Lake Innes NSW 2446

Lake Innes is a rural locality in New South Wales, 378 km from Sydney CBD, around 4 hours 15 minutes by car. Population is 495; the median age is 44 and the median household income is $115,128 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the top 40% nationally. Population grew 16.2% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $400 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $2,145. The area shows high bushfire risk and high crime risk. 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 495. 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.

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Median House Price

Public listings data

The median house sale price in Lake Innes sits at $1.55 million, broadly flat year-on-year. That said, only six sales settled in the quarter, so the median is a noisy signal — treat it as a direction rather than a level.

$1,554,000

Based on only 6 sales — small sample, take as indicative.

Rental Market

Rent agreed on new leases

Jul–Sep 2026
3-bed houses
$595/wk
40 bonds
+31% since 2021

Median weekly rent on bonds lodged for new tenancies across postcode 2446 (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 2025

99 Unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 30% of its income on the median rent in postcode 2446.

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.

Short-Stay Rentals

1 active Airbnb listing: 1 whole home and 0 rooms. Whole homes are about 0.6% of the locality's homes.

Airbnb only, as at Jun 2026; other platforms are not included. Active means reviewed in the past 12 months. The share is against private dwellings at the 2021 Census.

Is Lake Innes safe? Crime statistics

2025

Crime in Lake Innes sits in the moderate band, with 27 incidents recorded in 2025 — up roughly 35% on the prior year.

27 offences

35.0% since 2024
Theft 9 (33.3%)
Arson 3 (11.1%)
Harassment & Stalking 3 (11.1%)
Drug Offences 3 (11.1%)
Weapons Offences 3 (11.1%)
Property Damage 2 (7.4%)
Assault 1 (3.7%)
Robbery 1 (3.7%)
Disorderly Conduct 1 (3.7%)
Sexual Offences 1 (3.7%)

Crime Trend

Serious Road Crashes

2021–2025

18 crashes

where someone was killed or admitted to hospital, 3 of them fatal

Where they happened

Pacific Highway 10 (55.6%)
Ocean Drive 6 (33.3%)

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 Macquarie-Hastings Council has published 10 flood studies on the NSW Flood Data Portal. The mapped flood areas are in those studies; SuburbScan does not hold them.

All 10 on the portal

Coastal Erosion

100
monitoring points
within 5 km
80
actively eroding
> 0.1 m/yr retreat
-0.33
worst rate (m/yr)
Significant
5.4 km
nearest coastline
monitoring point

Shoreline Change Summary

1992–2025
Stable or accreting 46 (46%)
Moderate erosion (0.1–0.3 m/yr) 53 (53%)
Significant erosion (> 0.3 m/yr) 1 (1%)

Nearest Eroding Coastline

Distance
5.4 km
Rate
-0.06 m/yr
Net Movement
5.5 m
Certainty
good

Data Quality

High certainty: 100 of 100 points (100%)

Schools

No schools in this locality boundary.

Walkability

Lake Innes is very car-dependent on foot — at 6/100, nearly all errands require a car.

6
out of 100
Very Car-Dependent
Public Transport within 1 km 21
Schools within 1.5 km 0
Parks within 800 m 0
Supermarkets within 1 km 0
GPs within 1 km 0
Pharmacies within 1 km 0
Childcare within 1 km 0
Hospitals within 5 km 0

Public transport

Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Lake Innes.

21
out of 100
Bottom 5% in NSW
Bus
Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
3.5 arrivals/hr
Off-peak weekday
0.9 arrivals/hr
Saturday
0.0 arrivals/hr
Median peak wait
5 min
Span of service
9.4 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 Lake Innes.

30
connectivity score / 100
Most common
Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share
0%
Premises covered
188
Technology mix
Fixed wireless (WIRELESS) 97%
Satellite (Sky Muster) (SATELLITE) 3%

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

Supermarkets
None
Shopping Centres
None
Cafes & Restaurants
None
Parks & Reserves
1 in locality
Sport & Recreation
None
Beaches
None
Waterways
13 in locality
Childcare
None
GPs
None
Pharmacies
None
Hospitals
None
Police Stations
None
Banks & Bank@Post
None
Fuel Stations
None
EV Chargers
None
Pubs & Bars
None
Arts & Culture
None
Places of Worship
None

