precision is weaker, such as ABS price fallback, Census rent fallback, or low-confidence hospital matching.
Sparse locality note

This page stays indexable because Balberra is a real locality with enough context to be directionally useful. The tradeoff is that coverage is lighter than a stronger suburb profile, so the read should stay cautious.

WHY IT LOOKS LIGHTER
The page is readable, but the local evidence base is lighter than a mainstream suburb profile.

Read it as a starting locality brief, then cross-check the suburb story against better-covered nearby markets or the state hub.

WHAT IS MISSING
Coverage is lighter across school matches, hospital coverage, and transport stops.

The main gaps on this page are school matches, hospital coverage, and transport stops. That narrows how much confidence you should place on a single-page read.

BEST NEXT STEP
Use this page to understand the locality shape, then compare outward.

Use it for context first, then move to compare, the state hub, or a larger nearby suburb before calling it a full market decision.

Page status
INDEXED WITH LIGHTER COVERAGE

This page remains visible, but it should be read as a locality brief rather than a full-confidence suburb profile.

HOW TO READ THIS PAGE

Use this page to set direction, not to close a decision — frame the locality here, then confirm with compare, stronger nearby suburbs, and the state hub.

Stronger nearby reads

If Balberra feels too thin on its own, use these nearby suburbs as stronger local reads before making a shortlist decision.

Calen better covered
similar rent profile similar suburb scale better market coverage

pop same · adds house price coverage · rent same $

Better covered alternative: use this as the stronger reference point before judging the thin page.

Midge Point most similar
similar rent profile similar suburb scale

pop same · rent -$15/wk

Similar local read: useful for context, but still compare the actual market signals.

Balnagowan most similar
similar rent profile similar suburb scale

pop same · rent +$25/wk

Similar local read: useful for context, but still compare the actual market signals.

Balberra FAQ

Common questions
  1. What LGA is Balberra in?

    Balberra is in the Mackay Local Government Area, QLD, postcode 4740. Council-level context for Mackay LGA (suburb mix, population, rent, and price coverage) is available on the QuickProperty LGA page.

  2. What is the typical weekly rent in Balberra?

    The median weekly rent in Balberra is $250/wk, based on ABS Census 2021 rent fallback.

  3. Is Balberra a good investment?

    QuickProperty's investment signals for Balberra show: Stable, Steady. These are computed from price, rent, income, and population data — not an opaque score.

  4. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Balberra?

    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.

  5. How often is the Balberra data updated?

    Property prices update quarterly. RBA macro indicators update with each deploy. Demographics are from Census 2021. School ICSEA scores are from ACARA 2025.