Median house price
$1.05M
-5.8% change
NSW · Bellingen Council
Darkwood, 2454
Est. population · Jun 2025
237
Growth (1 yr)
+0.4%
Growth (5 yr)
+1.3%
Median age
47
Median income
$949/wk
Employment rate
44.2%
Median house price · October to December 2025
$1,050,000
Languages at home
9.5%non-English
Mostly English at home
2021 Census · usual residence
Desirability score
- Excellent transport
- High desirability
Suburb profile
In Bellingen Council, Darkwood keeps a rural calm, a smaller community with room to breathe and a strong local rhythm. Long-term locals and family households define much of the community, with plenty of young families in the mix. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice.
With limited local amenities, residents regularly travel to a neighbouring town for shops, appointments and a wider choice. Open space is thinner than in many regional towns, so residents often travel a little further for a longer park day. Buses are a genuine asset, linking residents to work, study and nearby neighbourhoods.
Property sits in a premium price band and is harder to enter for many buyers. The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.
Versus similar regional towns, the suburb reads below average on desirability, chiefly because growth momentum, plus local dining and lifestyle amenities trail behind. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
At a glance
Darkwood snapshot
A quick read of housing, growth, livability, and risk
Median rent
$600/wk
Population (ERP)
237
+0.4% annual growth
Dwelling vacancy
35.9%
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
#562
among Country & regional · Mature
Safety
31st
percentile in state (higher = safer)
Pop. growth
47th
percentile in NSW
Advantage (IRSAD)
4/10
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
- 23.1/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 6487th in Australia
- State rank
- 2067th in NSW
- Peer rank
- #562 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #993 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 71%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived) · current · Updated
Housing
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $630
- Rental bonds lodged (January to March 2026)
- 39
- Median house price (October to December 2025)
- $1,050,000
- Median price change
- -5.8%
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
237(June 2025)
+0.4% annual · +1.3% over 5 years · 47th percentile in NSW
Growth figures & methodology
- Annual growth
- +0.4%
- 5-year growth
- +1.3%
- Change in 1 year
- +1
- Change in 5 years
- +3
- Growth rank in NSW
- 47th 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 +0.3% average annual growth since 2011. It is illustrative only — not an official ABS forecast.
2021 Census figures
2021 Census
- Population
- 237
- Median age
- 47
- Median household income / week
- $949
- Dwelling vacancy
- 35.9%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 47 of 131
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,000
- Employment rate
- 44.2%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 90 / 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 decreased compared with the previous period.
Offence counts & rates
- Total offences (Jan 2025 to Dec 2025)
- 12
- Against the person
- 4
- Against property
- 5
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 50.6
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 59 residents
- State safety percentile
- 31th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate)
- -7.4%
Most common offence types
- Domestic Violence Related Assault39
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment53
- Malicious Damage To Property66
- Non-Domestic Violence Related Assault42
- Other Offences62
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
33 public transport stops in this suburb
- 1135 Darkwood Rd
- 1156 Darkwood Rd
- 1244 Darkwood Rd
- 1306 Darkwood Rd
- Darkwood Rd After Orama Rd
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
No OpenStreetMap amenities mapped for this suburb yet.
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
Health access
- Nearest hospital
- Dorrigo Multi-Purpose Service (12.3 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)
- 8
- Participants per 1,000 residents
- 33.8
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
- 26° / 19°
- Rainfall
- 504 mm · ~63 rainy days
Autumn (Mar–May)
- Usual max / min
- 23° / 15°
- Rainfall
- 522 mm · ~65 rainy days
Winter (Jun–Aug)
- Usual max / min
- 18° / 8°
- Rainfall
- 199 mm · ~25 rainy days
Spring (Sep–Nov)
- Usual max / min
- 23° / 13°
- Rainfall
- 270 mm · ~34 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).
3 planning-related records
2025· 1 proposal
April 2025
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure975 DARKWOOD ROAD DARKWOOD 2454Under Assessment
2023· 2 proposals
March 2023
- Other975 DARKWOOD ROAD DARKWOOD 2454Under Assessment
- Shed769 DARKWOOD ROAD DARKWOOD 2454Determined
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
- Cowper
- Member of Parliament
- Pat CONAGHAN (The Nationals)
- Results from
- 2025 federal election
- Electorate enrolment (2025)
- 131,639
- Turnout (2025)
- 90.8%
- Swing since 2022 (2025)
- +0.5 pp toward Labor
Two-party preferred (2025)
Coalition 59.1%Labor 40.9%
Estimated suburb voting profile
Estimated from 8 nearby ordinary polling places (up to 35.6 km away).
Coalition 45.7%Labor 54.3%
13.4 percentage points more Labor-leaning than the electorate
Estimated swing since 2022: +2.8 pp toward Labor
Nearest polling places
- DorrigoLabor 45.0% · Coalition 55.0% TPP (2025)12.0 km away
- ThoraLabor 62.4% · Coalition 37.6% TPP (2025)13.1 km away
- MissabottiLabor 49.2% · Coalition 50.8% TPP (2025)22.3 km away
- GlenifferLabor 57.1% · Coalition 42.9% TPP (2025)23.7 km away
- BellingenLabor 68.5% · Coalition 31.5% TPP (2025)24.4 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)
- 4/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 2/10
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 Bellingen Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of New South Wales.