Balgal Beach QLD 4816
Balgal Beach is a rural locality in Queensland, 1,407 km from Brisbane CBD, around 16 hours by car. Population is 998; the median age is 58 and the median household income is $48,672 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the bottom 20% nationally. Population grew 3.3% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $273 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $1,192. Walkability is low.
Is Balgal Beach a good place to live?
Balgal Beach scores a D (16/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — weaker on transit and community.
Car-dependent
Walkability 14/100 · 1407 km · 959 min drive to Brisbane
Median available
Median $532K
Moderate bushfire risk
Fire 52/100 · Crime 50/100
Highly disadvantaged
SEIFA decile 1/10 · median age 58 · 998 residents
Liveability Rating
16 / 100 · Ranked #1050 in QLDEach bar is Balgal Beach's rank among QLD suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better). Scored on 4 of 5 factors: no school data, so the other factors carry its weight.
Flood data for Queensland covers only the areas mapped there — a blank here is not an all-clear.
How do you rate the liveability in Balgal Beach?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
16 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataBalgal Beach's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $532,000, about 4% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$532,000
Based on 59 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 46 days — median across 19 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 15 sales $497K
- 3 bed 23 sales $570K
- 4 bed 18 sales $582K
Land
$240,000
Based on 22 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 51 days — median across 3 sales that recorded a listing period
Currently for Sale
Last 6 monthsHouses in Balgal Beach are currently listed at around $650,000 on average. Based on 28 houses listed in the past six months.
$650K
28 houses listed in the last 6 months.
28 of the suburb's 428 dwellings (6.5%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.
Rental Market
Advertised rents · last 6 monthsHouses in Balgal Beach rent for around $680 a week on average, based on 3 houses listed for rent in the past six months.
$680/wk
3 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
3 rentals advertised against an estimated 75 rented homes (4.0%) in the last 6 months.
Gross rental yield
Indicative$680/week ($35,000 a year) on a $650,000 median
Based on a small sample (3 listings) — indicative only.
Gross yield — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. Calculated from median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.
Is Balgal Beach safe? Crime statistics
2025Crime in Balgal Beach sits in the moderate band, with 13 incidents recorded in 2025 — down roughly 41% on the prior year.
13 offences
40.9% since 2024Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2020–20241 crash
where someone was killed or admitted to hospital
Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the locality carries people passing through; this is not a measure of risk to residents. Roads are listed with 3 or more serious crashes.
Coastal Erosion
Shoreline Change Summary
1988–2025Nearest Eroding Coastline
- Distance
- 1.4 km
- Rate
- -0.30 m/yr
- Net Movement
- -13.6 m
- Certainty
- good
Data Quality
Schools
Walkability
Balgal Beach is very car-dependent on foot — at 14/100, nearly all errands require a car.
We hold no public transport timetable data for this area, so public transport is not rated here and the score is spread across the remaining components. It is not counted as zero.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Balgal Beach.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 35%
- Premises covered
- 659
NBN Co fixed-line and fixed-wireless premises, as at 30 December 2025. Higher-quality technologies (full fibre) score above copper, wireless, and satellite. Actual speeds depend on your plan.
Amenities
Townsville: council population
The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this locality alone — this locality's own population is in the census section above.
Socio-economic profile
Balgal Beach is home to 998 residents, with a median age of 58 — noticeably older than the national figure of 38. Median household income runs at $49,000 a year, with unemployment at 10.1%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
998
Median Age
58
Median Household Income
$48,672/yr
Census Median Rent
$273/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$1,192/mo
Avg Household Size
2.0
Median Personal Income
$26,520/yr
Unemployment Rate
10.1%
Unoccupied Dwellings
33.2%
Total Dwellings
428
Owner-Occupier Rate
82.5%
Houses
98.4%
Rental Stress
29.2%
Mortgage Stress
29.4%
Work From Home
6.3%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 75.1%
- English Spoken at Home
- 87.1%
- Employment Rate
- 34.5%
- Completed Year 12
- 27.9%
Occupations
Religion
Country of Birth (overseas)
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.
