Median house price
—
No data available
ACT · Unincorporated ACT Council
Forde, 2914
Est. population · Jun 2025
4,461
Growth (1 yr)
+0.5%
Growth (5 yr)
-0.3%
Median age
35
Median income
$3,553/wk
Employment rate
77.6%
Languages at home
31.8%non-English
Most common: Mandarin, Hindi, Croatian
2021 Census · usual residence
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- High desirability
- Education hub
- Heritage area
Suburb profile
Forde is a practical mid-sized suburb in Unincorporated ACT, well placed for families who want metro access without the inner-city squeeze. Families and commuters make up much of the community, with family life visible on every street. Overseas-born and multilingual households are a noticeable part of the local population.
Green space punches above what many metro suburbs offer, with parks and playgrounds woven through the suburb. Reasonably walkable — many errands reachable on foot or by bus, with buses linking the suburb to surrounding areas. Housing is expensive relative to much of the state.
Crime trends have improved of late compared with the previous period. Occasional new builds add variety while most of the suburb keeps its established look.
Against similar metro suburbs, community and employment, plus schools and education stand out and the overall desirability rating is good, with growth momentum, plus local dining and lifestyle amenities less decisive.
At a glance
Forde snapshot
A quick read of housing, growth, livability, and risk
Median rent
—
No data available
Population (ERP)
4,461
+0.5% annual growth
Dwelling vacancy
2.5%
Census unoccupied dwellings
Livability profile
Desirability pillars vs the peer median (50th percentile)
How it compares
Relative standing using percentiles, ranks, and national deciles
Desirability
#33
among Metro Canberra · Established
Safety
4th
percentile in state (higher = safer)
Pop. growth
55th
percentile in ACT
Advantage (IRSAD)
10/10
national SEIFA decile
School ICSEA
76th
percentile among schools with ICSEA
Population growth
Recent ERP change over 1 and 5 years
Housing mix
Dwelling types from the 2021 Census
Risks & flags
Quick scan — open a section below for full context
Living here
Desirability
Ranks & confidence
- Desirability score
- 60.9/100 — Good
- State standing
- Top 48% of Australian Capital Territory's suburbs
- National rank
- 928th in Australia
- State rank
- 51st in ACT
- Peer rank
- #33 among Metro Canberra · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #51 among Metro Canberra suburbs
- Data confidence
- 77%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
Population
Estimated resident population
4,461(June 2025)
+0.5% annual · -0.3% over 5 years · 55th percentile in ACT
Growth figures & methodology
- Annual growth
- +0.5%
- 5-year growth
- -0.3%
- Change in 1 year
- +24
- Change in 5 years
- -11
- Growth rank in ACT
- 55th percentile
ABS Estimated Resident Population allocated to this suburb from SA2-level data. Not an official ABS suburb count.
Methodology
Figures are allocated from ABS Estimated Resident Population at Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), using 2021 Census share within overlapping SA2 regions. Where Census data is unavailable, area overlap is used instead.
The dashed chart line is a simple growth-trend estimate to June 2030 (~5,600), extrapolated at +4.7% average annual growth since 2011. It is illustrative only — not an official ABS forecast.
2021 Census figures
2021 Census
- Population
- 4,435
- Median age
- 35
- Median household income / week
- $3,553
- Dwelling vacancy
- 2.5%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 36 of 1,413
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,481
- Employment rate
- 77.6%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 1,163 / 182 / 25
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
- Estimated Resident Population — Australian Bureau of Statistics · 2025 · Updated · SA2 ERP allocated to suburb boundaries
Community & culture
No 2021 Census cultural diversity data for this suburb yet.
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Crime & safety
Reported offences decreased compared with the previous period.
