Tomakin

Development Activity

Demographics

The median age of 54 is 14 years above the national figure, directly reflecting Tomakin's role as a retirement and sea-change destination. The senior share of the population rose 5.3 points over the decade while the working-age share fell 2.9 points, steepening the aging trajectory. Overseas-born residents at 13.6% are 8.0 percentage points below the national rate, and ancestry is strongly Anglo-Celtic: English (554), Irish (164) and Scottish (147) dominate. University qualifications at 23.7% are 6.4 points below national, consistent with a workforce weighted toward trades, healthcare and community services. Average household size of 2.2 is slightly below national, driven by the 41.4% share of families who are couples without children.

Tenure in Tomakin reflects who lives here: 54.7% own outright, 24.5% carry a mortgage, and only 20.8% rent, making it considerably more owner-dominated than national averages. The outright ownership rate is driven by equity-rich retirees and sea-changers who bought without residual debt. Detached houses account for 80.2% of stock, with 37.1% having 3 bedrooms and 35.5% having 4 or more. Apartments represent just 2.8% of dwellings. The 32.7% vacancy rate is a structural feature of the holiday market, not a sign of distress. Both mortgage-to-income and rent-to-income sit at 27.8%, below the 30% stress threshold, meaning those paying housing costs are doing so comfortably relative to local incomes.

Community Profile

Economy & Employment

Healthcare is the largest employment sector at 20.8% (65 workers), followed by Construction at 14.7% (46), Public Administration at 12.8% (40) and Education at 11.9% (37). These sectors reflect a community servicing its own aging population rather than a specialised export economy. Professionals are the largest occupation group with 93 workers, followed by Community and Personal Services (56) and Labourers (55). The participation rate of just 40.4% is well below state and national benchmarks because 518 residents are not in the labour force, a direct consequence of the retired majority. Unemployment sits at 4.2%. Real income growth of 27.9% over the decade is solid, though household income still ranks in the 28.1st percentile nationally, reflecting lower regional wages and superannuation-based incomes.

Transport to Work

Car dependence is near total: 89.8% of residents drive to work, only 0.9% use public transport, and 4.5% walk or cycle, patterns typical of small coastal NSW towns where bus services are minimal. No schools are recorded within the suburb boundary, so families rely on facilities in nearby Batemans Bay or Moruya. Crime statistics are not available in this dataset, but the SEIFA IRSD decile 7 places Tomakin above the national midpoint for relative advantage, pointing to low deprivation. The need-for-assistance rate is 6.2% (72 people), elevated because of the older age profile. Volunteering reaches 17.5%, above national averages, which is a common feature of retirement-oriented coastal communities where civic engagement is high.

Population Forecast

Tomakin grew 34.1% over the past decade and continues expanding at an annual trend of 1.67%, adding roughly 66 people per year. Medium forecasts project the broader SA2 area rising from 3,951 in 2025 to approximately 4,375 by 2031. Internal migration is the primary driver, averaging 49 net arrivals per year, supplemented by 13 net overseas arrivals annually. The gentrification score of 12 places it in the not-gentrifying stage, consistent with sea-change dynamics where price growth is driven by equity demand rather than professional-class displacement. The affordability index held stable from 48.0% in 2011 to 48.8% in 2021, meaning the in-moving cohort has not been priced out over the decade.

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

How Tomakin compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs

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