Modbury North
A 21.3% one-year jump in the median house price, from $731,000 to $886,500, defines Modbury North right now, and it sits in a market where 95.6% of dwellings are separate houses on a compact 2.85 km2 footprint. Household income lands in the 52.4th percentile nationally, almost exactly the national midpoint, yet the detached-house premium has run far ahead of incomes. The population of 5,704 carries a median age of 40, identical to the national figure, and 30.2% were born overseas, 8.6 points above national. With 44.0% of households on a mortgage versus 18.5% renting, this is an owner-occupier, mortgage-belt market rather than an investor or rental one.
Population
5,704
Median Age
40.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$1,596/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
76
Median House
$886K
Median 1Q 2026
The $886,500 median reflects a stock that is 95.6% separate houses, so buyers compete almost entirely for detached homes rather than apartments, which make up just 1.7%. That scarcity of alternatives helps explain why prices rose 21.3% in a single year off the $731,000 figure from 1Q 2025. Three-bedroom homes dominate at 66.4% and four-plus-bedroom houses add 29.2%, which suits families more than downsizers. Average monthly mortgage repayments of $1,473 produce a mortgage-to-income ratio of 21.3%, comfortably below the 30% stress threshold despite household income sitting near the national median in the 52.4th percentile. Owner-occupiers hold the upper hand here, with 44.0% on a mortgage and 37.5% owning outright, leaving little of the market in investor hands.
For Buyers
The $886,500 median reflects a stock that is 95.6% separate houses, so buyers compete almost entirely for detached homes rather than apartments, which make up just 1.7%. That scarcity of alternatives helps explain why prices rose 21.3% in a single year off the $731,000 figure from 1Q 2025. Three-bedroom homes dominate at 66.4% and four-plus-bedroom houses add 29.2%, which suits families more than downsizers. Average monthly mortgage repayments of $1,473 produce a mortgage-to-income ratio of 21.3%, comfortably below the 30% stress threshold despite household income sitting near the national median in the 52.4th percentile. Owner-occupiers hold the upper hand here, with 44.0% on a mortgage and 37.5% owning outright, leaving little of the market in investor hands.
For Investors
Renters make up only 18.5% of households, a shallow tenant pool that signals this is an owner-occupier market more than an investor one. Weekly rent of $360 against the $886,500 median implies a gross yield near 2.1%, low even for outer Adelaide. The vacancy rate of 4.0% is higher than the tight sub-2% seen in stronger rental markets, pointing to soft tenant demand rather than scarcity. Development is modest at 68 applications over 12 months, mostly single detached dwellings and land divisions rather than higher-density supply, so the housing mix stays heavily detached. With 30.2% of residents born overseas, 8.6 points above national, migration adds some baseline demand, but the case rests on the recent 21.3% capital growth far more than on yield or turnover, which runs at just 16.1%.
Development Activity
Total DAs
378
Last 12 Months
76
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
+52.0%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Modbury North iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
Modbury School P-6
U, R-6 · 172 students
Demographics
The median age of 40 matches the national figure exactly, so this is not an aging or unusually young suburb. University qualifications reach 31.0%, only 0.9 points above national, a near-average education profile that fits the mortgage-belt identity. Overseas-born residents at 30.2% run 8.6 points above national, and that diversity shows in the languages: Mandarin (76 speakers), Punjabi (71), Gujarati (40), Arabic (38) and Hindi (35) lead the non-English list. Ancestry is still Anglo-led, with English (2,222), Scottish (462), Irish (425) and German (419) the largest groups. Average household size is 2.6, just 0.1 above national, and couples with children (1,896 families) outnumber couples without children (27.3%), consistent with a family-oriented, three-bedroom housing stock.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
95.6%
Houses
2.3%
Townhouse
1.7%
Apartment
Tenure
Tenure tilts firmly to owner-occupiers: 44.0% carry a mortgage, 37.5% own outright and only 18.5% rent. That mortgage-heavy split, well above the renter share, marks an established family market rather than a churn of tenants or new investors. The stock is overwhelmingly detached at 95.6% separate houses, with apartments at 1.7% and semi-detached at 2.3%, and three-bedroom homes make up 66.4% against 29.2% four-plus-bedroom. The median house price rose from $731,000 in 1Q 2025 to $886,500 in 1Q 2026, a 21.3% one-year move that sits well above income growth. Yet mortgage-to-income stays manageable at 21.3% and rent-to-income at 22.6%, both below the 30% stress line, because incomes near the 52.4th percentile still cover repayments of about $1,473 a month.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$1,473
Rent / wk
$360
HH Size
2.6
Personal Income / wk
$743
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
4.0%
Unoccupied
90
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
22.6%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
21.3%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
27.3%
Couples, no children
4,825
Total families
Economy & Employment
The local workforce leans heavily on Healthcare, which employs 20.7% (392 workers), well ahead of Education at 11.1% (210), Construction at 8.8% (166), Public Administration at 8.7% (165) and Manufacturing at 8.0% (151). By occupation, Professionals lead at 525, followed by Clerical and Administrative workers (419) and Community and Personal Service workers (383), a mix that reads more practical and service-based than corporate. Unemployment sits at 5.5%, above the national average, while the full-time employment rate is 63.0% and participation reaches 59.0%, held down partly by 1,643 residents not in the labour force. The healthcare concentration is no accident, because the suburb sits within the Modbury hospital catchment in Adelaide's northeast, which anchors that sector locally.