Offence counts & rates
- Total offences (Jan 2025 to Dec 2025)
- 33
- Against the person
- 5
- Against property
- 25
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 7.4
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 887 residents
- State safety percentile
- 3.5th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate)
- -62.4%
Most common offence types
- Assault - Fv3
- Burglary Dwellings8
- Motor Vehicle Theft8
- Theft (Excluding Motor Vehicles)4
- Property Damage4
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- ACT crime statistics by suburb (quarterly) — ACT Policing / dataACT · Jan 2024 to Dec 2024 → Jan 2025 to Dec 2025; Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 · Updated · Quarterly XLSX release
Family & Lifestyle
Schools & preschools
- Schools within 2 km
- 3
- Median school ICSEA (3 schools)
- 1,070
- Median ICSEA percentile
- 76th
School list
- Neville Bonner Primary SchoolPrimary · Government · ICSEA 1058 · 71th percentile · LBOTE 59% · 606 students · Top SEA quarter 28% · 0.9 km awayView on My School →
- Amaroo SchoolCombined · Government · ICSEA 1070 · 76th percentile · LBOTE 52% · 1,638 students · Top SEA quarter 31% · 1.7 km awayView on My School →
- Good Shepherd Primary SchoolPrimary · Catholic · ICSEA 1095 · 83th percentile · LBOTE 39% · 762 students · Top SEA quarter 35% · 1.9 km awayView on My School →
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · 2025 · Updated · Annual release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · 2025 · Updated · Annual release
Childcare
1 childcare service from OpenStreetMap
- Little Learning School Fordechildcare
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
Childcare centre count
Data sources & freshness
- Childcare services — OpenStreetMap · current · Updated
Amenities
588 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
1 restaurants · 1 cafes · 1 supermarkets · 8 playgrounds · 1 dog parks · 40 swimming pools
Local character & venue list
Local character
- Reasonably walkable — many errands reachable on foot or by bus
- Great for outdoor family life — 22 parks mapped in suburb, 8 playgrounds nearby
- Well connected by public transport — 18 public transport stops
- Strong local sport and recreation — 51 sport and outdoor facilities nearby
- Walkability proxy
- 56/100
- Cafés per 1,000 residents
- 0.23
- Food & drink per 1,000 residents
- 0.45
- Parks per 1,000 residents
- 4.96
Food & drink(2)
- FrankiesCafe
Francis Forde Boulevard
- Bronx PizzaRestaurant
Unit 2 26 Francis Forde Boulevard
Shopping(1)
- SparSupermarket
26 Francis Forde Boulevard
Community(2)
- Little Learning School FordeChildcare
- Burgmann Anglican School - Forde CampusSchool
Sport & outdoors(73)
- Dog park
- Forde Hill PlaygroundPark
- Heritage ParkPark
- Park
5 Deeble Street
- Park (18)
- Picnic area
- Aida Ball Circuit Neighborhood PlaygroundPlayground
- Bruce Dittmar Central Community PlaygroundPlayground
- Forde Hill PlaygroundPlayground
- Neil Harris Crescent Central Community PlaygroundPlayground
- Phylis Street Neighbourhood PlaygroundPlayground
- Playground
- Turbayne Crescent Neighbourhood PlaygroundPlayground
- Volpato Street Neighbourhood PlaygroundPlayground
- Burgmann Anglican School Forde OvalSports field
- Sports field
- AquatotsSwimming pool
Francis Forde Boulevard
- Swimming pool (39)
Entertainment(1)
- Viewpoint
Transport(18)
18 bus stops
Other(12)
- Artwork (3)
- Bbq (5)
- Bench (31)
- schoolBicycle Parking
- Drinking water (7)
- Fitness Station (5)
- Garden (322)
- Hot Tub (5)
- Parking (99)
- Parking Space (9)
- Public toilets
- Shelter (3)
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe). Transport stops are summarised by type rather than listed individually.
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- Local amenity insights — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated
Parks & reserves
2 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Forde Hill PlaygroundPark
- Heritage ParkPark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · current · Updated
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 46
- Parks (OSM)
- 22
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)
Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover — OpenStreetMap contributors · current · Updated
Health access
- Nearest hospital
- University of Canberra Hospital (9.2 km)
- Nearest hospital type
- Hospital
- Nearest hospital emergency
- Emergency department
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Hospitals and GP clinics
Data sources & freshness
- Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · current · Updated
NDIS participation
- NDIS participants (31 March 2026)
- 85
- Participants per 1,000 residents
- 19.1
Active NDIS participants allocated from NDIA Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2, ASGS 2016) counts to this suburb boundary. Not an official suburb-level NDIS figure · as at 31 March 2026.
For NDIS spend and service-demand exploration by SA2 or postcode, see the Care Sector Demand Map.
Data sources & freshness
- NDIS participants by SA2 — National Disability Insurance Agency · 2026-Q1 · Updated · Quarterly SA2 counts allocated to suburb boundaries
Weather
Typical conditions by season for suburbs in the same ~44 km climate area. Rainfall totals are summed from monthly WorldClim layers; rainy-day counts are approximate.
