Lockhart NSW 2656

Lockhart sits 516 km from Sydney CBD in New South Wales, around 5 hours 30 minutes by car. Census data records 1,019 residents with a median age of 51 and a median household income of $57,772 per year. By household income, education, and employment patterns, it ranks in the bottom 20% nationally. The town fell 4.0% between 2016 and 2021. At the 2021 Census, households here paid a median rent of $195 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $867. Lockhart is characterised by high crime risk. 2 schools sit within the town boundary, and walkability is low.

Is Lockhart a good town?

Lockhart scores a D (26/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — strong on prices, weaker on transit, safety, and community.

Schools

Mixed results

2 schools

Transit

Car-dependent

Walkability 0/100 · 515.8 km · 331 min drive to Sydney

Prices

More affordable than most

Median $375K · More affordable than 87% of NSW

Safety

High crime risk

Fire 17/100 · Crime 72/100

Community

Highly disadvantaged

SEIFA decile 2/10 · median age 51 · 1,019 residents

D

Liveability Rating

26 / 100 · Ranked #1362 in NSW

Each bar is Lockhart'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.

Schools quality no data
too few schools to rate
Safety
49
Bushfire Low · Crime High

No flood data is published for New South Wales — a blank here means we hold no data, not that there is no risk.

Socio-economic
22
Disadvantaged
Walkability
5
Very car-dependent
CBD access
13
515.8 km · 331 min drive to Sydney
How it's calculated: Safety rank 49 × 25% + Socio-economic rank 22 × 25% + Walkability rank 5 × 15% + CBD access rank 13 × 10% = 26 / 100. Missing components rebalance the remaining weights.

How do you rate the liveability in Lockhart?

Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.

Our score

26 / 100

From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.

Residents say

…

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Median House Price

Public listings data

Lockhart's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $375,000, roughly 13% above where it sat a year earlier.

Houses

$375,000

last 6 quarters
Cheaper than 90% of NSW
↑ +13.4% year-on-year

Based on 32 recorded sales in the last 24 months.

Typically sold in 60 days — median across 6 sales that recorded a listing period

By bedrooms

  • 2 bed 6 sales $306K
  • 3 bed 15 sales $380K
  • 4 bed 8 sales $497K

Land

$85,000

last 2 quarters
↓ −22.7% year-on-year

Based on only 8 sales — small sample, take as indicative.

Currently for Sale

Last 6 months

Houses in Lockhart are currently listed at around $450,000 on average. Based on 9 houses listed in the past six months.

$450K

last 3 months
↓ −9.1% vs previous 6 months from $495K

9 houses listed in the last 6 months.

9 of the suburb's 420 dwellings (2.1%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.

Rental Market

Advertised rents · last 6 months

Houses in Lockhart rent for around $470 a week on average, based on 5 houses listed for rent in the past six months.

$470/wk

↑ +4.4% vs previous 6 months from $450/wk

5 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.

5 rentals advertised against an estimated 88 rented homes (5.7%) in the last 6 months.

Gross rental yield

Indicative
House
5.4% above the typical range
Top 2% in NSW

$470/week ($24,000 a year) on a $450,000 median

Based on a small sample (5 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 Lockhart safe? Crime statistics

2025

Crime in Lockhart sits in the high band, with 63 incidents recorded in 2025 — down roughly 22% on the prior year.

63 offences

22.2% since 2024
Theft 28 (44.4%)
Harassment & Stalking 11 (17.5%)
Property Damage 11 (17.5%)
Assault 5 (7.9%)
Weapons Offences 3 (4.8%)
Abduction & Kidnapping 1 (1.6%)
Disorderly Conduct 1 (1.6%)
Drug Offences 1 (1.6%)
Other Offences Against Person 1 (1.6%)
Sexual Offences 1 (1.6%)

Crime Trend

Serious Road Crashes

2021–2025

4 crashes

where someone was killed or admitted to hospital

Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the town 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

Lockhart Shire Council has published 5 flood studies on the NSW Flood Data Portal. The mapped flood areas are in those studies; SuburbScan does not hold them.

Schools

Two schools serve Lockhart, and the cohort is trailing peer-suburb performance.

40
out of 100
Weak
2 schools in this town
1 at similar · 1 below similar
  • • 162 students across 2 schools (avg 81)
  • • Sectors: 1 Government, 1 Catholic
  • • ICSEA 874-1018, median 946 (below the national baseline of 1000)
  • • Largest: Lockhart Central School (88 students)

Primary

Catholic · K-6 · 74 students
ICSEA 1018 (higher than 55% of Australian schools) · 17% top-SEA students
Below similar

Combined

Government · K-12 · 88 students
ICSEA 874 (higher than 7% of Australian schools) · 2% top-SEA students
At similar

Walkability

Lockhart is very car-dependent on foot — at 0/100, nearly all errands require a car.

0
out of 100
Very Car-Dependent
Public Transport within 1 km not measured
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

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.

Public transport

Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Lockhart.

