NSW · Lake Macquarie Council
Booragul, NSW, 2284
Desirability index
#639 among Metro Sydney suburbs
Suburb snapshot
Booragul is a small locality in the Lake Macquarie area, home to around 1,623 residents (2021 Census). Recent indicators show 1,178 offences in Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 with rising year-on-year trends (+7%), roughly 725.8 offences per 1,000 residents, median weekly rent around $655 (flats $510, houses $675), 4 school and preschool sites in the area, strong public transport coverage with many public transport stops, a solid spread of nearby amenities and everyday services, and notable planning and development activity on record. Use the sections below for detailed population, safety, schools, and local activity data.
Population
- Population
- 1,623
- Median age
- 51
- Median household income / week
- $1,114
- Dwelling vacancy
- 5%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 31 of 614
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,636
- Employment rate
- 39%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 46 / 73 / 16
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Housing
- Flats / units (January to March 2026)
- $510
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $675
- All types (January to March 2026)
- $655
- Rental bonds lodged (January to March 2026)
- 84
Median weekly rent from NSW DCJ rent tables. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.
Data sources & freshness
- DCJ rent tables — NSW Department of Communities and Justice · Period: January to March 2026 · Updated on site · Quarterly releases
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2025 to Dec 2025)
- 1,178
- Against the person
- 285
- Against property
- 508
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 725.8
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 6 residents
- State safety percentile
- 29th (lower crime is better)
- Year-on-year change
- +7.4%
Most common offence types
- Fraud81
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment88
- Malicious Damage To Property89
- Steal From Motor Vehicle89
- Transport Regulatory Offences174
Data sources & freshness
- BOCSAR postcode crime statistics — NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research · Period: Jan 2024 to Dec 2024 → Jan 2025 to Dec 2025; Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 · Updated on site · Rolling 12-month windows
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 4
- Median school ICSEA (4 schools)
- 928
- Booragul Public SchoolPrimary
- Five Islands SchoolSpecial
- Lake Macquarie High SchoolSecondary
- St Paul's Catholic CollegeSecondary
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
Public transport
49 public transport stops in this suburb
- Booragul Station
- Booragul Station, Toronto Rd
- FTB Station St
- RMP Station St
- STR To P1/2
Data sources & freshness
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
Planning & development
Development applications from NSW Planning Portal (lodged 2020–2026).
59 planning-related records
2026· 4 proposals
June 2026
- Seniors housing; Independent living units; Erection of a new structure; Residential Accommodation; Supporting Development79 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Under Assessment
May 2026
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool11 GAINFORD STREET BOORAGUL 2284Additional Information Requested
January 2026
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure14 WELLARD PARADE BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Secondary dwelling; Erection of a new structure; Garage, carport or carparking space; Residential Accommodation11 FOURTH STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
2025· 15 proposals
December 2025
- Restaurant or cafe; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Food and drink premise2B FIRST STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure4 FIRST STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure14 WELLARD PARADE BOORAGUL 2284Withdrawn
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Change of use of land or a building or the classification of a building under the Building Code of Australia15 Third Street, Booragul, NSW 2284Determined
October 2025
- Restaurant or cafe; Function centre; Hours of operation and trading18 Marmong Street BooragulDetermined
September 2025
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool60 PRIMROSE STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
August 2025
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure1 FOURTH STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Seniors housing; Erection of a new structure79 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure3 BELL STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Dual occupancy; Temporary building, structure or use; Residential Accommodation; Supporting Development79 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
July 2025
- Dual occupancy; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached); Manufactured home15 ELLESMERE STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
March 2025
- Demolition; Erection of a new structure; Early Education and Care Facility; Centre-based child care37 RANCLAUD STREET BOORAGUL 2284Under Assessment
- Dual occupancy; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached); Manufactured home15 ELLESMERE STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Residential Accommodation7A MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
February 2025
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure3 GRETEL CRESCENT BOORAGUL 2284Determined
2024· 7 proposals
November 2024
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Swimming pool6 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
August 2024
- Restaurant or cafe; Function centre; Hours of operation and trading18 Marmong Street BooragulDetermined
July 2024
- Restaurant or cafe; Function centre; Hours of operation and trading18 Marmong Street BooragulDetermined
- Erection of a new structure; Landscaping structures6 MERRIWA STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Seniors housing; Erection of a new structure79 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
March 2024
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Erection of a new structure48 HAYDEN BROOK ROAD BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Balcony, deck, patio, terrace or verandah9 BELL STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
2023· 17 proposals
December 2023
- Advertising and signage; School16 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
November 2023
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure3 ELLESMERE STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure14 WELLARD PARADE BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Seniors housing; Erection of a new structure79 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
October 2023
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure35 FIRST STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
September 2023
- Signage14 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
August 2023
- Dwelling; Demolition2 THIRD STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Dwelling; Earthworks / change in levels7B MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Dual occupancy3 BELL STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
June 2023
- Alterations and additions to residential development7 ASPINALL STREET BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Dual occupancy7 LOYOLA CLOSE BOORAGUL 2284Determined
- Group homes4 LOYOLA CLOSE BOORAGUL 2284Determined
May 2023
- Dwelling37 MUSWELLBROOK CRESCENT BOORAGUL 2284Withdrawn
April 2023
- Dwelling37 MUSWELLBROOK CRESCENT BOORAGUL 2284Determined
2022· 11 proposals
11 proposals lodged in 2022. Individual listings are kept for the most recent proposals.
2021· 5 proposals
5 proposals lodged in 2021. Individual listings are kept for the most recent proposals.
Data sources & freshness
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · Period: 2020–2026; 2021; 2022… · Updated on site · Daily open-data feed (applications from Oct 2018)
Amenities
22 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Bench
- 77 Marmong StBus stop
- Anglican Care Booragul, York StBus stop
- Booragul Station, Toronto RdBus stop
- First St after Fourth StBus stop
- First St at Fourth StBus stop
- Five Islands School, Marmong StBus stop
- Hayden Brook Rd after Merriwa StBus stop
- Hayden Brook Rd at Ranclaud StBus stop
- Hayden Brook Rd opp Merriwa StBus stop
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe).
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 2/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 2/10
SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- No overlay at centroid
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via NSW bush fire prone land mapping.
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 17
- Parks (OSM)
- 1
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability index
- Desirability score
- 13.7/100
- Cohort rank
- #639 among Metro Sydney suburbs
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Booragul Stationtransport
- Booragul Station, Toronto Rdtransport
- FTB Station Sttransport
- RMP Station Sttransport
- STR To P1/2transport
- Advertising and signage; Schoolplanning16 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Lodged 07 Dec 2023 · Determined
- Alterations and additions to residential developmentplanning7 ASPINALL STREET BOORAGUL 2284Lodged 27 Jun 2023 · Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Balcony, deck, patio, terrace or verandahplanning9 BELL STREET BOORAGUL 2284Lodged 14 Mar 2024 · Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Swimming poolplanning6 MARMONG STREET BOORAGUL 2284Lodged 18 Nov 2024 · Determined
- Demolition; Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structureplanning3 ELLESMERE STREET BOORAGUL 2284Lodged 09 Nov 2023 · Determined
Data sources & freshness
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · Updated on site · Daily open-data feed (applications from Oct 2018)
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
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