Duns Creek vs Paterson

In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Duns Creek: a median of $1.2 million, against $940,000 in Paterson, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, Duns Creek tends to suit couples, while Paterson suits people living alone and buyers on a tighter budget.

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

Duns Creek

ahead on 2 of the 6 things we measure here

  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 54/100)
  • is already more of a family suburb (77% vs 68%)
  • But Paterson has more parks and reserves (4 vs 1)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.

First-home buyers

Paterson

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($940,000 vs $1,200,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

Paterson

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($300/wk vs $355/wk)

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Duns Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (180.4 km vs 184.4 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Duns Creek

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 54/100)

Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Duns Creek and Paterson drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Duns Creek Paterson
Hides rows where both suburbs match

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.

Duns Creek Paterson
Walkability 8 / 10
Duns Creek — Walkability: 8/100 Paterson — Walkability: 10/100
Safety 74 / 46
Duns Creek — Safety: 74/100 Paterson — Safety: 46/100
Low fire risk 54 / 60
Duns Creek — Low fire risk: 54/100 Paterson — Low fire risk: 60/100

Demographics

Paterson has more residents (960 vs 582); Duns Creek rents higher ($355/wk vs $300/wk).

Duns Creek Paterson
Population 582 960
+65% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +6.6% +7.6%
Median age 42 41
Median household income $116,272/yr
+15% vs other
 $99,164/yr
Median weekly rent $355/wk
+15% vs other
 $300/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Duns Creek Paterson
0-4 4.8% / 5.2%
Duns Creek — 0-4: 4.8% Paterson — 0-4: 5.2%
5-14 13.7% / 15.0%
Duns Creek — 5-14: 13.7% Paterson — 5-14: 15.0%
15-19 8.2% / 5.5%
Duns Creek — 15-19: 8.2% Paterson — 15-19: 5.5%
20-24 6.7% / 3.6%
Duns Creek — 20-24: 6.7% Paterson — 20-24: 3.6%
25-34 8.2% / 8.2%
Duns Creek — 25-34: 8.2% Paterson — 25-34: 8.2%
35-44 12.2% / 15.5%
Duns Creek — 35-44: 12.2% Paterson — 35-44: 15.5%
45-54 13.4% / 12.9%
Duns Creek — 45-54: 13.4% Paterson — 45-54: 12.9%
55-64 17.5% / 14.7%
Duns Creek — 55-64: 17.5% Paterson — 55-64: 14.7%
65-74 11.3% / 10.7%
Duns Creek — 65-74: 11.3% Paterson — 65-74: 10.7%
75-84 3.1% / 6.4%
Duns Creek — 75-84: 3.1% Paterson — 75-84: 6.4%
85+ — / 1.1%
Duns Creek — 85+: not among its largest Paterson — 85+: 1.1%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (17.5%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Duns Creek 68.9% couple families
Duns Creek — Couple Families: 68.9% Duns Creek — Lone Person: 14.4% Duns Creek — One Parent Families: 8.3% Duns Creek — Group Household: 4.5% Duns Creek — Other Families: 3.8%
Paterson 56.9% couple families
Paterson — Couple Families: 56.9% Paterson — Lone Person: 31.6% Paterson — One Parent Families: 11.6% Paterson — Group Household: 0.0% Paterson — Other Families: 0.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Duns Creek 6.5% renting
Duns Creek — Owned Outright: 42.4% Duns Creek — Mortgage: 51.1% Duns Creek — Renting: 6.5%
Paterson 13.4% renting
Paterson — Owned Outright: 37.4% Paterson — Mortgage: 49.2% Paterson — Renting: 13.4%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.

Duns Creek Paterson
Certificate III & IV 19.1% / 22.2%
Duns Creek — Certificate III & IV: 19.1% Paterson — Certificate III & IV: 22.2%
Bachelor Degree 13.4% / 9.7%
Duns Creek — Bachelor Degree: 13.4% Paterson — Bachelor Degree: 9.7%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 7.4% / 8.6%
Duns Creek — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 7.4% Paterson — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 8.6%
Postgraduate Degree 3.3% / 2.8%
Duns Creek — Postgraduate Degree: 3.3% Paterson — Postgraduate Degree: 2.8%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.4% / 1.0%
Duns Creek — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.4% Paterson — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.0%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (22.2%).

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.

