Valentine
A median age of 46 sits a full 6.0 years above the national figure, and that aging profile shapes almost everything else in Valentine. Detached houses make up 88.0% of dwellings and 56.1% have four or more bedrooms, a family-oriented stock that residents tend to hold long term, with 49.3% owning outright and a low 17.5% turnover rate. Household income lands in the 82.2nd percentile nationally and the suburb scores decile 9 on both the IRSD and IER SEIFA indexes, marking it as established and comfortably resourced. The median house price of $1,122,500 is high for a Lake Macquarie locality, yet mortgage repayments consume just 22.4% of income, well below the 30% stress line.
Population
5,773
Median Age
46.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$2,159/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
42
Median House
$1.1M
2024-2025 (PSI derived)
Buyers here are competing for family houses, not units. Separate houses account for 88.0% of dwellings against only 0.6% apartments, and 56.1% of homes carry four or more bedrooms with another 36.1% at three bedrooms. The median house price reached $1,122,500, and recorded sales climbed 5.5% from $1,100,000 in 2024 to $1,160,000 in 2025, a steady rather than steep rise. Affordability is the real draw: monthly mortgage repayments average $2,096, producing a mortgage-to-income ratio of just 22.4%, well below the 30% stress threshold despite the seven-figure median. With 49.3% of owners holding their homes outright and only 11.3% renting, supply turns over slowly, so patient buyers face limited but well-held stock.
For Buyers
Buyers here are competing for family houses, not units. Separate houses account for 88.0% of dwellings against only 0.6% apartments, and 56.1% of homes carry four or more bedrooms with another 36.1% at three bedrooms. The median house price reached $1,122,500, and recorded sales climbed 5.5% from $1,100,000 in 2024 to $1,160,000 in 2025, a steady rather than steep rise. Affordability is the real draw: monthly mortgage repayments average $2,096, producing a mortgage-to-income ratio of just 22.4%, well below the 30% stress threshold despite the seven-figure median. With 49.3% of owners holding their homes outright and only 11.3% renting, supply turns over slowly, so patient buyers face limited but well-held stock.
For Investors
The investment case here is thin by design. Only 11.3% of residents rent, far below most markets, so the tenant pool is shallow in a suburb where 49.3% own outright. Weekly rent of $490 against the $1,122,500 median implies a gross yield near 2.3%, low even by NSW standards, and the 4.3% vacancy rate shows little slack to push rents higher. Rent did grow 36.1% over the decade, but that came off a small base. Demand support is modest: net overseas migration adds 54 residents a year while internal migration removes 23, and annual population growth registers 0.0%. With 38 development applications in 12 months, mostly pools, decks and single-dwelling rebuilds, this is an owner-occupier market where returns lean on capital growth over yield.
Development Activity
Total DAs
255
Last 12 Months
42
YoY ChangeiYear-over-year change in DA lodgements
+7.7%
Avg DA CostiAverage estimated cost per DA in the past year
N/A
Monthly DA Lodgements
DA Categories
Schools in Valentine iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged
Valentine Public School
K-6 · 510 students
Demographics
The median age of 46 runs 6.0 years above national, and the trajectory is firmly aging: the senior share rose 6.6 points while the working-age share fell 6.0 points over the decade. This is a settled Anglo-leaning population, with only 11.3% born overseas, which is 10.3 points below the national figure. Ancestry is led by English (2,786), Scottish (702) and Irish (696), and average household size is 2.7, slightly above national, consistent with the family-house stock. University qualifications reach 35.6%, which is 5.5 points above national. Couples with children form the largest family type at 2,070 households against 1,433 couples with no children, a profile that reflects established families staying put rather than a churn of new arrivals.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
88.0%
Houses
11.4%
Townhouse
0.6%
Apartment
Tenure
Ownership dominates and debt is light. Outright owners make up 49.3% of households, mortgage holders 39.4%, and renters just 11.3%, a tenure mix that points to long-held, low-leverage family wealth rather than recent buyer churn. The stock is overwhelmingly detached at 88.0%, with semi-detached at 11.4% and apartments a negligible 0.6%, and large homes prevail with 56.1% offering four or more bedrooms. The median house price moved from $1,100,000 in 2024 to $1,160,000 in 2025, a 5.5% one-year gain. Both stress ratios stay comfortable: mortgage-to-income at 22.4% and rent-to-income at 22.7% both sit below the 30% threshold, which is unusual against a $1,122,500 median and reflects the 82.2nd-percentile household incomes underpinning the market.