When They Arrived
Share of all residents by the year they arrived in Australia. Periods cover different numbers of years, so compare the shape rather than the bar widths.
3 residents (0.3%) arrived since 2016. Australia’s borders were closed to most arrivals from March 2020, so the last two years of that period are much smaller than the ones before them — nationally 260,799 people arrived in 2019 against 28,521 in 2021.
Languages Spoken at Home
Top languages other than English, as a share of all residents.
Age Distribution
Family & Household Composition
Commute to Work
Education
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,810 a year through Townsville based on 2025 figures.
Building Approvals: Townsville
In the year to August 2026, 1,096 new dwellings were approved across Townsville. That mix is 991 houses and 105 units. Approvals are down 22.3% on the same period a year earlier.
New Homes Planned
New homes planned in this locality: 347 to 1,340 homes
- Within 2 years 57 to 120 homes
- In 2 to 5 years 101 to 500 homes
- In 5 to 10 years 101 to 500 homes
- No timeframe set 88 to 220 homes
Land the Queensland Government's residential land supply study identifies for future housing (17 parcels), by when it expects lots to be registered. Yields are published in ranges, so these are too.
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
The Aboriginal party for this area is Gurambilbarra Wulgurukaba People.
Under Queensland's Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003 the Aboriginal party for an area follows native title. A native title claim over this area is registered with the Federal Court.
Climate & Setting
from Townsville Aero, 44.0 kmHigh rainfall — warm summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 13 m
- above sea level, at the locality centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 1.4 km
- 2.6 km to a named beach
- Annual rainfall
- 1,304 mm
- 65 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 31.8°C
- 5 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 15.0°C
- 0 frost days ≤ 0°C
Elevation is the ground at the locality centre, from Geoscience Australia's National Digital Elevation Model. Approximate — it reads high in dense built-up areas. It is a measure of height above sea level and not an indicator of flood risk, which depends on height above nearby waterways.
EV adoption
In postcode 4816, 34 of 8,283 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 1.5% (122 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 1.9%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 4816, 2,994 rooftop-solar systems totalling 21.9 MW have been installed since 2001, against 4,091 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 251 went up in the last year.
Counts every system certified since 2001, so a roof re-fitted with a newer system is counted twice, and small commercial systems are included alongside houses — useful for comparing postcodes, not an estimate of how many homes have working panels today.
2026 covers part of the year only, to 2026-07.
First Home Owner Grant
FY2026-27$30,000 for new homes priced up to $750,000.
$30,000 for contracts signed on or after 20 November 2023, with no end date. IT DID NOT REVERT TO $15,000: the tier was due to end 30 June 2026 and the 2026-27 Queensland Budget (23 June 2026) continued it for contracts signed from 1 July 2026. This file carried a "due to revert" note until 2026-09-18 — it was never true, and a note predicting a change is not the same as a change. Cap is "less than $750,000" including land and contract variations — less than, not up to. New homes only: "There are no home owner grants for established homes."
Mortgage repayments
Transfer duty at the owner-occupier rate, and it excludes first home buyer concessions — those can cut it substantially or remove it entirely. Excludes legal, inspection and lender fees. Check with Queensland Revenue Office
The First Home Owner Grant applies to newly built homes only, so it isn't available on an established purchase. A first home buyer building or buying new under $750,000 may qualify for $30,000 — see what qualifies with Queensland Revenue Office.
At $532,000 this is under the $750,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $30,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with Queensland Revenue Office.
A deposit under 20% usually attracts Lenders Mortgage Insurance, which this doesn't include.
Principal and interest over 30 years, fixed rate. Excludes fees, offset, redraw and LMI. Default rate is the median comparison rate across 1788 advertised products as at 2026-10-27 — indicative only, and not an offer. Your rate depends on the lender, your deposit and your circumstances. Not financial advice.
Federal Electorate
Currently held by Bob Katter Katter's Australian Party (KAP)
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Bob Katter | 40.7% | 59.3% | +0.8 |
| 2022 | Bob Katter | 39.8% | 60.2% | -4.3 |
| 2019 | Bob Katter | 35.5% | 64.5% | +7.8 |
Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact locality's voters across time.
