Picton
Spread across 42.3 km2 at just 124.9 residents per km2, Picton runs against the grain of Sydney's growth corridors: 90.0% of its 5,282 residents live in separate houses and only 3.8% in apartments. The median house price reached $1,060,000, yet the local profile leans working family rather than wealthy, with household income in the 83rd percentile and university qualifications at 24.9%, which is 5.2 points below the national figure. The median age of 38 sits 2.0 years below national, and 57.9% of homes carry four or more bedrooms, a stock built for the larger-than-average 2.8 person household.
Population
5,282
Median Age
38.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$2,181/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
109
Median House
$1.1M
2024-2025 (PSI derived)
Buyers face a $1,060,000 median, and the trajectory is steep: recorded medians moved from $960,000 in 2024 to $1,175,000 in 2025, a 22.4% rise in a single year. The stock favours families, with 57.9% of dwellings holding four or more bedrooms and another 29.0% holding three, while two-bedroom homes are scarce at 9.3%. Separate houses dominate at 90.0%, so apartments and semi-detached options together account for under 9%. Monthly mortgage repayments average $2,383, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 25.2%, comfortably below the 30% stress threshold because household income sits in the 83rd percentile. Outright owners (32.1%) trail mortgage holders (48.4%), confirming an active owner-occupier market of younger families still paying down loans rather than established debt-free residents.
For Buyers
Buyers face a $1,060,000 median, and the trajectory is steep: recorded medians moved from $960,000 in 2024 to $1,175,000 in 2025, a 22.4% rise in a single year. The stock favours families, with 57.9% of dwellings holding four or more bedrooms and another 29.0% holding three, while two-bedroom homes are scarce at 9.3%. Separate houses dominate at 90.0%, so apartments and semi-detached options together account for under 9%. Monthly mortgage repayments average $2,383, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 25.2%, comfortably below the 30% stress threshold because household income sits in the 83rd percentile. Outright owners (32.1%) trail mortgage holders (48.4%), confirming an active owner-occupier market of younger families still paying down loans rather than established debt-free residents.
For Investors
Renters make up just 19.5% of households, a thin tenant pool compared with apartment-heavy inner suburbs, and weekly rent averages $375. Against the $1,060,000 median that implies a gross yield near 1.8%, modest by any measure. The 6.7% vacancy rate is higher than tight metro markets, pointing to softer rental demand in a car-dependent fringe location where 90.6% of commuters drive. Development activity is healthy at 101 applications over 12 months, but the samples are dominated by single dwelling houses and pools rather than rental supply, so investors compete more with owner-occupiers than with each other. With 48.4% of households on a mortgage and rent-to-income at only 17.2%, the case rests on capital growth, supported by the 22.4% one-year price move, more than on yield.
Development Activity
Total DAs
442
Last 12 Months
109
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
+51.4%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Picton iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
St Anthony's Catholic Primary School
K-6 · 410 students
Picton Public School
K-6 · 307 students
Picton High School
7-12 · 1182 students
Demographics
Picton skews younger and more Australian-born than the national average. The median age of 38 is 2.0 years below national, and overseas-born residents reach only 12.4%, which is 9.2 points below the national figure. Ancestry is heavily Anglo-Celtic, led by English (2,369), Irish (729) and Scottish (619), and non-English languages are negligible, with Arabic (14) and Cantonese (12) the most cited. University qualifications at 24.9% run 5.2 points below national, consistent with a workforce weighted toward trades and services rather than knowledge professions. Average household size is 2.8, which is 0.3 above national, reflecting a family-heavy composition where couples with children (1,951 families) outnumber couples without (1,099). Christianity dominates religion at 3,067 residents, far ahead of Buddhism and Islam at 26 each.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
90.0%
Houses
4.8%
Townhouse
3.8%
Apartment
Tenure