Port Macquarie-Hastings: council population

The whole council area, not just Lake Innes · estimated residents
at 30 June 2025
Residents
92,432
+1.5% in a year
Change
+1,368
people since 2024
Density
25
people per km² across the council area
What drove the change
Natural increase
-288
births minus deaths
Net internal migration
+1,397
moves within Australia
Net overseas migration
+259
arrivals minus departures

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

ABS SEIFA · ranked against every suburb in Australia, and within the state
2021 census
Advantage and disadvantage
8/10
7/10 within NSW
income, education, jobs and housing together
Economic resources
10/10
10/10 within NSW
income against housing cost and household size
Education and occupation
7/10
6/10 within NSW
qualifications and job type, income excluded

Lake Innes is home to 495 residents, with a median age of 44, a touch above the national 38. Median household income runs at $115,000 a year, with unemployment at 3.7%.

2021 Census · change since 2016

Population

495

16.2% since 2016

Median Age

44

no change since 2016

Median Household Income

$115,128/yr

19.9% since 2016
Top 21% in NSW

Census Median Rent

$400/wk

1.3% since 2016

Census Median Mortgage

$2,145/mo

23.8% since 2016

Avg Household Size

3.0

no change since 2016

Median Personal Income

$43,940/yr

27.6% since 2016

Unemployment Rate

3.7%

12.1% since 2016

Unoccupied Dwellings

0.0%

Total Dwellings

155

15.7% since 2016

Owner-Occupier Rate

82.4%

0.9% since 2016

Houses

100.0%

3.8% since 2016

Rental Stress

18.1%

15.4% since 2016

Mortgage Stress

22.4%

3.2% since 2016

Work From Home

18.3%

94.7% since 2016

Dwelling Types

Houses 155 (100.0%)

Property Ownership

Owned Outright 73 (47.7%)
Mortgage 53 (34.6%)
Renting 27 (17.6%)

Demographics

Born in Australia
86.3%
English Spoken at Home
93.1%
Employment Rate
63.6%
8.9% since 2016
Completed Year 12
36.6%

Occupations

Professionals 66 (25.2%)
Managers 38 (14.5%)
Clerical & Administrative 35 (13.4%)
Technicians & Trades 33 (12.6%)
Community & Personal Service 28 (10.7%)
Labourers 28 (10.7%)
Sales 13 (5.0%)
Machinery Operators & Drivers 13 (5.0%)

Religion

Christianity 244 (49.3%)
No Religion 197 (39.8%)
Islam 7 (1.4%)
Other Religions 5 (1.0%)
Buddhism 4 (0.8%)

Country of Birth (overseas)

Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.

England 21 (4.2%)
New Zealand 6 (1.2%)
Thailand 6 (1.2%)
Ireland 4 (0.8%)

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.

2016-2021 0 (0.0%)
2011-2015 3 (0.6%)
2001-2010 10 (2.0%)
1991-2000 3 (0.6%)
1981-1990 14 (2.8%)
Before 1981 28 (5.7%)

0 residents (0.0%) 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.

Arabic 5 (1.0%)

Age Distribution

0-4 20 (4.0%)
5-14 69 (13.9%)
15-19 50 (10.1%)
20-24 31 (6.3%)
25-34 31 (6.3%)
35-44 53 (10.7%)
45-54 68 (13.7%)
55-64 90 (18.2%)
65-74 50 (10.1%)
75-84 24 (4.8%)
85+ 12 (2.4%)

Family & Household Composition

Couple Families 60 (61.9%)
One Parent Families 23 (23.7%)
Lone Person 14 (14.4%)

Commute to Work

Car (driver) 164 (77.0%)
Worked from Home 39 (18.3%)
Car (passenger) 10 (4.7%)

2% of employed residents work in a capital's city centre (4 of 262).

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.

Education

Certificate III & IV 89 (18.0%)
Bachelor Degree 52 (10.5%)
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 41 (8.3%)
Postgraduate Degree 16 (3.2%)
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 8 (1.6%)

Cars per Dwelling

1 car 16 (10.5%)
2 cars 67 (43.8%)
3 cars 37 (24.2%)
4+ cars 33 (21.6%)

Council Rates

Port Macquarie-Hastings
FY 2024-25

Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,325 a year through Port Macquarie-Hastings based on 2024 figures.

