East Kempsey vs South Kempsey

In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In East Kempsey, about half of households are people living alone. Houses cost more in East Kempsey: a median of $630,000, against $415,000 in South Kempsey, and rent is higher there too. On these figures, East Kempsey tends to suit people living alone, while South Kempsey suits 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

South Kempsey

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has more schools inside the suburb (4 vs 1)

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

First-home buyers

South Kempsey

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper houses ($415,000 vs $630,000)

Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.

Renters

South Kempsey

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($270/wk vs $300/wk)

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

Commuting to the city

East Kempsey

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • is more walkable (37/100 vs 0/100)
  • has a shorter drive in (282 min vs 289 min)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

East Kempsey

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is more walkable (37/100 vs 0/100)

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

Investors

South Kempsey

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • is growing faster (13.1% vs -1.6%)

Weighs house yield and population growth.

Where they sit

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

East Kempsey South Kempsey
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.

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Walkability 37 / 0
East Kempsey — Walkability: 37/100 South Kempsey — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 10 / 3
East Kempsey — Safety: 10/100 South Kempsey — Safety: 3/100
Low fire risk 100 / 33
East Kempsey — Low fire risk: 100/100 South Kempsey — Low fire risk: 33/100

Demographics

South Kempsey has more residents (2,604 vs 1,336); East Kempsey rents higher ($300/wk vs $270/wk).

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Population 1,336 2,604
+95% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) -1.6% +13.1%
Median age 41 42
Median household income $58,032/yr
+4% vs other
 $55,848/yr
Median weekly rent $300/wk
+10% vs other
 $270/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

East Kempsey South Kempsey
0-4 6.5% / 5.6%
East Kempsey — 0-4: 6.5% South Kempsey — 0-4: 5.6%
5-14 13.2% / 15.4%
East Kempsey — 5-14: 13.2% South Kempsey — 5-14: 15.4%
15-19 5.7% / 7.0%
East Kempsey — 15-19: 5.7% South Kempsey — 15-19: 7.0%
20-24 5.4% / 4.6%
East Kempsey — 20-24: 5.4% South Kempsey — 20-24: 4.6%
25-34 11.8% / 10.5%
East Kempsey — 25-34: 11.8% South Kempsey — 25-34: 10.5%
35-44 11.1% / 10.8%
East Kempsey — 35-44: 11.1% South Kempsey — 35-44: 10.8%
45-54 11.1% / 12.9%
East Kempsey — 45-54: 11.1% South Kempsey — 45-54: 12.9%
55-64 12.6% / 14.2%
East Kempsey — 55-64: 12.6% South Kempsey — 55-64: 14.2%
65-74 12.2% / 11.6%
East Kempsey — 65-74: 12.2% South Kempsey — 65-74: 11.6%
75-84 7.0% / 6.1%
East Kempsey — 75-84: 7.0% South Kempsey — 75-84: 6.1%
85+ 3.2% / 1.4%
East Kempsey — 85+: 3.2% South Kempsey — 85+: 1.4%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (15.4%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

East Kempsey 47.8% lone person
East Kempsey — Lone Person: 47.8% East Kempsey — Couple Families: 27.0% East Kempsey — One Parent Families: 21.1% East Kempsey — Group Household: 2.9% East Kempsey — Other Families: 1.2%
South Kempsey 34.7% lone person
South Kempsey — Lone Person: 34.7% South Kempsey — Couple Families: 31.2% South Kempsey — One Parent Families: 24.9% South Kempsey — Group Household: 7.1% South Kempsey — Other Families: 2.2%
Lone Person Couple Families One Parent Families Group Household Other Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

East Kempsey 35.2% renting
East Kempsey — Owned Outright: 35.2% East Kempsey — Mortgage: 29.7% East Kempsey — Renting: 35.2%
South Kempsey 34.5% renting
South Kempsey — Owned Outright: 36.0% South Kempsey — Mortgage: 29.5% South Kempsey — Renting: 34.5%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

Qualifications

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

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Certificate III & IV 19.1% / 15.6%
East Kempsey — Certificate III & IV: 19.1% South Kempsey — Certificate III & IV: 15.6%
Bachelor Degree 7.3% / 5.1%
East Kempsey — Bachelor Degree: 7.3% South Kempsey — Bachelor Degree: 5.1%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 5.7% / 5.0%
East Kempsey — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.7% South Kempsey — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.0%
Postgraduate Degree 0.5% / 1.2%
East Kempsey — Postgraduate Degree: 0.5% South Kempsey — Postgraduate Degree: 1.2%
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 1.3% / 0.3%
East Kempsey — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 1.3% South Kempsey — Graduate Diploma / Certificate: 0.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (19.1%).

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.

East Kempsey South Kempsey
England 1.4% / 1.0%
East Kempsey — England: 1.4% South Kempsey — England: 1.0%
Philippines 1.1% / 0.8%
East Kempsey — Philippines: 1.1% South Kempsey — Philippines: 0.8%
New Zealand 0.7% / 1.0%
East Kempsey — New Zealand: 0.7% South Kempsey — New Zealand: 1.0%
Germany 0.5% / 0.4%
East Kempsey — Germany: 0.5% South Kempsey — Germany: 0.4%
Thailand 0.4% / —
East Kempsey — Thailand: 0.4% South Kempsey — Thailand: not among its largest
China — / 0.3%
East Kempsey — China: not among its largest South Kempsey — China: 0.3%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (1.4%).