State Electorate
Currently held by Wayde Chiesa Liberal National Party of Queensland — elected at the Nov 2025 by-election, after the results below
Next state election: 28 October 2028.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Nick Dametto KAP | 63.2% |
| 2020 | Nick Dametto KAP | 64.8% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2017, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this locality's voters. Results: Electoral Commission of Queensland.
Looking at a specific address in Balgal Beach?
Every figure above is a locality average, and an average smooths over the difference between a street of family homes and a block of flats. Look up one address and you get the census for the few hundred people around it, its own nearest schools and stops, and what the state has mapped for that block.
- The census for a few hundred neighbours, not all 998 residents
- Nearest and zoned schools, with the walk from that door
- Flood, bushfire and noise mapping, where the state publishes it
Free to look up. Subscribers see every section in full — $29/month.
Nearby suburbs
Compare Balgal Beach to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other QLD suburb — type a name and pick one.
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Common questions about Balgal Beach
Is Balgal Beach a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Balgal Beach is moderate (50/100, ranked against other QLD suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Balgal Beach?
Balgal Beach has a moderate recorded bushfire history (52/100, ranked against every Australian suburb with any fire history). These are locality-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Balgal Beach a good place to live?
Balgal Beach has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of D (16/100), ranked against other QLD suburbs on school quality (25%), safety (25%), SEIFA socio-economic advantage (25%), walkability (15%) and CBD access (10%). Whether it suits you depends on what you weigh — each of those is on this page.
What is the population of Balgal Beach?
Balgal Beach, QLD had a population of 998 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Balgal Beach, QLD?
The postcode for Balgal Beach, QLD is 4816.
How far is Balgal Beach from Brisbane?
Balgal Beach is 1,407 km from Brisbane CBD by road, about 959 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Balgal Beach?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Balgal Beach was $48,672 a year. It is the most recent suburb-level income figure until 2026 Census results are released in 2027.
What is the median weekly rent in Balgal Beach?
The median advertised rent in Balgal Beach is $680 a week for houses (3 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.
What is the median age in Balgal Beach?
The median age of residents in Balgal Beach was 58 at the 2021 ABS Census.
Is Balgal Beach at risk of bushfire?
Balgal Beach has a moderate recorded bushfire history (52/100). The score comes from Geoscience Australia's historical bushfire boundaries, with planned burns excluded: the area of recorded fires touching the locality relative to its size, ranked against every Australian suburb with any fire history. It records where fire has burned, not a bushfire-prone land designation, which your council's planning scheme sets.
Is Balgal Beach walkable?
Balgal Beach scores 14/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it very car-dependent. The score is a weighted average of public transport, schools, parks, supermarkets, GPs, pharmacies, childcare, and hospitals within walking distance.
What is the weather like in Balgal Beach?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Balgal Beach, Townsville Aero (44 km away), summer days average 31.8°C, winter nights 15°C, 1,304 mm of rain a year over 65 rainy days, and 5 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Balgal Beach?
First-home buyers in QLD may be eligible for $30,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $750,000. The grant is administered by Queensland Revenue Office; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Balgal Beach belong to?
Balgal Beach sits within the Townsville local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Balgal Beach?
The average residential rates bill through Townsville is $1,810 a year (2025). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Balgal Beach?
Across Townsville, 1,096 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 22.3% on the same period a year earlier. These are LGA-level totals — every suburb in the council shares the same figure.
Which federal electorate is Balgal Beach in?
Balgal Beach sits within the federal Division of Kennedy, currently held by Bob Katter (Katter's Australian Party (KAP)).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- For-sale & rental market · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2025–26
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Crime · 2025
- Road crashes · 2020–2024
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- State electorate · 2024
- Amenities · Sep 2026
- Health & emergency facilities · Sep 2026
- Industrial emissions (NPI) · 2024/2025
- Coastal erosion · 1988–2025
- Aircraft noise · 2024
Vintages show when each source's data is from. See all data sources.
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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.