Duns Creek Paterson
England 2.2% / 1.7%
Duns Creek — England: 2.2% Paterson — England: 1.7%
New Zealand 1.2% / 1.1%
Duns Creek — New Zealand: 1.2% Paterson — New Zealand: 1.1%
South Africa 1.0% / 0.3%
Duns Creek — South Africa: 1.0% Paterson — South Africa: 0.3%
Fiji 0.9% / 0.3%
Duns Creek — Fiji: 0.9% Paterson — Fiji: 0.3%
Germany 0.5% / 0.6%
Duns Creek — Germany: 0.5% Paterson — Germany: 0.6%
Greece 0.9% / —
Duns Creek — Greece: 0.9% Paterson — Greece: not among its largest
Malaysia — / 0.5%
Duns Creek — Malaysia: not among its largest Paterson — Malaysia: 0.5%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (2.2%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Duns Creek 100.0% houses
Duns Creek — Houses: 100.0% Duns Creek — Flats / Apartments: 0.0%
Paterson 97.9% houses
Paterson — Houses: 97.9% Paterson — Flats / Apartments: 2.1%
Houses Flats / Apartments

Property market

Duns Creek Paterson
Median house price $1,200,000 $940,000
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price — $662,500
Typical days to sell (houses) 82 days
from 4 sales
 34 days
from 6 sales

Zoning mix

Duns Creek has more land zoned for conservation (55% vs 19%); Paterson has more rural and farming land (71% vs 45%).

Duns Creek Paterson
Rural and farming 45% 71%
Environmental 55% 19%
Residential 0% 9%
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

Duns Creek Paterson
New dwellings approved 495
across Port Stephens
 55
across Dungog
Approvals change year on year -72% -23%

Ranking within NSW

Duns Creek Paterson
House price Higher than 64% of NSW Higher than 49% of NSW
Income Higher than 80% of NSW Higher than 68% of NSW
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 53% of NSW Higher than 56% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 60% of NSW Higher than 65% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 57% of NSW Higher than 28% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 45% of NSW Higher than 53% of NSW

Liveability

Duns Creek scores higher overall (49 vs 41).

Duns Creek Paterson
Grade B C
Score 49/100 41/100
Socio-economic band advantaged area
decile 8/10
same for both

Risk profile

Paterson carries more crime risk (54 vs 26).

Duns Creek Paterson
Bushfire Moderate
46/100
 Moderate
40/100
Crime Low
26/100
 Moderate
54/100
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 0
within 5 km
 1
within 5 km

Schools

Duns Creek Paterson
Inside the suburb 0 1
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 1
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Schools in Duns Creek

No schools recorded inside this suburb's boundary. Children here will be zoned to schools nearby.

Schools in Paterson

  • Paterson Public School Government · Primary at peers

Amenities in the suburb

Duns Creek Paterson
Supermarkets 0 1
Cafes & restaurants 0 1
Parks & reserves 1 4
GPs 0 1
Pharmacies 0 1
Police stations 0 1
Banks & Bank@Post 0 1
Waterways 3 10

Mobility

Paterson sits further from the CBD (184.4 km vs 180.4 km).

Duns Creek Paterson
Walkability score 8/100 10/100
Distance to Sydney 180.4 km 184.4 km
+2% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 141 min
same for both
Public transport score 21/100
Bus
 36/100
Rail · Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 4.2
7-9am + 5-7pm
 10.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 2 min
scheduled, not actual
same for both
Electric vehicle share 0.6%
postcode 2321
 0.3%
postcode 2421
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 69
postcode 2321
 78
postcode 2421

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.

Duns Creek Paterson
Car (driver) 79.4% / 63.6%
Duns Creek — Car (driver): 79.4% Paterson — Car (driver): 63.6%
Worked from Home 17.7% / 30.2%
Duns Creek — Worked from Home: 17.7% Paterson — Worked from Home: 30.2%
Car (passenger) 2.8% / 2.0%
Duns Creek — Car (passenger): 2.8% Paterson — Car (passenger): 2.0%
Walked Only — / 4.2%
Duns Creek — Walked Only: not among its largest Paterson — Walked Only: 4.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (79.4%).

Setting

Duns Creek Paterson
Elevation 91 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 46 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 26.7 km 31.1 km

NBN connectivity

Duns Creek Paterson
Connectivity score 29/100 30/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
207 premises
 0%
389 premises

Climate

Duns Creek Paterson
Annual rainfall 996 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 30.0°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 7.1°C
same for both

Air quality (annual mean)

Duns Creek Paterson
PM2.5 6.3 µg/m³
same for both
PM10 17.5 µg/m³
same for both
NO₂ 0.72 pphm
same for both

Council rates

Duns Creek Paterson
Average residential rate $1,359/yr $1,646/yr
Council Port Stephens Dungog

Federal electorate

Duns Creek Paterson
Division Lyne
same for both
Member Alison Penfold
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Duns Creek Paterson
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Duns Creek

Acreage

Paterson

Acreage River

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Duns Creek

Duns Creek vs Seaham Duns Creek vs Woodville Duns Creek vs Glen Oak Duns Creek vs Martins Creek Duns Creek vs Butterwick

Other comparisons with Paterson

Paterson vs Vacy Paterson vs Martins Creek
Full data on Duns Creek Full data on Paterson
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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.

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