Avg residential rate
$1,325/yr
8% above the NSW average of $1,230 · median of 128 councils
Valuation basis
Unimproved Value
land only

How this land is zoned

Share of Lake Innes's area by planning zone
2026-09
  • Environmental 49%
  • Rural and farming 48%
  • Residential 1%
  • Zones under 1% 1%

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 Macquarie-Hastings

The whole council area, not just Lake Innes · new residential dwellings
to 2026-08

In the year to August 2026, 546 new dwellings were approved across Port Macquarie-Hastings. That mix is 357 houses and 189 units. Approvals are up 32.7% on the same period a year earlier.

Trailing 12 months
546dwellings
+32.7% YoY
Houses
357
detached dwellings
Units
189
townhouses + apartments

Aboriginal Land Council

Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Birpai 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

MODERATE

PM2.5 averaged 5.1 µg/m³ in 2025 — below Australia's NEPM annual standard (8 µg/m³), slightly above the stricter WHO guideline (5 µg/m³). 4 days exceeded the daily threshold of 25 µg/m³.

PM10 averaged 11.3 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.92 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 1 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 0.

From the Port Macquarie monitoring station, 7.9 km away.

Setting

Elevation
2 m
above sea level, at the locality centre
Distance to the ocean
5.4 km

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

0.5%
of light vehicles are electric
Up from 0.05% in 2021
+0.2 points this year

In postcode 2446, 62 of 13,144 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 1.6% (206 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 2.0%.

Electric share, year by year
2021
0.05%
2022
0.08%
2023
0.10%
2024
0.28%
2025
0.47%

Rooftop solar

69
systems per 100 dwellings
Averaging 6.6 kW each

In postcode 2446, 3,968 rooftop-solar systems totalling 26.2 MW have been installed since 2001, against 5,716 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 243 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.

Systems installed, year by year
2019
286
2020
417
2021
327
2022
304
2023
287
2024
267
2025
206
2026
149

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).

Verify eligibility with Revenue NSW

Mortgage repayments

I'm looking for
Deposit
$
%
Monthly repayment
$8,105
Loan amount
$1,243,200
Total interest over 30 years
$1,674,504

3 mortgage brokers are registered in postcode 2446.

Deposit
$310,800
Stamp duty
$66,757
Cash needed at settlement
$377,557

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.

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

Division of Lyne

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

Port Macquarie District

Currently held by Robert Dwyer Liberal — elected at the Mar 2025 by-election, after the results below

Next state election: 13 March 2027.

Year Winner Won with
2023 Leslie Williams LP 60.8%
2019 Leslie Williams NP 70.3%
2015 Leslie Williams NP 69.0%

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 Lake Innes?

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.

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Nearby suburbs

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Common questions about Lake Innes

Is Lake Innes a safe place to live?

Recorded crime in Lake Innes is moderate (61/100, ranked against other NSW suburbs on offences per resident).

What natural hazards affect Lake Innes?

Lake Innes has a moderate recorded bushfire history (67/100, 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 Lake Innes?

Lake Innes, NSW had a population of 495 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.

What is the postcode for Lake Innes, NSW?

The postcode for Lake Innes, NSW is 2446.

How far is Lake Innes from Sydney?

Lake Innes is 378 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 257 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.

What is the median household income in Lake Innes?

At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Lake Innes was $115,128 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 Lake Innes?

There are too few current rental listings in Lake Innes for a reliable median. At the 2021 ABS Census the median weekly rent was $400, across all dwelling types.

What is the median age in Lake Innes?

The median age of residents in Lake Innes was 44 at the 2021 ABS Census.

Is Lake Innes at risk of bushfire?

Lake Innes has a moderate recorded bushfire history (67/100). 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 Lake Innes walkable?

Lake Innes 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 Lake Innes?

The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Lake Innes (Port Macquarie) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 5.1 µg/m³ and PM10 of 11.3 µg/m³. That puts Lake Innes below the Australian NEPM annual standard of 8 µg/m³ but above the stricter WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.

Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Lake Innes?

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 Lake Innes belong to?

Lake Innes sits within the Port Macquarie-Hastings local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.

How much are council rates in Lake Innes?

The average residential rates bill through Port Macquarie-Hastings is $1,325 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.

How much is being built near Lake Innes?

Across Port Macquarie-Hastings, 546 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's up 32.7% 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 Lake Innes in?

Lake Innes sits within the federal Division of Lyne, currently held by Alison Penfold (The Nationals).

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Data freshness

Vintages show when each source's data is from. See all data sources.

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