Tenure tilts toward mortgaged owner-occupiers: 48.4% carry a mortgage, 32.1% own outright and only 19.5% rent. Mortgage holders outnumbering outright owners signals a market of younger families still building equity rather than established wealth. The stock is overwhelmingly detached at 90.0% separate houses, with apartments at 3.8% and semi-detached at 4.8%, and it is large, as 57.9% of homes have four or more bedrooms against 9.3% with two. Recorded medians climbed from $960,000 in 2024 to $1,175,000 in 2025, a 22.4% one-year move, while the headline median sits at $1,060,000. Mortgage-to-income at 25.2% stays below the stress line and rent-to-income reads just 17.2%, both comfortable because household income holds the 83rd percentile, so affordability pressure here is milder than the price tag alone suggests.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$2,383
Rent / wk
$375
HH Size
2.8
Personal Income / wk
$939
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
6.7%
Unoccupied
132
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
17.2%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
25.2%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
24.1%
Couples, no children
4,551
Total families
Economy & Employment
Employment leans toward services and trades rather than finance or tech: Healthcare leads at 15.6% (291 workers), Construction follows closely at 15.4% (287) and Education at 13.3% (248), with Public Administration at 8.1% and Manufacturing at 6.8%. By occupation, Professionals (498) and Managers (411) lead, but Clerical/Admin (394), Community/Personal (273) and Labourers (230) give the workforce a broad, middle-income spread. Unemployment is low at 3.9% with a full-time rate of 64.3%, though participation reads 59.9%, held down by 1,203 residents not in the labour force. The SEIFA pattern explains the profile: IER (economic resources) reaches decile 8 on the strength of high home ownership, while IEO (education and occupation) sits at only decile 4, below the IRSAD overall decile 5, because qualifications trail the national average.
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
64.3%
Part-time
31.8%
Participation
59.9%
Employed
2,422
Occupations
Top Industries
University
24.9%
Postgraduate
6.0%
Born Overseas
12.4%
Dwellings
1,832
Transport to Work
Picton is firmly car-oriented: 90.6% of commuters drive, only 1.1% use public transport and 3.0% walk or cycle, a reliance on cars well above metro norms that reflects the 42.3 km2 fringe footprint. The suburb scores decile 6 on IRSD for relative disadvantage and decile 5 on IRSAD overall, mid-range nationally, while IER reaches decile 8 on high home ownership. Volunteering runs at 13.8% and 4.8% of residents (243 people) need daily assistance. No schools are recorded inside the boundary in this dataset, so families rely on institutions in neighbouring areas, a trade-off for the low-density, land-rich setting where the average household of 2.8 people sits 0.3 above national. Housing pressure is moderate, with mortgage-to-income at 25.2%, below the stress threshold.
Drive
90.6%
Public Transport
1.1%
Walk / Cycle
3.0%
Work from Home
N/A
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How Picton compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Picton a good suburb to live in?
Picton suits families wanting space: 90.0% of homes are separate houses and 57.9% have four or more bedrooms, on a low 124.9 per km2 density. Household income sits in the 83rd percentile and mortgage-to-income is a manageable 25.2%, below the 30% stress line. The main trade-off is car dependence, with 90.6% of commuters driving.
What is the median house price in Picton?
The median house price is $1,060,000. Recorded medians rose sharply from $960,000 in 2024 to $1,175,000 in 2025, a 22.4% one-year gain. Weekly rent averages $375 and monthly mortgage repayments run about $2,383, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 25.2%.
What schools are in Picton?
No schools are recorded inside the Picton boundary in this dataset, so families rely on schools in neighbouring areas. The local population is family-weighted, with an average household size of 2.8 (0.3 above national) and university qualifications at 24.9%, which is 5.2 points below the national figure.
Is Picton safe?
Detailed crime statistics are not available for Picton in this dataset. As an indirect indicator, the suburb scores decile 6 on the IRSD index of relative disadvantage, above the midpoint nationally, and only 4.8% of its 5,282 residents (243 people) need daily assistance, both consistent with a moderate-disadvantage area.
Is Picton good for property investment?
Rent of $375 a week against a $1,060,000 median gives a gross yield near 1.8%, and the 6.7% vacancy rate is higher than tight metro markets. With only 19.5% of households renting, the case rests on capital growth, supported by a 22.4% one-year price rise, rather than rental yield.
How is Picton's population changing?
Picton is a fringe growth corridor with a median age of 38, which is 2.0 years below national, and a family-heavy profile of 2.8 people per household. Development ran at 101 applications over 12 months, mostly new single dwellings, and the low 124.9 per km2 density across 42.3 km2 leaves room for greenfield expansion.
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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