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Suburb profile ·Central Highlands (Qld) LGA · QLD ·4720

Emerald QLD 4720

Emerald is in Central Highlands (Qld) LGA, QLD, postcode 4720, with population 14,904.

Median house $375K +7.1% YoY
Median rent $550/wk Rent-led investor candidate
Gross yield 7.6% Strong yield band
Population 14,904 15K local footprint
Schools 10 Matched school context
Decision trust

Strong evidence

Emerald has enough direct local evidence for a first-pass decision.

Direct signals include Property prices, Market rent, Crime, and Schools. Missing or weaker areas are still shown so the page does not overstate precision.

5
Available
0
Verify
3
Missing
Rent-led investor candidate

Gross rent yield screens at about 7.6%. Verify price and rent freshness before modelling the deal.

Open matching rent ranking
High yield, watch demand

7.6% gross yield but the LGA is flat. Treat as price-anchored, check demand.

Model in calculator
COMPARE THEN MODEL Use compare to test the suburb against another candidate, then validate financial assumptions in the calculator where available.
Shortlist workspace

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Current status
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Source & freshness

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.

Release-based suburb price series, not a live market feed

RENT POSTURE
Rent is using a state market dataset when available.

Use current rent as a starting signal, not as a fixed underwriting truth.

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
ABS Data by Region and processed state datasets · 2024 · Release-based series
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · release-based
Available
Market rent
Queensland RTA · Q1 2026 · State market dataset
medium stability · automated · every update · quarterly
Available
Crime
State crime dataset · Year ending Dec 2026 · Area-level release dataset
medium stability · mixed acquisition · mixed refresh · mixed
Available
Schools
ACARA 2025 · 10 schools matched
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · annual
Available
Hospitals
AIHW · 1 hospitals matched
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · mixed
Available
Transport
GTFS feeds · No matched local transport stops
medium stability · manual file · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Population growth
ABS ERP · No linked annual population growth series
stable source · automated · every update · annual
Missing
Building approvals
ABS Building Approvals · No linked approvals series
stable source · automated · every update · monthly
Missing
Available means a direct local dataset is linked. Verify means coverage exists but freshness or precision is weaker, such as Census rent fallback or low-confidence hospital matching.
Rent signal

Rent-led investor candidate

Gross rent yield screens at about 7.6%. Snapshot rent $550/wk.

Verify price and rent freshness before modelling the deal.

Source level Suburb Confidence Good Period Q1 2026
$550/wk
+14.6% YoY
Jun 2021 → Mar 2026 · 20 periods
Queensland RTA · suburb grain · Mar 2026
$550
$345
Jun 2021Mar 2026
Evidence depth
Strong evidence

Emerald has enough direct local evidence for a first-pass decision.

Direct signals include Property prices, Market rent, Crime, and Schools. Missing or weaker areas are still shown so the page does not overstate precision.

Next step

Use compare to test the suburb against another candidate, then validate financial assumptions in the calculator where available.

Direct
5

Property prices, Market rent, Crime, Schools

Verify
0

No fallback or lower-precision signals flagged.

Missing
3

Transport, Population growth, Building approvals

Decision intelligence
Income-first

Emerald currently reads as a income-first candidate with a affordability-first secondary angle.

Gross yield screens at about 7.6%. Entry price sits in the lower-cost range for a first-pass screen. Missing evidence to verify: Transport.

Recommended next step

Compare it against one challenger, then use the AU calculator to model the financial case.

Why it fits

Gross yield screens at about 7.6%. Entry price sits in the lower-cost range for a first-pass screen. School coverage gives the page a stronger family/livability signal.

What to check

No major caution is visible beyond the normal source checks.

Decisive gaps

Transport

Compare status

Compare-ready

Why people look here Intent
  • Buyers want a quick sense of price, schools, and neighbourhood scale before getting lost in data.
  • Investors want to know whether rent, yield, and affordability broadly support the suburb story.
  • Researchers want one place that ties property, demographics, transport, and services together.
Local signals Mixed
Schools: 10 matched, including Capricornia School of Distance Education, Emerald State High School, Marist College.
Crime: 6,392 per 100k at the Central Highlands (Qld) LGA level.
Transport: No matched local transport stops.

