Kariong
Detached housing dominates Kariong to a degree few suburbs match: 92.2% of dwellings are separate houses and just 0.6% are apartments, which shapes everything from the family profile to the slow growth trajectory. The median house price reached $980,000 while household income sits in the 83.6th percentile nationally, and the median age of 36 runs 4.0 years below national. Half of all homes (50.9%) have four or more bedrooms, far above the typical Australian split, because the stock was built for families rather than downsizers. Population is edging down at 0.19% a year, and SEIFA places the suburb mid-table with an IEO decile of 5 against a stronger IER decile of 8.
Population
6,485
Median Age
36.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$2,200/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
25
Median House
$980K
2024-2025 (PSI derived)
At a $980,000 median, Kariong sits below Sydney's metropolitan benchmark while still demanding a substantial budget, and prices rose 8.0% over a single year from $951,000 in 2024 to $1,027,000 in 2025. Buyers here are buying houses, not units: 92.2% of dwellings are separate houses and only 0.6% are apartments, so apartment shoppers have almost no options. Stock skews large, with 50.9% of homes having four or more bedrooms and 45.5% having three, which suits growing families more than first-home buyers. Monthly mortgage repayments average $2,080, producing a mortgage-to-income ratio of 21.8%, comfortably below the 30% stress threshold and well under what many Sydney suburbs carry, because household incomes in the 83.6th percentile absorb the debt with room to spare.
For Buyers
At a $980,000 median, Kariong sits below Sydney's metropolitan benchmark while still demanding a substantial budget, and prices rose 8.0% over a single year from $951,000 in 2024 to $1,027,000 in 2025. Buyers here are buying houses, not units: 92.2% of dwellings are separate houses and only 0.6% are apartments, so apartment shoppers have almost no options. Stock skews large, with 50.9% of homes having four or more bedrooms and 45.5% having three, which suits growing families more than first-home buyers. Monthly mortgage repayments average $2,080, producing a mortgage-to-income ratio of 21.8%, comfortably below the 30% stress threshold and well under what many Sydney suburbs carry, because household incomes in the 83.6th percentile absorb the debt with room to spare.
For Investors
Renters make up 22.8% of households, a modest tenant pool, but the tight 2.3% vacancy rate signals demand outstrips available rentals. Weekly rent of $450 against the $980,000 median implies a gross yield near 2.4%, low in absolute terms yet higher than premium inner-Sydney suburbs where yields fall below 1.5%. Demand support is fragile: net internal migration removes 122 residents a year while overseas migration adds only 33, so the population is contracting rather than expanding. Development activity is moderate at 24 applications in 12 months, mostly dwelling alterations and the occasional new house under a Complying Development Certificate, which means new rental supply stays thin. With rent up 45.2% over the decade against flat population growth, the investment case leans on rental escalation and scarcity more than capital volume.
Development Activity
Total DAs
152
Last 12 Months
25
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
-16.7%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Kariong iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
Central Coast Sports College
K-12 · 990 students
Kariong Public School
K-6 · 502 students
Kariong Mountains High School
7-12 · 420 students
Demographics
Kariong's median age of 36 is 4.0 years below the national figure, marking it younger than most established suburbs, though the trajectory is shifting older as the senior share rose 2.6 points and the young share fell 3.5 points over the decade. Only 19.0% of residents were born overseas, which is 2.6 points below national, and university qualifications at 27.7% run 2.4 points under the national rate. Ancestry leans firmly Anglo-Celtic, led by English (2,566), Irish (651) and Scottish (592), and Christianity dominates religion with 3,154 adherents. Average household size is 3.0, half a person above national, consistent with the family-heavy housing where couples with children account for 2,568 families against 1,108 childless couples.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
92.2%
Houses
7.2%
Townhouse
0.6%
Apartment
Tenure
Tenure tilts toward mortgaged owners: 52.2% carry a mortgage, 25.0% own outright and 22.8% rent, a profile of working families paying down debt rather than long-held wealth. The stock is overwhelmingly detached at 92.2% separate houses, with apartments at just 0.6% and semi-detached at 7.2%, which keeps the market simple and family-oriented. Homes are large, with 50.9% holding four or more bedrooms and 45.5% three. The median house price climbed from $951,000 to $1,027,000 across 2024 and 2025, an 8.0% one-year gain. The price-to-income picture stays manageable: mortgage-to-income at 21.8% and rent-to-income at 20.5% both sit below the 30% stress line, because household incomes reach the 83.6th percentile nationally.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$2,080
Rent / wk
$450
HH Size
3.0
Personal Income / wk
$850
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
2.3%
Unoccupied
49
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
20.5%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
21.8%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
19.5%
Couples, no children
5,684
Total families
Economy & Employment
The local workforce concentrates in care and trades rather than corporate sectors: Healthcare leads at 20.8% (458 workers), Construction follows at 12.1% (265) and Education at 9.1% (199), with Professional/Tech and Public Admin tied at 8.1%. By occupation, Professionals (623), Clerical/Admin (482) and Managers (390) form the core. Unemployment sits at 4.8% with a full-time employment rate of 62.1%, and participation reads 62.4%, held down because 1,407 residents are not in the labour force. The SEIFA spread is telling: the IER score reaches decile 8 for economic resources, well above the IEO decile of 5 for education and occupation, because solid household incomes and high home ownership lift resource measures even where formal qualifications run below national. Real incomes grew 14.2% over the decade.