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
63.0%
Part-time
31.5%
Participation
59.0%
Employed
2,602
Occupations
Top Industries
University
31.0%
Postgraduate
7.9%
Born Overseas
30.2%
Dwellings
2,158
Transport to Work
Daily life here is car-centric: 85.3% drive to work while only 7.8% use public transport and 1.4% walk or cycle, well below what denser inner suburbs record. Crime totals 175 incidents at a rate of 30.7 per 1,000 residents, a moderate figure for metropolitan Adelaide. The suburb is family-practical rather than amenity-rich, with three-bedroom houses at 66.4% and a household size of 2.6, just 0.1 above national. Volunteering runs at 15.4% and 5.8% of residents (320 people) need daily assistance, both ordinary for the 5,704-strong population. Healthcare access is a genuine strength, since the sector employs 20.7% of the local workforce, reflecting the nearby Modbury hospital that serves the northeast and supports both jobs and services for residents.
Drive
85.3%
Public Transport
7.8%
Walk / Cycle
1.4%
Work from Home
N/A
Safety & Crime
Total Offences
175
Year ending June 2024
Rate per 1,000 People
30.7
Source: Crime Statistics Agency Victoria / SA Police
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How Modbury North compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Modbury North a good suburb to live in?
Modbury North suits owner-occupier families, with 95.6% separate houses and household income near the national midpoint in the 52.4th percentile. Mortgage-to-income sits at a manageable 21.3%, below the 30% stress line. The main trade-off is a median house price that jumped 21.3% in a year to $886,500.
What is the median house price in Modbury North?
The median house price is $886,500 as of 1Q 2026, up 21.3% from $731,000 a year earlier. Weekly rent averages $360 and monthly mortgage repayments run about $1,473, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 21.3%, below the 30% stress threshold.
What schools are in Modbury North?
No schools are recorded inside the 2.85 km2 Modbury North boundary in this dataset, so families rely on schools in neighbouring suburbs. The resident base is family-oriented, with three-bedroom homes making up 66.4% of dwellings and university qualifications at 31.0%, just 0.9 points above national.
Is Modbury North safe?
Modbury North recorded 175 crime incidents, a rate of 30.7 per 1,000 residents, a moderate level for metropolitan Adelaide. The suburb is a stable, family-oriented area where 83.9% of residents stayed put, with turnover of just 16.1%, both consistent with a settled neighbourhood.
Is Modbury North good for property investment?
Rent of $360 a week against the $886,500 median gives a gross yield near 2.1%, low for outer Adelaide, and renters are only 18.5% of households. The 4.0% vacancy rate points to soft tenant demand, so the case rests on the recent 21.3% capital growth rather than rental yield.
How is Modbury North's population changing?
The population of 5,704 sits on a built-out 2.85 km2 at 1,998.7 residents per km2, leaving little room to grow. Turnover is low at 16.1%, with 83.9% of residents staying put. Overseas-born residents at 30.2%, 8.6 points above national, are the main source of inward demand.
What languages are spoken in Modbury North?
About 30.2% of residents were born overseas, 8.6 points above the national figure. English dominates, while Mandarin (76 speakers), Punjabi (71), Gujarati (40), Arabic (38) and Hindi (35) are the most common non-English languages, reflecting a moderately diverse resident mix.
How much development is happening in Modbury North?
There were 68 development applications lodged in the past 12 months, modest for the area. Most are single detached dwellings and one-into-two land divisions rather than higher-density supply, which keeps the stock at 95.6% separate houses and constrains future apartment growth.
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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