Located in New South Wales, Butterwick sits 176 km from Sydney CBD, around 2 hours 15 minutes by car. The locality has 190 residents, a median age of 42, and a median household income of $138,632 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the top 20% nationally. Population grew 31.9% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $650 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $2,275. Walkability is low.
This locality is too small to rate.
The Liveability Rating is calculated for suburbs of 500 residents or more, and this one has 190. Below that the school, census and safety figures behind the score cover too few people to rank fairly against the rest of the state. The individual measures further down this page are still shown.
How do you rate the liveability in Butterwick?
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Our score
Not enough data to score this locality.
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Rental Market
Rent agreed on new leases
Jul–Sep 2026- 3-bed houses
- $625/wk
- 84 bonds
- +40% since 2021
- 2-bed units
- $540/wk
- 23 bonds
- +30% since 2021
Median weekly rent on bonds lodged for new tenancies across postcode 2321 (NSW publishes bonds by postcode, which can cover several suburbs). Change since 2021 compares the median of the first four quarters with the last four. Asking rents above come from advertised listings.
Rental affordability
June quarter 202588 Unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 34% of its income on the median rent in postcode 2321.
SGS Rental Affordability Index: a score of 100 means rent takes 30% of income, the usual housing-stress line; lower scores are less affordable. "Region" is the capital city or the rest of the state.
Serious Road Crashes
2021–2025No crash in Butterwick killed anyone or put anyone in hospital in 2021–2025.
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.
Council Flood Studies
Port Stephens Council has published 7 flood studies on the NSW Flood Data Portal. The mapped flood areas are in those studies; SuburbScan does not hold them.
Schools
Walkability
Butterwick is very car-dependent on foot — at 6/100, nearly all errands require a car.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Butterwick.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 0%
- Premises covered
- 75
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
Port Stephens: 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
Butterwick is home to 190 residents, with a median age of 42, a touch above the national 38. Median household income runs at $139,000 a year, with unemployment at 0.0%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
190
Median Age
42
Median Household Income
$138,632/yr
Census Median Rent
$650/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$2,275/mo
Avg Household Size
3.1
Median Personal Income
$43,732/yr
Unemployment Rate
0.0%
Unoccupied Dwellings
16.9%
Total Dwellings
59
Owner-Occupier Rate
93.0%
Houses
100.0%
Rental Stress
24.4%
Mortgage Stress
19.7%
Work From Home
26.8%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 83.2%
- English Spoken at Home
- 93.7%
- Employment Rate
- 65.6%
- Completed Year 12
- 38.4%
Occupations
Religion
Country of Birth (overseas)
Largest overseas birthplaces, 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 $1,359 a year through Port Stephens based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Rural and farming 74%
- Environmental 26%
Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the locality around it — the property page shows the zone for one address.
Building Approvals: Port Stephens
In the year to August 2026, 495 new dwellings were approved across Port Stephens. That mix is 294 houses and 201 units. Approvals are down 72.1% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Land Council
Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Mindaribba Local Aboriginal Land Council.
Local Aboriginal Land Councils are statutory bodies under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983, responsible for land claims and land management for their members. Their boundaries are administrative and are not a statement of whose Country this is. NSW does not publish a register of Aboriginal parties by area — they are registered for each project.
Air Quality
MODERATEPM2.5 averaged 6.3 µg/m³ in 2025 — below Australia's NEPM annual standard (8 µg/m³), slightly above the stricter WHO guideline (5 µg/m³). 1 day exceeded the daily threshold of 25 µg/m³.
PM10 averaged 17.5 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.72 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 1 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 0.
From the Beresfield monitoring station, 16.4 km away.
Climate & Setting
from Paterson (Tocal AWS), 5.5 kmHigh rainfall — hot summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 14 m
- above sea level, at the locality centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 23.5 km
- Annual rainfall
- 996 mm
- 89 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 30.0°C
- 20 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 7.1°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.
Industrial Emissions Nearby
1 facility within 5 km- 4.4 kmGravel and Sand QuarryingTop reported: Particulate Matter ≤10.0 µm (PM10) · Oxides of Nitrogen · Carbon monoxide
EV adoption
In postcode 2321, 98 of 17,669 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 3.1% (542 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 3.6%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 2321, 5,061 rooftop-solar systems totalling 38.3 MW have been installed since 2001, against 7,365 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 460 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$10,000 for new homes priced up to $600,000.
Off-the-plan or contracted-build value cap is $750,000 (vs $600,000 for completed new homes). Stamp duty concessions are a separate scheme (First Home Buyers Assistance).
Federal Electorate
Currently held by Alison Penfold The Nationals
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Alison Penfold | 40.2% | 59.8% | +4.0 |
| 2022 | David Gillespie | 36.2% | 63.8% | -1.4 |
| 2019 | David Gillespie | 34.8% | 65.2% | +3.5 |
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 Kate Washington Labor
Next state election: 13 March 2027.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Kate Washington ALP | 69.0% |
| 2019 | Kate Washington ALP | 55.8% |
| 2015 | Kate Washington ALP | 54.7% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2021, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this locality's voters. Results: © State of New South Wales through the NSW Electoral Commission, CC BY 4.0, adapted.
Looking at a specific address in Butterwick?
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 190 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 Butterwick to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other NSW suburb — type a name and pick one.
Or jump straight to a nearby comparison:
Common questions about Butterwick
Is Butterwick a safe place to live?
Butterwick had no recorded offences in the latest year of NSW police data.
What natural hazards affect Butterwick?
Butterwick has a moderate recorded bushfire history (41/100, 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.
What is the population of Butterwick?
Butterwick, NSW had a population of 190 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Butterwick, NSW?
The postcode for Butterwick, NSW is 2321.
How far is Butterwick from Sydney?
Butterwick is 176 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 136 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Butterwick?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Butterwick was $138,632 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 Butterwick?
There are too few current rental listings in Butterwick for a reliable median. At the 2021 ABS Census the median weekly rent was $650, across all dwelling types.
What is the median age in Butterwick?
The median age of residents in Butterwick was 42 at the 2021 ABS Census.
Is Butterwick at risk of bushfire?
Butterwick has a moderate recorded bushfire history (41/100). 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 Butterwick walkable?
Butterwick scores 6/100 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 air quality in Butterwick?
The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Butterwick (Beresfield) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 6.3 µg/m³ and PM10 of 17.5 µg/m³. That puts Butterwick below the Australian NEPM annual standard of 8 µg/m³ but above the stricter WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.
What is the weather like in Butterwick?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Butterwick, Paterson (Tocal AWS) (5.5 km away), summer days average 30°C, winter nights 7.1°C, 996 mm of rain a year over 89 rainy days, and 20 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Butterwick?
First-home buyers in NSW may be eligible for $10,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $600,000. The grant is administered by Revenue NSW; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Butterwick belong to?
Butterwick sits within the Port Stephens local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Butterwick?
The average residential rates bill through Port Stephens is $1,359 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Butterwick?
Across Port Stephens, 495 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 72.1% 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 Butterwick in?
Butterwick sits within the federal Division of Lyne, currently held by Alison Penfold (The Nationals).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Council rates · FY 2024–25
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Crime · 2025
- Road crashes · 2021–2025
- Air quality · 2025
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- State electorate · 2023
- 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.