Median House Price Trend
Source: State Valuer-General
Mortgage / mo
$2,096
Rent / wk
$490
HH Size
2.7
Personal Income / wk
$904
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
4.3%
Unoccupied
94
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
22.7%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
22.4%
Community Profile
Languages Spoken at Home
Ancestry
Household Composition
28.2%
Couples, no children
5,073
Total families
Economy & Employment
The workforce is anchored in services rather than commerce. Healthcare leads employment at 21.3% (443 workers), followed by Education at 15.2% (316) and Construction at 11.0% (228), with Professional/Tech at 8.8% and Public Admin at 6.5%. By occupation, Professionals (773) and Managers (387) top the list, which aligns with the decile 7 IEO score for education and occupation. Unemployment is low at 3.6% and the full-time rate is 59.4%, though participation reads 59.0% because the aging profile leaves 1,657 residents not in the labour force. Real incomes grew 9.8% over the decade. The standout is the decile 9 IER score for economic resources, higher than the decile 7 IEO, because widespread outright home ownership lifts household wealth above what occupations alone would predict.
Unemployment
1.4%
Labour Force
6,779
Unemployed
92
Quarterly Trend
Source: SALM Dec-25
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
59.4%
Part-time
37.0%
Participation
59.0%
Employed
2,657
Occupations
Top Industries
University
35.6%
Postgraduate
8.5%
Born Overseas
11.3%
Dwellings
2,089
Transport to Work
This is a car-dependent lakeside suburb: 93.9% of commuters drive, while public transport carries just 0.3% and only 1.5% walk or cycle, far below the national mix and a function of low-density detached housing at 1,175.7 residents per km2. Livability rests on advantage rather than amenity access. The suburb scores decile 9 on the IRSD index of relative disadvantage and decile 8 on IRSAD, both high tiers, so very few residents face deprivation, and only 4.3% (244 people) need daily assistance despite the older median age of 46. Volunteering runs at 16.8%. No schools are recorded inside the 4.91 km2 boundary in this dataset, so families rely on institutions in neighbouring suburbs, a common trade-off for a quiet residential pocket of Lake Macquarie.
Drive
93.9%
Public Transport
0.3%
Walk / Cycle
1.5%
Work from Home
N/A
Population Forecast
0.0%/yr
EstablishedValentine is effectively static. Annual population growth registers 0.0% and the 10-year change is just 5.0%, classifying it as an established, slow-growth suburb. Medium forecasts hold the population almost flat through 2031, so little expansion is expected from a market already dominated by long-term owners. Overseas migration of 54 residents a year is the only positive driver, partly offset by net internal outflow of 23. The gentrification reading shows early signs at a score of 31, supported by 36.1% rent growth and stable affordability over the decade, but the aging trajectory, with the senior share up 6.6 points, works against rapid renewal. Real income growth of 9.8% is moderate, consistent with a settled rather than transforming area.
Historical + Forecast
Hamilton-Perry + Holt smoothing on ERP 2001-2025
Age Cohort Forecast
Primary Driver
Overseas Migration
Net Overseas / yr
+54
Net Internal / yr
-23
Gentrification Signal
Not gentrifying
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How Valentine compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Valentine a good suburb to live in?
Valentine scores decile 9 on the IRSD and IER SEIFA indexes and decile 8 on IRSAD, all high advantage tiers, with household income in the 82.2nd percentile nationally. It suits families, with 88.0% detached houses and mortgage costs at just 22.4% of income, though it is car-dependent and has no schools recorded inside its boundary.
What is the median house price in Valentine?
The median house price is $1,122,500. Recorded sales rose 5.5% from $1,100,000 in 2024 to $1,160,000 in 2025. Weekly rent averages $490 and monthly mortgage repayments run about $2,096, giving a mortgage-to-income ratio of 22.4%, well below the 30% stress threshold.
What schools are in Valentine?
No schools are recorded inside the 4.91 km2 Valentine boundary in this dataset, so families rely on schools in neighbouring suburbs. The local population is well educated, with university qualifications at 35.6%, which is 5.5 points above the national figure.
Is Valentine safe?
Detailed crime statistics are not available for Valentine in this dataset. As an indirect indicator, the suburb scores decile 9 on the IRSD index of relative disadvantage, a high tier, and only 4.3% of its 5,773 residents need daily assistance, both consistent with a low-disadvantage area.
Is Valentine good for property investment?
Rent of $490 a week against the $1,122,500 median gives a gross yield near 2.3%, low by NSW standards, and only 11.3% of residents rent. Net overseas migration of 54 a year supports demand, but 0.0% population growth means returns depend on capital growth rather than yield or a deep tenant pool.
How is Valentine's population changing?
Population growth is 0.0% annually with a 5.0% rise over 10 years, classifying it as slow-growth. The profile is aging, with the senior share up 6.6 points and the working-age share down 6.0 points over the decade. Overseas migration adds 54 residents a year against a net internal outflow of 23.
How much development is happening in Valentine?
There were 38 development applications lodged in the past 12 months. Most are pools, decks and single-dwelling alterations or rebuilds rather than new supply, consistent with an established owner-occupier market where 49.3% of homes are owned outright and population growth is 0.0% annually.
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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