Helensburgh is a suburb in New South Wales, 57 km from Sydney CBD, around 1 hour 5 minutes by car. Population is 6,576; the median age is 38 and the median household income is $129,480 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the top 20% nationally. Population grew 3.0% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $535 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $2,500. The area shows high bushfire risk. 2 schools sit within the suburb boundary, and walkability is moderate.
Is Helensburgh a good suburb?
Helensburgh scores a B (49/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — strong on community, weaker on safety.
Mixed results
2 schools
Some car dependence
Walkability 58/100 · 57.2 km · 63 min drive to Sydney
Around the state median
Median $1.4M
High bushfire risk
Fire 91/100 · Crime 37/100
Very advantaged
SEIFA decile 9/10 · median age 38 · 6,576 residents
Liveability Rating
49 / 100 · Ranked #772 in NSWEach bar is Helensburgh's rank among NSW suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better). Scored on 4 of 5 factors: no school data, so the other factors carry its weight.
No flood data is published for New South Wales — a blank here means we hold no data, not that there is no risk.
How do you rate the liveability in Helensburgh?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
49 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataHelensburgh's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $1.4 million, about 4% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$1,400,000
Based on 91 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 24 days — median across 39 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 3 bed 39 sales $1.33M
- 4 bed 34 sales $1.46M
- 5 bed 12 sales $1.71M
Units
$790,000
Based on 10 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 27 days — median across 5 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 7 sales $790K
Rental Market
Advertised rents · last 6 monthsHouses in Helensburgh rent for around $878 a week on average, based on 10 houses listed for rent in the past six months.
Houses
$878/wk
10 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
Units
$625/wk
4 units advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
14 rentals advertised against an estimated 328 rented homes (4.3%) in the last 6 months.
Rent agreed on new leases
Jul–Sep 2026- All rentals
- $810/wk
- 32 bonds
- +28% since 2021
Median weekly rent on bonds lodged for new tenancies across postcode 2508 (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 202581 Unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 37% of its income on the median rent in postcode 2508.
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.
Is Helensburgh safe? Crime statistics
2025Crime in Helensburgh sits in the low band, with 171 incidents recorded in 2025 — down about 7% on the prior year.
171 offences
6.6% since 2024Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2021–202517 crashes
where someone was killed or admitted to hospital, 1 of them fatal
Where they happened
Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the suburb 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
Wollongong City Council has published 22 flood studies on the NSW Flood Data Portal. The mapped flood areas are in those studies; SuburbScan does not hold them.
- Hewitts Creek Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan July 2026 2026
- Collins Creek Floodplain Risk Management Study & Plan 2025
- Fairy & Cabbage Tree Creeks FRMS&P 2024 2024
- Allans Creek Flood Study & Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan 2024 2024
- Towradgi Creek Flood Study, Floodplain Risk Management Study & Plan 2023 2023
Schools
Two schools serve Helensburgh, and performance is broadly on par with peer-suburb schools.
- • 644 students across 2 schools (avg 322)
- • Sectors: 1 Government, 1 Catholic
- • ICSEA 1057-1071, median 1064 (above the national baseline of 1000)
- • Largest: Helensburgh Public School (460 students)
Primary
Walkability
Helensburgh is somewhat walkable on foot — at 58/100, a short cluster of errands work on foot but most trips still benefit from a car.
Public transport
Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Helensburgh.
- Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
- 86.0 arrivals/hr
- Off-peak weekday
- 60.3 arrivals/hr
- Saturday
- 25.6 arrivals/hr
- Median peak wait
- 0 min
- Span of service
- 21.1 hours
Scheduled service only, based on the 21 October 2026 timetable. Reliability (delays, cancellations) not measured.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Helensburgh.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 38%
- Premises covered
- 2,526
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
Wollongong: council population
The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this suburb alone — this suburb's own population is in the census section above.
Socio-economic profile
The ABS scores 15 small areas inside this suburb and averages them into the single decile above. They fall into 5 different deciles — a wide range, so parts of this suburb rank well above the average and parts well below it.
Helensburgh is home to about 6,600 residents, with a median age of 38, broadly in line with the national figure. Median household income runs at $129,000 a year, with unemployment at 3.1%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
6,576
Median Age
38
Median Household Income
$129,480/yr
Census Median Rent
$535/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$2,500/mo
Avg Household Size
2.9
Median Personal Income
$51,012/yr
Unemployment Rate
3.1%
Unoccupied Dwellings
4.1%
Total Dwellings
2,169
Owner-Occupier Rate
84.9%
Houses
82.2%
Rental Stress
21.5%
Mortgage Stress
23.2%
Work From Home
39.3%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
30 rented from a state or territory housing authority and 0 from a community housing provider, as a share of the 321 rented dwellings above — not of all dwellings.
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 85.6%
- English Spoken at Home
- 92.6%
- Employment Rate
- 67.7%
- Completed Year 12
- 40.1%
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.
60 residents (0.9%) 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.
Where New Residents Came From
Where residents aged five and over lived five years before the 2021 Census, for those who lived somewhere else.
12.9% of residents (785) lived in a capital city five years earlier, most of them in Sydney (777).
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 6,072 residents aged five and over. Areas are ABS statistical regions. Small counts are approximate: the ABS adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Languages Spoken at Home
Top languages other than English, as a share of all residents.
Age Distribution
Family & Household Composition
Commute to Work
14% of employed residents work in a capital's city centre (480 of 3,453).
City centre: the ABS area around each capital's CBD, such as Sydney Inner City or Perth City (which takes in Subiaco and Leederville). 2021 Census place of work.
Local Jobs
People who work in this suburb against employed people who live here, 2021 Census.
About 1,472 people work here; 3,453 employed residents live here.
