Median house price
$925k
-1.3% change
NSW · Ballina Council
Dalwood, 2477
Est. population · Jun 2025
230
Growth (1 yr)
+1.3%
Growth (5 yr)
+7.0%
Median age
50
Median income
$2,181/wk
Employment rate
67.9%
Median house price · October to December 2025
$925,000
Languages at home
3.3%non-English
Most common: Afrikaans
2021 Census · usual residence
Desirability score
- National parks
- Excellent transport
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Dalwood is a quieter smaller community in Ballina Council, where peace, space and a country-town pace still dominate. A mature community gives the area a calm, settled social fabric, with multiple generations sharing the same neighbourhood. Everyday life leans local, with a handful of trusted shops, a familiar main street and neighbours who know your name.
Everyday basics may be close by, but bigger shopping and services typically require a trip to a nearby centre. Open space is thinner than in many regional towns, so residents often travel a little further for a longer park day. Strong connections via buses keep the wider area accessible.
Property sits in a premium price band and is harder to enter for many buyers. Renewal is happening in measured doses, with new development complementing what is already there.
Desirability lands below average here: softer growth momentum weighing on the result versus similar regional towns, even with community and employment holding up better. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
At a glance
Dalwood snapshot
A quick read of housing, growth, livability, and risk
Median rent
$700/wk
Houses $750 · Units $530
Population (ERP)
230
+1.3% annual growth
Dwelling vacancy
4.5%
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
#353
among Country & regional · Mature
Safety
18th
percentile in state (higher = safer)
Pop. growth
75th
percentile in NSW
Advantage (IRSAD)
8/10
national SEIFA decile
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
- 32.3/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 5182nd in Australia
- State rank
- 1665th in NSW
- Peer rank
- #353 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #688 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 81%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
Housing
- Flats / units (January to March 2026)
- $530
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $750
- All types (January to March 2026)
- $700
- Rental bonds lodged (January to March 2026)
- 59
- Median house price (October to December 2025)
- $925,000
- Median price change
- -1.3%
Median weekly rent from NSW DCJ rent tables. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.
Contributes to desirability score · Housing (15%) · Future Growth (7%)
Median price, rental yield and vacancy Recent price momentum
Data sources & freshness
- DCJ rent and sales tables — NSW Department of Communities and Justice · January to March 2026; October to December 2025 · Updated · Quarterly releases
Population
Estimated resident population
230(June 2025)
+1.3% annual · +7.0% over 5 years · 75th percentile in NSW
Growth figures & methodology
- Annual growth
- +1.3%
- 5-year growth
- +7.0%
- Change in 1 year
- +3
- Change in 5 years
- +15
- Growth rank in NSW
- 75th 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 (~250), extrapolated at +1.3% average annual growth since 2011. It is illustrative only — not an official ABS forecast.
2021 Census figures
2021 Census
- Population
- 218
- Median age
- 50
- Median household income / week
- $2,181
- Dwelling vacancy
- 4.5%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 4 of 88
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,408
- Employment rate
- 67.9%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 83 / 0 / 0
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 are unchanged compared with the previous period.
Offence counts & rates
- Total offences (Jan 2025 to Dec 2025)
- 9
- Against the person
- 2
- Against property
- 4
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 39.1
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 109 residents
- State safety percentile
- 17.6th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate)
- +0.3%
Most common offence types
- Domestic Violence Related Assault37
- Fraud33
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment40
- Malicious Damage To Property62
- Steal From Motor Vehicle47
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- BOCSAR postcode crime statistics — NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research · Jan 2024 to Dec 2024 → Jan 2025 to Dec 2025; Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 · Updated · Rolling 12-month windows
Family & Lifestyle
Public transport
34 public transport stops in this suburb
- 308 Dalwood Rd
- 47 Victoria Park Rd
- 50 Dalwood Rd
- Dalwood Rd Before Cooks Lane
- Victoria Park Rd After Victoria Park Lane
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- Timetables Complete GTFS stops (© Transport for NSW, CC BY 4.0) — Transport for NSW — Open Data Hub · current · Updated · Nightly GTFS feed
Amenities
11 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
Local character & venue list
Local character
- A car helps for daily errands
- Well connected by public transport — 34 public transport stops
- Walkability proxy
- 30/100
- Cafés per 1,000 residents
- 0
- Food & drink per 1,000 residents
- 0
- Parks per 1,000 residents
- 0
Other(8)
- Avonlee Lodge Pet ResortAnimal Boarding
- Bbq
- Victoria Park Nature ReserveNature Reserve
- Parking (2)
- Picnic Table (2)
- Public toilets
- Shelter (2)
- Dalwood Falls Swimming HoleSwimming
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
1 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Victoria Park Nature ReserveNature reserve
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · current · Updated
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 1
- Parks (OSM)
- 0
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
- St Vincent's Private Hospital Lismore (14.7 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)
- 9
- Participants per 1,000 residents
- 39.1
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
- 28° / 19°
- Rainfall
- 569 mm · ~71 rainy days
Autumn (Mar–May)
- Usual max / min
- 25° / 16°
- Rainfall
- 612 mm · ~76 rainy days
Winter (Jun–Aug)
- Usual max / min
- 20° / 10°
- Rainfall
- 289 mm · ~36 rainy days
Spring (Sep–Nov)
- Usual max / min
- 25° / 14°
- Rainfall
- 300 mm · ~38 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 NSW Planning Portal (lodged 2020–2026).