Unemployment
2.3%
Labour Force
3,820
Unemployed
86
Quarterly Trend
Source: SALM Dec-25
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
62.1%
Part-time
33.1%
Participation
62.4%
Employed
3,010
Occupations
Top Industries
University
27.7%
Postgraduate
5.7%
Born Overseas
19.0%
Dwellings
2,086
Transport to Work
Kariong is built around the car: 90.4% of commuters drive, far above the national average, while only 1.5% use public transport and 1.6% walk or cycle, a reflection of the low-density 251 residents per km2 footprint and limited rail access on the Central Coast. The suburb scores decile 7 on the IRSD index of relative disadvantage and decile 6 on IRSAD, both above the midpoint, meaning relatively few residents face deprivation. Volunteering runs at 12.5% and only 5.0% (310 people) need daily assistance. No schools are recorded inside the 25.79 km2 boundary in this dataset, so families rely on institutions in neighbouring suburbs, a practical trade-off for the spread-out, house-dominated setting where 92.2% of dwellings are detached.
Drive
90.4%
Public Transport
1.5%
Walk / Cycle
1.6%
Work from Home
N/A
Population Forecast
-0.19%/yr
(-12 people/yr)
EstablishedKariong is contracting slowly: annual population growth registers -0.19%, equal to roughly 12 fewer residents a year, and the 10-year change is just 0.5%, classifying it as an established suburb with a declining-young trajectory. The current population of around 6,485 is forecast to slip from 6,442 in 2026 to 6,383 by 2031 under the medium scenario, so no expansion is expected. The drag is internal migration, which removes a net 122 residents annually, against only 33 added through overseas migration. The gentrification stage reads not gentrifying, with early signals scoring just 27, fitting a stable mid-tier suburb. Affordability barely moved, from 51.2% in 2011 to 52.9% in 2021, while real incomes grew 14.2%, so the suburb is holding its position rather than climbing.
Historical + Forecast
Hamilton-Perry + Holt smoothing on ERP 2001-2025
Age Cohort Forecast
Primary Driver
Overseas Migration
Net Overseas / yr
+33
Net Internal / yr
-122
Gentrification Signal
Not gentrifying
Net internal outflow -122/yr
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How Kariong compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Kariong a good suburb to live in?
Kariong scores decile 7 on the IRSD disadvantage index and decile 8 on IER for economic resources, both above the midpoint, with household income in the 83.6th percentile nationally. The median age of 36 is 4.0 years below national, and 92.2% of homes are detached houses, suiting families who want space over apartment living.
What is the median house price in Kariong?
The median house price is $980,000. Prices rose 8.0% over one year, from $951,000 in 2024 to $1,027,000 in 2025. Weekly rent averages $450 and monthly mortgage repayments run about $2,080, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 21.8%, below the 30% stress threshold.
What schools are in Kariong?
No schools are recorded inside the 25.79 km2 Kariong boundary in this dataset, so families rely on schools in neighbouring suburbs. The resident profile is family-heavy, with an average household size of 3.0, half a person above the national figure, and university qualifications at 27.7%.
Is Kariong safe?
Detailed crime statistics are not available for Kariong in this dataset. As an indirect indicator, the suburb scores decile 7 on the IRSD index of relative disadvantage, above the midpoint, and only 5.0% of its roughly 6,485 residents need daily assistance, both consistent with a low-disadvantage area.
Is Kariong good for property investment?
Rent of $450 a week against the $980,000 median gives a gross yield near 2.4%, higher than premium inner-Sydney suburbs below 1.5%, and the tight 2.3% vacancy rate signals strong demand. However, net internal migration removes 122 residents a year, so returns lean on rental growth rather than population expansion.
How is Kariong's population changing?
Population is contracting at -0.19% a year, about 12 fewer residents annually, with just 0.5% change over 10 years. The medium forecast slips from 6,442 in 2026 to 6,383 by 2031. The profile is aging, with the senior share up 2.6 points and the young share down 3.5 points over the decade.
How much development is happening in Kariong?
There were 24 development applications lodged in the past 12 months, moderate for a 25.79 km2 suburb. Most are dwelling alterations or single new houses under Complying Development Certificates rather than large new supply, consistent with an established area where population is contracting at -0.19% a year.
How to read these comparisons
Phrases like "above the national average" reference the unweighted median across Australian suburbs with more than 1,000 residents, not population-weighted national figures. Suburb-level medians are more useful for ranking suburbs against each other; ABS census headlines are population-weighted (so dominated by Sydney and Melbourne) and can read very differently.
Current baseline (refreshed 2026-05-10): median age 40, university-educated 30.1%, born overseas 21.6%, average household size 2.5 people.
Data sources: ABS 2021 Census (demographics, income, tenure), state Valuer-General (house prices), Department of Jobs SALM (unemployment), ACARA (school ICSEA), state Crime Statistics agencies (offences), council DA portals (development applications). Population forecasts use a Hamilton-Perry cohort model calibrated to ABS ERP.
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