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

East Kempsey 84.3% houses
East Kempsey — Houses: 84.3% East Kempsey — Flats / Apartments: 9.9% East Kempsey — Townhouses: 5.9%
South Kempsey 90.4% houses
South Kempsey — Houses: 90.4% South Kempsey — Flats / Apartments: 8.9% South Kempsey — Townhouses: 0.7%
Houses Flats / Apartments Townhouses

Property market

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Median house price $630,000 $415,000
Median unit price $415,000 —
Median land price — $320,000
Typical days to sell (houses) 39 days
from 10 sales
 52 days
from 28 sales

House price by bedroom count

Only bed counts both suburbs published enough sales for. Sale counts are shown because the buckets differ in depth.

East Kempsey South Kempsey
3 bed $610K / $408K
East Kempsey — 3 bed: $610K (12 sales) South Kempsey — 3 bed: $408K (43 sales)

12 vs 43 sales

4 bed $578K / $384K
East Kempsey — 4 bed: $578K (10 sales) South Kempsey — 4 bed: $384K (12 sales)

10 vs 12 sales

Zoning mix

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Rural and farming 65% 64%
Residential 19% 14%
Environmental 12% 11%
Infrastructure and transport 4% 5%
Industrial 0% 4%
Parks and recreation 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

East Kempsey South Kempsey
New dwellings approved 144
across Kempsey
same for both
Approvals change year on year +380%
same for both

Gross rental yield

Gross — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. From median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Houses 4.3%
$565/wk on $687K
 4.7%
$550/wk on $610K
Units —
same for both

Ranking within NSW

East Kempsey South Kempsey
House price Higher than 18% of NSW Higher than 13% of NSW
Income Higher than 18% of NSW Higher than 16% of NSW
Schools — Higher than 28% of NSW
Walkability Higher than 77% of NSW Higher than 35% of NSW
Affordability Higher than 67% of NSW Higher than 80% of NSW
EV adoption Higher than 7% of NSW Higher than 8% of NSW
NBN connectivity Higher than 70% of NSW Higher than 68% of NSW
Rental yield (houses) Higher than 85% of NSW Higher than 94% of NSW

Liveability

East Kempsey is more walkable (37 vs 0); East Kempsey scores higher overall (29 vs 8).

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Grade D
same for both
Score 29/100 8/100
Socio-economic band high-need area
decile 1/10
same for both

Risk profile

South Kempsey carries more bushfire risk (67 vs 0).

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Bushfire None
0/100
 Moderate
67/100
Crime High
90/100
 High
97/100
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 4
within 5 km
 3
within 5 km

Schools

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Inside the suburb 1 4
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0 2
Rated below peers 1 2

Schools in East Kempsey

  • Kempsey East Public School Government · Primary below peers

Schools in South Kempsey

  • Kempsey Adventist School Independent · Combined at peers
  • Melville High School Government · Secondary at peers
  • Kempsey South Public School Government · Primary below peers
  • Macleay Vocational College Independent · Secondary · Special school below peers

Amenities in the suburb

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Cafes & restaurants 0 1
Parks & reserves 4 3
Childcare 0 2
Fuel stations 0 5
EV chargers 0 1
Waterways 1 10

Mobility

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Walkability score 37/100 0/100
Distance to Sydney 421.4 km
same for both
Drive time (normal traffic) 282 min 289 min
Public transport score 31/100
Bus
 47/100
Bus
Peak arrivals per hour 9.5
7-9am + 5-7pm
 21.8
7-9am + 5-7pm
Median peak wait 2 min
scheduled, not actual
 1 min
scheduled, not actual
Electric vehicle share 0.1%
postcode 2440
same for both
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 53
postcode 2440
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.

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Car (driver) 79.7% / 81.3%
East Kempsey — Car (driver): 79.7% South Kempsey — Car (driver): 81.3%
Worked from Home 7.4% / 8.3%
East Kempsey — Worked from Home: 7.4% South Kempsey — Worked from Home: 8.3%
Car (passenger) 9.0% / 6.4%
East Kempsey — Car (passenger): 9.0% South Kempsey — Car (passenger): 6.4%
Walked Only 3.3% / 3.5%
East Kempsey — Walked Only: 3.3% South Kempsey — Walked Only: 3.5%
Bus 0.7% / 0.6%
East Kempsey — Bus: 0.7% South Kempsey — Bus: 0.6%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (81.3%).

Setting

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Elevation 5 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 34 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 14.7 km 13.7 km

NBN connectivity

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Connectivity score 61/100 54/100
Most common technology Fibre to the node
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 29%
666 premises
 26%
1,298 premises

Council rates

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Average residential rate $1,447/yr
same for both
Council Kempsey
same for both

Federal electorate

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Division Cowper
same for both
Member Pat Conaghan
same for both
Party The Nationals
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

East Kempsey South Kempsey
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $600,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

East Kempsey

Affordable

South Kempsey

Acreage Affordable

More comparisons

Other comparisons with East Kempsey

East Kempsey vs Kempsey East Kempsey vs Verges Creek East Kempsey vs Hampden Hall

Other comparisons with South Kempsey

South Kempsey vs West Kempsey South Kempsey vs Crescent Head South Kempsey vs Dondingalong South Kempsey vs Kundabung South Kempsey vs Kempsey South Kempsey vs Euroka
Full data on East Kempsey Full data on South Kempsey
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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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