23 planning-related records
2026· 1 proposal
May 2026
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Garage, carport or carparking space104C RUSTY LANE NORTH ARM DALWOOD 2335Under Assessment
2025· 2 proposals
January 2025
- Erection of a new structure; Manufactured home635 DALWOOD ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached); Manufactured home; Residential Accommodation551 WARDELL ROAD DALWOOD 2477Determined
2024· 3 proposals
July 2024
- Erection of a new structure; Manufactured home635 DALWOOD ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
March 2024
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure232B FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
February 2024
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Minor building alterations (internal); Minor building alterations (external)122 FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
2023· 5 proposals
December 2023
- Erection of a new structure; Residential Accommodation232E FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
October 2023
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Dual occupancy (detached)14 FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
June 2023
- Alterations and additions to residential development232B FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
April 2023
- Retaining walls, protection of trees14 FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
January 2023
- DwellingDALWOOD ROAD DALWOOD 2477Determined
2022· 6 proposals
November 2022
- Other700 DALWOOD ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
September 2022
- Alterations and additions to residential development232B FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
- Alterations and additions to residential development145-149 VICTORIA PARK ROAD DALWOOD 2477Determined
August 2022
- Dual occupancy571 WARDELL ROAD DALWOOD 2477Determined
June 2022
- Dual occupancy14 FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
March 2022
- Dwelling; Pools / decks / fencing577 WARDELL ROAD DALWOOD 2477Determined
2021· 6 proposals
November 2021
- Shed91 Victoria Park Road Dalwood 2477Determined
October 2021
- DwellingLot 101 Dalwood Road, DalwoodDetermined
August 2021
- Other10 VICTORIA PARK LANE DALWOOD 2477Determined
July 2021
- Pools / decks / fencing116 FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
- Pools / decks / fencing14 FERNHILL ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
June 2021
- Other700 DALWOOD ROAD DALWOOD 2335Determined
Contributes to desirability score · Future Growth (7%)
Development and planning activity
Data sources & freshness
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · 2020–2026 · Updated · Daily feed (from Oct 2018)
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- Overlay applies
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via NSW bush fire prone land 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
- Page
- Member of Parliament
- Kevin HOGAN (The Nationals)
- Results from
- 2025 federal election
- Electorate enrolment (2025)
- 129,373
- Turnout (2025)
- 91.8%
- Swing since 2022 (2025)
- +1.4 pp toward Labor
Two-party preferred (2025)
Coalition 59.3%Labor 40.7%
Estimated suburb voting profile
Estimated from 8 nearby ordinary polling places (up to 11.5 km away).
Coalition 58.1%Labor 41.9%
1.1 percentage points more Labor-leaning than the electorate
Estimated swing since 2022: +1.9 pp toward Labor
Nearest polling places
- RousLabor 38.2% · Coalition 61.8% TPP (2025)2.7 km away
- Meerschaum ValeLabor 44.3% · Coalition 55.7% TPP (2025)3.0 km away
- AlstonvilleLabor 51.5% · Coalition 48.5% TPP (2025)6.4 km away
- WollongbarLabor 42.1% · Coalition 57.9% TPP (2025)7.7 km away
- WardellLabor 44.1% · Coalition 55.9% TPP (2025)8.3 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)
- 8/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 9/10
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
More in Ballina Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of New South Wales.