Price history

HousesUnits

Full data detail

Emerald QLD

Postcode 4720 · Central Highlands (Qld) LGA

Emerald is a well-established suburb in Queensland within the Central Highlands (Qld) local government area (postcode 4720). With a population of 14,904, the suburb has a mix of young professionals and families with a median age of 32. Households earn a median income of $115K per year, with an average household size of 2.7 people. QLD employment has moved +0.9% year-on-year in the official Jobs and Skills Australia NERO series, which provides the broader jobs backdrop for this suburb. QLD also had 32 Commonwealth-backed major projects under construction, 12 underway, and 50 in planning as at 2 October 2024, which is useful as a broader delivery backdrop rather than a suburb-specific project count. The most common occupations are technicians & trades, machinery operators & drivers, professionals. Employment in the area leans toward mining and retail trade. The top ancestries reported are Australian, English, Irish.

The median house price in Emerald is $375,000, having grown strongly 7.1% over the past year. Units have a median price of $235,000 (+14.6% YoY). The current median weekly rent is $550. This gives a gross rental yield of approximately 7.6%. The median monthly mortgage repayment is $1,647.

Emerald is served by 10 schools, including 5 primary, 2 secondary, 2 combined, 1 special. The average ICSEA score is 959, which is around the national average of 1,000. Healthcare facilities include 1 public hospital. The crime rate in the Central Highlands (Qld) LGA is moderate at 6,392 incidents per 100,000 population.

From an investment perspective, Emerald offers a gross rental yield of 7.6%, rated as high yield. Property prices sit below the state median ($375K/$1.1M), suggesting a potential value opportunity. The price-to-income ratio of 3.3x is considered affordable. House prices have moved +7.1% year-on-year.

Investment signals
Rental Yield7.6% High Yield
Price vs State$375K/$1.1M Below Median
Affordability3.3x Affordable
Price Momentum+7.1% Rising
Income (ATO 2022-23)
Median income$65,519
Mean income$81,849
Earners10,322
YoY change+3.5%
SEIFA index (ABS) — 1 = most disadvantaged, 10 = most advantaged
Advantage6/10
Education3/10
Economic5/10
Disadvantage5/10
Latest prices (state valuers)
Median house
$375K
7.1% YoY
Median unit
$235K
14.6% YoY
Census 2021 (ABS)
Median rent /wk
$300
Population
14,904
Demographics
Median age32
Household size2.7
HH income /wk$2,202
Personal income /wk$1035
Mortgage /mth$1,647
Crime (Central Highlands (Qld) LGA)
Crime rate (per 100k)6,392
Total incidents6,392
Schools (10)
Avg ICSEA959
Total students8,915
Government5
Catholic3
Independent2
Capricornia School of Distance EducationCombined · Government · ICSEA 960
Emerald State High SchoolSecondary · Government · ICSEA 945
Marist CollegeSecondary · Catholic · ICSEA 999
St Patrick's Catholic Primary SchoolPrimary · Catholic · ICSEA 1021
Denison State SchoolPrimary · Government · ICSEA 948
Hospitals (1)
Emerald Hospitalpublic
Data status
Property prices
Processed price datasets · 2024
Available
Market rent
State rent dataset · Q1 2026 · Market dataset
Available
Crime
State crime dataset · Year ending Dec 2026 · LGA-level dataset
Available
Schools
ACARA 2025 · 10 schools matched
Available
Hospitals
AIHW · 1 hospitals matched
Available
Transport
GTFS
Missing
Population growth
ABS ERP
Missing
Building approvals
ABS Building Approvals
Missing
Available means a local dataset is present. Verify means coverage exists but location confidence is limited.
Data: 2024
Sources: ABS Census 2021 · ABS dwelling prices · State Valuers General · ATO income · ACARA schools · AIHW hospitals · GTFS · state police

Emerald FAQ

Common questions
  1. What LGA is Emerald in?

    Emerald is in the Central Highlands (Qld) Local Government Area, QLD, postcode 4720. Council-level context for Central Highlands (Qld) LGA (suburb mix, population, rent, and price coverage) is available on the QuickProperty LGA page.

  2. What is the median house price in Emerald?

    The current median house price in Emerald, QLD is $375K, based on the latest available sales data from state Valuers General offices and ABS Data by Region.

  3. What is the typical weekly rent in Emerald?

    The median weekly rent in Emerald is $550/wk, based on the current market rent dataset. The current rent signal is rent-led investor candidate.

  4. What does the rent signal say about Emerald?

    Rent-led investor candidate: Gross rent yield screens at about 7.6%. Use this as a suburb screening signal before comparing candidates or modelling a purchase; the matching rent ranking can provide broader market context.

  5. Is Emerald a good investment?

    QuickProperty's investment signals for Emerald show: High Yield, Below Median, Affordable. These are computed from price, rent, income, and population data — not an opaque score.

  6. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Emerald?

    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.

  7. How often is the Emerald 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.