North Woodburn vs Swan Bay
North Woodburn is the younger of the two, with a median age of 39 against 43 in Swan Bay. In both, most households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families. Houses cost more in Swan Bay: a median of $670,000, against $390,000 in North Woodburn, though rent is higher in North Woodburn. On these figures, North Woodburn tends to suit families with children 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
Swan Bay
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- is already more of a family suburb (94% vs 75%)
Weighs schools, house stock, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.
First-home buyers
North Woodburn
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- has cheaper houses ($390,000 vs $670,000)
Weighs house prices and mortgage stress.
Renters
Swan Bay
ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here
- leaves renters under less rental stress (17% vs 28%)
- has cheaper rent ($310/wk vs $375/wk)
- But North Woodburn has a bigger rental market to choose from (26% vs 13%)
Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.
Commuting to the city
North Woodburn
ahead on the one thing that separates them
- sits closer to the CBD (692.7 km vs 697 km)
Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.
Downsizers and retirees
Too close to call
Nothing among the 3 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.
Weighs who already lives there, GPs, and walkability.
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
North Woodburn and Swan Bay 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
Swan Bay has more residents (357 vs 142); Swan Bay has higher household incomes ($95,316 vs $69,836).
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 142 | 357 +151% vs other |
| Population trend (2016 → 2021) | +65.1% | +60.1% |
| Median age | 39 | 43 |
| Median household income | $69,836/yr | $95,316/yr +36% vs other |
| Median weekly rent | $375/wk +17% vs other | $310/wk |
Age profile
Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (21.1%).
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 (2.8%).
Qualifications
Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.
Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (18.5%).
What people live in
Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.
Property market
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $390,000 | $670,000 |
| Median unit price | — same for both | |
| Median land price | — same for both | |
Zoning mix
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Rural and farming | 92% | 90% |
| Environmental | 8% | 4% |
| Residential | 0% | 5% |
| 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
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| New dwellings approved | 138 across Lismore | 24 across Richmond Valley |
| Approvals change year on year | +0% | -78% |
Ranking within NSW
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| House price | Higher than 10% of NSW | Higher than 34% of NSW |
| Income | Higher than 33% of NSW | Higher than 62% of NSW |
| Schools | — same for both | |
| Walkability | Higher than 49% of NSW | Higher than 48% of NSW |
| Affordability | Higher than 91% of NSW | Higher than 76% of NSW |
| EV adoption | — same for both | |
| NBN connectivity | Higher than 92% of NSW | Higher than 57% of NSW |
Liveability
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | — same for both | |
| Score | — same for both | |
| Socio-economic band | below-average income decile 2/10 | mid-range socio-economic decile 6/10 |
Risk profile
Swan Bay carries more bushfire risk (84 vs 0).
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Bushfire | None 0/100 | High 84/100 |
| Crime | Moderate 55/100 | — |
| 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 same for both | |
Schools
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Inside the suburb | 0 same for both | |
| Rated above peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated at peers | 0 same for both | |
| Rated below peers | 0 same for both | |
Amenities in the suburb
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Waterways | 0 | 6 |
Mobility
Swan Bay sits further from the CBD (697 km vs 692.7 km).
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Walkability score | 6/100 | 5/100 |
| Distance to Sydney | 692.7 km | 697 km |
| Drive time (normal traffic) | 446 min | 450 min |
| Electric vehicle share | 0.0% postcode 2471 same for both | |
| Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings | 73 postcode 2471 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 (85.4%).
Setting
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Elevation | 3 m above sea level, at the suburb centre | 0 m above sea level, at the suburb centre |
| Distance to the ocean | 9.0 km 1.3 km to a named beach | 13.8 km 4.9 km to a named beach |
NBN connectivity
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Connectivity score | 86/100 | 30/100 |
| Most common technology | Fibre to the premises | Fixed wireless |
| Full-fibre (FTTP) share | 68% 62 premises | 0% 116 premises |
Climate
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual rainfall | 1,408 mm same for both | |
| Summer max (Jan) | — same for both | |
| Winter min (Jul) | — same for both | |
Council rates
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Average residential rate | $1,487/yr | $1,282/yr |
| Council | Lismore | Richmond Valley |
Federal electorate
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Division | Page same for both | |
| Member | Kevin Hogan same for both | |
| Party | The Nationals same for both | |
First Home Owner Grant
| North Woodburn | Swan Bay | |
|---|---|---|
| Grant amount | $10,000 same for both | |
| Property price cap | $600,000 same for both | |
| Eligibility | New same for both | |
Tags
North Woodburn
Swan Bay
More comparisons
Other comparisons with North Woodburn
Other comparisons with Swan Bay
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.