Summer (Dec–Feb)
- Usual max / min
- 27° / 12°
- Rainfall
- 171 mm · ~21 rainy days
Autumn (Mar–May)
- Usual max / min
- 21° / 7°
- Rainfall
- 169 mm · ~21 rainy days
Winter (Jun–Aug)
- Usual max / min
- 12° / 1°
- Rainfall
- 183 mm · ~23 rainy days
Spring (Sep–Nov)
- Usual max / min
- 19° / 6°
- Rainfall
- 212 mm · ~26 rainy days
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Temperature and humidity comfort
Data sources & freshness
- Seasonal climate normals — WorldClim 2.1 · Updated
Future & Planning
Planning & development
Development applications from ACT planning register (lodged 2020–2026).
13 planning-related records
2025· 3 proposals
October 2025
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
May 2025
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
February 2025
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
2023· 2 proposals
August 2023
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
July 2023
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
2022· 3 proposals
December 2022
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
September 2022
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
August 2022
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
2021· 1 proposal
April 2021
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
2020· 4 proposals
September 2020
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
July 2020
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
June 2020
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
February 2020
- SUBCFORDE · GUNGAHLINCompleted
Contributes to desirability score · Future Growth (7%)
Development and planning activity
Data sources & freshness
- Active & completed development applications — ACT Planning · 2020–2026 · Updated
Heritage
4 heritage places
- Aboriginal RecordingsBPAD1 RTC pit c4 - Aboriginal Place or Object (not registered but protected under Heritage Act 2004)
- Aboriginal RecordingsBPAD1 RTC pit a4 - Aboriginal Place or Object (not registered but protected under Heritage Act 2004)
- Aboriginal RecordingsBPAD1 RTC pit b4 - Aboriginal Place or Object (not registered but protected under Heritage Act 2004)
- Yeddung Dhaura 3 - Registered Places or Objects
Data sources & freshness
- State heritage register — State heritage authority · current · Updated
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- No overlay at centroid
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via ACT Bushfire Prone Area (SBMP) mapping.
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Bushfire hazard overlays
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · current · Updated
Politics & representation
- Federal electorate
- Fenner
- Member of Parliament
- Andrew LEIGH (Australian Labor Party)
- Results from
- 2025 federal election
- Electorate enrolment (2025)
- 105,428
- Turnout (2025)
- 92.0%
- Swing since 2022 (2025)
- +6.4 pp toward Labor
Two-party preferred (2025)
Coalition 27.9%Labor 72.1%
Estimated suburb voting profile
Estimated from 8 nearby ordinary polling places (up to 3.5 km away).
Coalition 27.8%Labor 72.3%
0.2 percentage points more Labor-leaning than the electorate
Estimated swing since 2022: +9.6 pp toward Labor
Nearest polling places
- BonnerLabor 71.0% · Coalition 29.0% TPP (2025)0.8 km away
- AmarooLabor 74.3% · Coalition 25.7% TPP (2025)1.4 km away
- FordeLabor 73.5% · Coalition 26.5% TPP (2025)2.6 km away
- NgunnawalLabor 76.4% · Coalition 23.6% TPP (2025)3.0 km away
- GungahlinLabor 71.2% · Coalition 28.8% TPP (2025)3.1 km away
Federal electorate from AEC federal division boundaries (2025 redistribution). Division-level results are official AEC figures from the latest general election, with by-election updates where applicable. The estimated suburb profile blends up to eight nearest ordinary polling booths in the same electorate using inverse-distance weighting from the suburb centroid — an approximation, not official AEC data. Nearest polling places are shown for reference.
Data sources & freshness
- Federal election results — Australian Electoral Commission · Updated · 2025 election with by-election overlays
Socio-economic
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 10/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 10/10
ABS Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA), 2021 release — the latest available, derived from the 2021 Census. Deciles rank suburbs nationally from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
What do IRSAD and IRSD measure?
IRSAD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage. Combines indicators of advantage (e.g. high income, skilled occupations) and disadvantage. Higher decile = more advantaged relative to other Australian areas.
IRSD — Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage. Focuses on disadvantage only (e.g. low income, unemployment, limited education). Higher decile = less disadvantage nationally.
A new SEIFA edition typically follows each census; the ABS has not announced a release date beyond 2021.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Updated
This suburb ranks highly for
Compare with
Similar suburbs to weigh up side by side — scores, safety, schools, and lifestyle.
More in Unincorporated ACT Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile elsewhere in Australian Capital Territory or interstate.