Mostly a place people commute from: 0.4 jobs per working resident. At least 56% of employed residents must work outside the suburb.
Counts are by place of work and place of usual residence. The ABS counts jobs in zones; where a zone spans several places, its jobs are shared out by land use. The ABS also adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Education
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,751 a year through Wollongong based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Environmental 67%
- Infrastructure and transport 14%
- Residential 11%
- Rural and farming 5%
- Parks and recreation 2%
- Industrial 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 — the property page shows the zone for one address.
Building Approvals: Wollongong
In the year to August 2026, 1,476 new dwellings were approved across Wollongong. That mix is 422 houses and 1,054 units. Approvals are down 31.3% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Land Council
Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Illawarra 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 5.8 µg/m³ in 2025 — below Australia's NEPM annual standard (8 µg/m³), slightly above the stricter WHO guideline (5 µg/m³).
PM10 averaged 14.8 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.97 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 0 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 1.
From the Campbelltown West monitoring station, 21.5 km away.
Climate & Setting
from Lucas Heights (Ansto), 14.6 kmHigh rainfall.
- Elevation
- 242 m
- above sea level, at the suburb centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 4.2 km
- 4.2 km to a named beach
- Annual rainfall
- 1,038 mm
- 89 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- —
- Winter min (Jul)
- —
Elevation is the ground at the suburb 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- 1.1 kmCoal MiningTop reported: Particulate Matter ≤10.0 µm (PM10) · Oxides of Nitrogen · Carbon monoxide
EV adoption
In postcode 2508, 86 of 6,921 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 3.0% (208 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 4.2%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 2508, 1,385 rooftop-solar systems totalling 9.7 MW have been installed since 2001, against 3,241 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 139 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).
Mortgage repayments
2 mortgage brokers are registered in this suburb.
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 Revenue NSW
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 $600,000 may qualify for $10,000 — see what qualifies with Revenue NSW.
At $1,400,000 this is $800,000 above the $600,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $10,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with Revenue NSW.
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 Alison Byrnes Australian Labor Party
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Alison Byrnes | 67.5% | 32.5% | +2.5 |
| 2022 | Alison Byrnes | 64.7% | 35.3% | -1.3 |
| 2019 | Sharon Bird | 63.4% | 36.6% | -0.1 |
Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact suburb's voters across time.
State Electorate
Currently held by Maryanne Stuart Labor
Next state election: 13 March 2027.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Maryanne Stuart ALP | 60.0% |
| 2019 | Lee Evans LP | 55.0% |
| 2015 | Lee Evans LP | 57.6% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2021, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this suburb's voters. Results: © State of New South Wales through the NSW Electoral Commission, CC BY 4.0, adapted.
Looking at a specific address in Helensburgh?
Every figure above is a suburb 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 6,576 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.
Featured in
- #3 in Wollongong's highest-income suburbs
- #3 in Wollongong suburbs where young families live
- #5 in Wollongong suburbs with the fastest EV adoption growth
- #6 in Wollongong suburbs where the most residents moved from a capital city
- #6 in Wollongong suburbs with the largest non-religious population
- #7 in Wollongong suburbs with the highest EV adoption today
- #8 in Wollongong suburbs with the most rooftop solar
- #8 in Wollongong suburbs with the best public transport
- #12 in Wollongong's most owner-occupied suburbs
- #15 in Wollongong suburbs where 3-bedroom house rents rose most
- #15 in Wollongong suburbs that suit young professionals
Checking the whole city?
Suburbs to avoid in Sydney There is no list of bad suburbs, but there are hazards the state measures and publishes — recorded crime, bushfire exposure, flood overlays and aircraft noise. Sydney suburbs ranked on them, with what the numbers do and don't mean.Nearby suburbs
Compare Helensburgh 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 Helensburgh
Is Helensburgh a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Helensburgh is low (37/100, ranked against other NSW suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Helensburgh?
Helensburgh has a high recorded bushfire history (91/100, ranked against every Australian suburb with any fire history). These are suburb-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Helensburgh a good place to live?
Helensburgh has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of B (49/100), ranked against other NSW 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 Helensburgh?
Helensburgh, NSW had a population of 6,576 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Helensburgh, NSW?
The postcode for Helensburgh, NSW is 2508.
How far is Helensburgh from Sydney?
Helensburgh is 57 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 63 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Helensburgh?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Helensburgh was $129,480 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 Helensburgh?
The median advertised rent in Helensburgh is $878 a week for houses (10 listings) and $625 a week for units (4 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.
What is the median age in Helensburgh?
The median age of residents in Helensburgh was 38 at the 2021 ABS Census.
Is Helensburgh at risk of bushfire?
Helensburgh has a high recorded bushfire history (91/100). The score comes from Geoscience Australia's historical bushfire boundaries, with planned burns excluded: the area of recorded fires touching the suburb 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.
How are the schools in Helensburgh?
There are 2 schools inside the Helensburgh boundary: 2 at similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Helensburgh walkable?
Helensburgh scores 58/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it somewhat walkable. 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 Helensburgh?
The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Helensburgh (Campbelltown West) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 5.8 µg/m³ and PM10 of 14.8 µg/m³. That puts Helensburgh 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 Helensburgh?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Helensburgh, Lucas Heights (Ansto) (14.6 km away), 1,038 mm of rain a year over 89 rainy days over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Helensburgh?
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 Helensburgh belong to?
Helensburgh sits within the Wollongong local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Helensburgh?
The average residential rates bill through Wollongong is $1,751 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Helensburgh?
Across Wollongong, 1,476 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 31.3% 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 Helensburgh in?
Helensburgh sits within the federal Division of Cunningham, currently held by Alison Byrnes (Australian Labor Party).
Search another suburb or address
Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- For-sale & rental market · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2024–25
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- Public transport · Oct 2026
- 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.