Caniaba vs Fernside
In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Caniaba, most households are couple families. On these figures, Caniaba tends to suit couples.
Which one suits you?
There is no overall winner — the suburb that suits a family with school-age kids is routinely the wrong one for someone commuting into the city. So each of these answers its own question, against a checklist you can see, using the same figures in the tables below.
Families with school-age kids
Caniaba
ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here
- carries lower crime risk (20/100 vs 86/100)
- has more schools rated above their peers (1 vs 0)
Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
Caniaba
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- leaves households under less mortgage stress (20% vs 37%)
Weighs mortgage stress.
Renters
They split
one each way, out of the 3 things we measure here
- Caniaba leaves renters under less rental stress (16% vs 22%)
- Fernside has a bigger rental market to choose from (29% vs 6%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
Caniaba
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- has a shorter drive in (479 min vs 486 min)
- sits closer to the CBD (731.4 km vs 738.4 km)
- But Fernside is more walkable (16/100 vs 8/100)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
They split
one each way, out of the 4 things we measure here
- Caniaba carries lower crime risk (20/100 vs 86/100)
- Fernside is more walkable (16/100 vs 8/100)
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.
Investors
Caniaba
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is growing faster (22.7% vs 14.6%)
Weighs population growth.
Where they sit
Caniaba and Fernside drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.
Bars start at zero. Scores, risks and rankings are drawn against their full 0–100 range; other rows are drawn in proportion to the larger of the two.
Side by side, out of 100
Risks are inverted — shown as safety and low exposure — so a longer bar always means better.
Demographics
Caniaba has more residents (804 vs 55); Caniaba has higher household incomes ($116,012 vs $84,448).
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 804 +93% vs other | 55 |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +22.7% | +14.6% |
| Median age | 41 | 42 |
| Median household income | $116,012/yr +27% vs other | $84,448/yr |
| Median weekly rent | $350/wk same for both | |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (20.0%).
Who lives together
Household composition, 2021 Census.
Who owns and who rents
Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.
Where residents were born
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents, 2021 Census. A dash means that country is not among the suburb's own eight largest.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (5.5%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.5%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $1,040,000 | — |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
| Typical days to sell (houses) | 148 days from 4 sales | — |
Zoning mix
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 99% same for both | |
| Environmental | 0% | 1% |
| Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the suburb around it. Zones as at 2026-09. | ||
Development activity
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 138 across Lismore same for both | |
| Approvals change year on year | +0% same for both | |
Ranking within NSW
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 55% of NSW | — |
| Income | Higher than 80% of NSW | Higher than 51% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 54% of NSW | Higher than 66% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 71% of NSW | — |
| EV adoption | Higher than 58% of NSW | Higher than 57% of NSW |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 58% of NSW | Higher than 31% of NSW |
Liveability
Fernside is more walkable (16 vs 8).
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | B | — |
| Score | 54/100 | — |
| Socio-economic band | advantaged area decile 7/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 4/10 |
Risk profile
Fernside carries more bushfire risk (43 vs 0); Fernside carries more crime risk (86 vs 20).
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | Moderate 43/100 |
| Crime | Low 20/100 | High 86/100 |
| Flood | Not mapped no mapped data here same for both | |
| Coastal erosion | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Aircraft noise | None 0/100 same for both | |
| Industrial facilities nearby | 2 within 5 km | 0 within 5 km |
Schools
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 1 | 0 |
| Rated above peers | 1 | 0 |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
| Universities within 10 km | 1 Lismore, 7.6 km | None |
Schools in Caniaba
- Caniaba Public School Government · Primary above peers
Schools in Fernside
No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.
Amenities in the suburb
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Childcare | 1 | 0 |
| Waterways | 2 | 3 |
Mobility
Fernside sits further from the CBD (738.4 km vs 731.4 km).
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 8/100 | 16/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 731.4 km | 738.4 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 479 min | 486 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.6% postcode 2480 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 69 postcode 2480 same for both | |
How people get to work
Method of travel on census day 2021 — which fell during COVID restrictions, so working from home is inflated and every travel mode understated.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.8%).
Setting
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 90 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 21 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 31.7 km | 36.6 km |
NBN connectivity
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 30/100 | 22/100 |
| Most common technology | Fixed wireless same for both | |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 0% 279 premises | 0% 18 premises |
Council rates
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,487/yr same for both | |
| Council | Lismore same for both | |
Federal electorate
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Page same for both | |
| Member | Kevin Hogan same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| Caniaba | Fernside | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
More comparisons
Other comparisons with Caniaba
Other comparisons with Fernside
Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.