31
out of 100
Bus
Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
10.8 arrivals/hr
Off-peak weekday
4.0 arrivals/hr
Saturday
0.0 arrivals/hr
Median peak wait
1 min
Span of service
9.6 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 Lockhart.

29
connectivity score / 100
Most common
Fixed wireless
Full-fibre (FTTP) share
0%
Premises covered
562
Technology mix
Fixed wireless (WIRELESS) 95%
Satellite (Sky Muster) (SATELLITE) 5%

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

Lockhart: council population

The whole council area, not just Lockhart · estimated residents
at 30 June 2025
Residents
3,509
+0.6% in a year
Change
+21
people since 2024
Density
1.2
people per km² across the council area
What drove the change
Natural increase
-5
births minus deaths
Net internal migration
+22
moves within Australia
Net overseas migration
+4
arrivals minus departures

The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this town alone — this town'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
2/10
2/10 within NSW
income, education, jobs and housing together
Economic resources
2/10
2/10 within NSW
income against housing cost and household size
Education and occupation
3/10
3/10 within NSW
qualifications and job type, income excluded
How evenly that is spread

The ABS scores 4 small areas inside this town and averages them into the single decile above. They fall into 3 different deciles — a narrow range, so the average describes the town closely.

Lockhart is home to about 1,000 residents, with a median age of 51 — noticeably older than the national figure of 38. Median household income runs at $58,000 a year, with unemployment at 3.9%.

2021 Census · change since 2016

Population

1,019

4.0% since 2016

Median Age

51

4.1% since 2016

Median Household Income

$57,772/yr

15.7% since 2016
Bottom 17% in NSW

Census Median Rent

$195/wk

30.0% since 2016

Census Median Mortgage

$867/mo

no change since 2016

Avg Household Size

2.2

no change since 2016

Median Personal Income

$31,200/yr

10.1% since 2016

Unemployment Rate

3.9%

11.4% since 2016

Unoccupied Dwellings

12.4%

39.8% since 2016

Total Dwellings

420

0.7% since 2016

Owner-Occupier Rate

79.0%

3.3% since 2016

Houses

94.5%

1.0% since 2016

Rental Stress

17.6%

12.8% since 2016

Mortgage Stress

18.0%

13.5% since 2016

Work From Home

12.0%

24.5% since 2016

Dwelling Types

Houses 397 (94.5%)
Flats / Apartments 17 (4.0%)
Townhouses 6 (1.4%)

Property Ownership

Owned Outright 221 (56.7%)
Mortgage 87 (22.3%)
Renting 82 (21.0%)
Of those rentals, social housing 10 (12.2%)

4 rented from a state or territory housing authority and 6 from a community housing provider, as a share of the 82 rented dwellings above — not of all dwellings.

Demographics

Born in Australia
87.6%
English Spoken at Home
92.8%
Employment Rate
49.5%
2.0% since 2016
Completed Year 12
27.0%

Occupations

Managers 94 (22.5%)
Community & Personal Service 57 (13.7%)
Technicians & Trades 55 (13.2%)
Professionals 52 (12.5%)
Labourers 43 (10.3%)
Clerical & Administrative 40 (9.6%)
Machinery Operators & Drivers 39 (9.4%)
Sales 35 (8.4%)

Religion

Christianity 725 (71.1%)
No Religion 208 (20.4%)
Hinduism 6 (0.6%)
Buddhism 4 (0.4%)
Sikhism 4 (0.4%)
Other Religions 4 (0.4%)

Country of Birth (overseas)

Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.

England 17 (1.7%)
Scotland 9 (0.9%)
Nepal 6 (0.6%)
Ireland 6 (0.6%)
India 4 (0.4%)
New Zealand 3 (0.3%)

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 11 (1.1%)
2011-2015 6 (0.6%)
2001-2010 8 (0.8%)
1991-2000 10 (1.0%)
1981-1990 5 (0.5%)
Before 1981 25 (2.5%)

11 residents (1.1%) 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.

Thai 5 (0.5%)

Age Distribution

0-4 59 (5.8%)
5-14 117 (11.5%)
15-19 53 (5.2%)
20-24 52 (5.1%)
25-34 76 (7.5%)
35-44 71 (7.0%)
45-54 117 (11.5%)
55-64 160 (15.7%)
65-74 151 (14.8%)
75-84 94 (9.2%)
85+ 65 (6.4%)

Family & Household Composition

Lone Person 143 (48.5%)
Couple Families 86 (29.2%)
One Parent Families 51 (17.3%)
Group Household 9 (3.1%)
Other Families 6 (2.0%)

Commute to Work

Car (driver) 247 (68.8%)
Walked Only 52 (14.5%)
Worked from Home 43 (12.0%)
Car (passenger) 14 (3.9%)
Bicycle 3 (0.8%)

Local Jobs

People who work in this town against employed people who live here, 2021 Census.

About 380 people work here; 417 employed residents live here.

Roughly as many jobs as working residents (0.9 per resident).

