Downer

Development Activity

Demographics

The median age of 35 is 5 years below the national figure, giving Downer a working-age skew that is reinforced by a 66.9% participation rate and only 892 residents not in the labour force. Overseas-born residents are 29.9%, which is 8.3 percentage points above the national figure, and the top ancestry groups are English (1,394), Irish (560) and Scottish (472), alongside Chinese (237). Languages other than English include Mandarin (63 speakers), Greek (28) and Hindi (20). University qualifications reach 63.3%, compared to the national rate of roughly 30%, a 33-point gap that reflects Canberra's public sector and research labour market. Average household size is 2.5, equal to the national figure, and 48.6% of families are couples with children.

Owner-occupiers split into 27.6% outright and 35.4% with a mortgage, while 37% rent, a higher renter proportion than typical suburban ACT areas. Separate houses make up 67.1% of stock, with semi-detached at 16% and apartments at 16.8%, giving a balanced mix compared to inner Canberra. Three-bedroom homes are the plurality at 45%, four-plus bedroom at 27% and two-bedroom at 18.9%. Rent-to-income sits at 18.5%, below the 30% stress threshold, indicating neither renters nor owners face acute housing cost pressure. Vacancy at 5.9% is moderately high, suggesting available supply in the rental market.

Community Profile

Economy & Employment

Public Administration employs 34.2% of local workers (640 people), more than double the second-largest sector, Professional and Technical services at 14% (262). Education (11.6%) and Healthcare (9.6%) round out the top four, a profile consistent with Canberra's government-anchored economy. By occupation, Professionals account for 782 workers and Managers 475, together forming a majority of the employed base. The unemployment rate is 4.2% with a full-time employment rate of 63.4% and 828 part-time workers. The SEIFA IEO decile of 9 confirms high education and occupation advantage nationally. Personal weekly income averages $1,125, and family weekly income reaches $2,882. Real income growth was 15.6% over the decade, a solid gain that underpins the suburb's improving affordability trajectory.

Transport to Work

Downer ranks at SEIFA IRSAD decile 9 and IRSD decile 8, placing it in the top tier of advantage nationally with very low rates of relative disadvantage. Walkability and cycling are notably strong: 13.2% of residents walk or cycle to work, above average for Canberra, while 77.2% drive and only 2.7% use public transport. Only 4.2% (174 residents) require daily assistance, consistent with the young median age of 35. Volunteering runs at 24.4%, above the national average, suggesting strong community engagement. No schools are recorded inside the suburb boundary in this dataset, so families typically access schools in neighbouring precincts. Housing stress is low, with rent-to-income at 18.5% and mortgage-to-income at 22.1%, both comfortably below stress thresholds.

Population Forecast

Population grew 20.9% over 10 years, well above the national average, reaching an estimated 4,296 in 2025. Annual growth tracks at 1.43%, or about 65 additional residents per year. Medium forecasts project 4,916 residents by 2031, a 14% increase from current levels. Overseas migration is the primary driver at 93 net residents annually, more than offsetting net internal outflow of minus 52, a typical ACT dynamic where federal government contracts rotate workers interstate. The gentrification score sits at 23 with early signs as signals: population up 24% since 2011 and accelerating trajectory. Affordability improved from 48% in 2011 to 37.3% in 2021, a meaningful shift that positions Downer as increasingly accessible relative to broader ACT price growth. The suburb did not experience a COVID population dip, indicating stable underlying demand.

National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs

How Downer compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs

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