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

Certificate III & IV 176 (17.3%)
Bachelor Degree 70 (6.9%)
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 61 (6.0%)
Graduate Diploma / Certificate 12 (1.2%)
Postgraduate Degree 10 (1.0%)

Cars per Dwelling

0 cars 34 (8.2%)
1 car 147 (35.6%)
2 cars 150 (36.3%)
3 cars 47 (11.4%)
4+ cars 35 (8.5%)

Council Rates

Lockhart
FY 2024-25

Households face an average residential rates bill of $394 a year through Lockhart based on 2024 figures.

Avg residential rate
$394/yr
68% below the NSW average of $1,230 · median of 128 councils
Valuation basis
Unimproved Value
land only

How this land is zoned

Share of Lockhart's area by planning zone
2026-09
  • Rural and farming 99%
  • 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 town around it — the property page shows the zone for one address.

Building Approvals: Lockhart

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

In the year to August 2026, 7 new dwellings were approved across Lockhart. Almost all of the pipeline is detached houses. Approvals are down 33.3% on the same period a year earlier.

Trailing 12 months
7dwellings
-33.3% YoY
Houses
7
detached dwellings
Units
0
townhouses + apartments

Aboriginal Land Council

Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Wagga Wagga 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.

Climate & Setting

from Urana Post Office, 48.6 km

Dry climate.

Elevation
171 m
above sea level, at the town centre
Annual rainfall
457 mm
52 rainy days
Summer max (Jan)
—
Winter min (Jul)
—

Elevation is the ground at the town 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

0.3%
of light vehicles are electric
Up from 0.00% in 2021
+0.3 points this year

In postcode 2656, 3 of 1,150 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 2.1% (24 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 2.3%.

Electric share, year by year
2021
0.00%
2022
0.00%
2023
0.00%
2024
0.00%
2025
0.26%

Rooftop solar

61
systems per 100 dwellings
Averaging 6.7 kW each

In postcode 2656, 352 rooftop-solar systems totalling 2.4 MW have been installed since 2001, against 581 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 17 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
29
2020
26
2021
41
2022
20
2023
17
2024
22
2025
28
2026
8

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
$1,956
Loan amount
$300,000
Total interest over 30 years
$404,079
Deposit
$75,000
Stamp duty
$11,182
Cash needed at settlement
$86,182

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 Riverina

Currently held by Michael Mccormack The Nationals

Year Winner 2PP ALP 2PP LNP Swing
2025 Michael Mccormack 37.4% 62.6% -2.9
2022 Michael Mccormack 35.1% 64.8% -4.6
2019 Michael Mccormack 30.5% 69.5% +3.0

Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact town's voters across time.

State Electorate

Wagga Wagga District

Currently held by Joe McGirr Independent

Next state election: 13 March 2027.

Year Winner Won with
2023 Joe McGirr IND 72.4%
2019 Joe McGirr IND 65.5%
2015 Daryl Maguire LP 62.9%

Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2021, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this town's voters. Results: © State of New South Wales through the NSW Electoral Commission, CC BY 4.0, adapted.

Looking at a specific address in Lockhart?

Every figure above is a town 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

Compare Lockhart to another suburb

Side-by-side stats for any other NSW suburb — type a name and pick one.

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Common questions about Lockhart

Is Lockhart a safe place to live?

Recorded crime in Lockhart is high (72/100, ranked against other NSW suburbs on offences per resident). Offences against shops, venues and visitors are divided by the people who live here, so suburbs with large daytime or visitor populations rank higher than living there may feel.

What natural hazards affect Lockhart?

Lockhart has a low recorded bushfire history (17/100, ranked against every Australian suburb with any fire history). These are town-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.

Is Lockhart a good place to live?

Lockhart has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of D (26/100), 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 Lockhart?

Lockhart, NSW had a population of 1,019 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.

What is the postcode for Lockhart, NSW?

The postcode for Lockhart, NSW is 2656.

How far is Lockhart from Sydney?

Lockhart is 516 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 331 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.

What is the median household income in Lockhart?

At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Lockhart was $57,772 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 Lockhart?

The median advertised rent in Lockhart is $470 a week for houses (5 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.

What is the median age in Lockhart?

The median age of residents in Lockhart was 51 at the 2021 ABS Census.

Is Lockhart at risk of bushfire?

Lockhart has a low recorded bushfire history (17/100). The score comes from Geoscience Australia's historical bushfire boundaries, with planned burns excluded: the area of recorded fires touching the town 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 Lockhart?

There are 2 schools inside the Lockhart boundary: 1 at and 1 below similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).

What is the weather like in Lockhart?

At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Lockhart, Urana Post Office (48.6 km away), 457 mm of rain a year over 52 rainy days over 2006-2026.

Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Lockhart?

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 Lockhart belong to?

Lockhart sits within the Lockhart local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.

How much are council rates in Lockhart?

The average residential rates bill through Lockhart is $394 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.

How much is being built near Lockhart?

Across Lockhart, 7 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 33.3% 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 Lockhart in?

Lockhart sits within the federal Division of Riverina, currently held by Michael Mccormack (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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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.

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