Pambula NSW 2549
Pambula is a town in New South Wales, 528 km from Sydney CBD, around 6 hours 5 minutes by car. Population is 1,002; the median age is 54 and the median household income is $58,084 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 $313 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $1,300. The area shows no recorded bushfire exposure. Of 2 schools within the town boundary, 1 ranks above the state average, and walkability is high.
Is Pambula a good town?
Pambula scores a B (51/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — strong on transit and safety, weaker on community.
Mixed results
2 schools · 1 above peer schools
Very walkable
Walkability 77/100 · 528.2 km · 365 min drive to Sydney
Around the state median
Median $765K · Cheaper than 75% of NSW
Low all-round risk
Fire 0/100 · Crime 39/100
Highly disadvantaged
SEIFA decile 2/10 · median age 54 · 1,002 residents
Liveability Rating
51 / 100 · Ranked #727 in NSWEach bar is Pambula'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 Pambula?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
51 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataPambula's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $765,000, roughly 27% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$765,000
19% below its 3 neighbours (median $940,000)
Based on 27 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 103 days — median across 11 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 3 bed 15 sales $684K
- 4 bed 5 sales $1.1M
Units
$537,500
Based on 14 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 25 days — median across 4 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 11 sales $535K
Is Pambula safe? Crime statistics
2025Crime in Pambula sits in the low band, with 26 incidents recorded in 2025 — down roughly 37% on the prior year.
26 offences
36.6% since 2024Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2021–20251 crash
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
Bega Valley Shire 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.
Schools
Two schools serve Pambula, and the cohort skews above peer-suburb performance. Pambula Public School leads the pack.
- • 309 students across 2 schools (avg 154)
- • Sectors: 1 Independent, 1 Government
- • ICSEA 888-994, median 941 (below the national baseline of 1000)
- • Largest: Pambula Public School (257 students)
Primary
Secondary
Walkability
Pambula is very walkable on foot — at 77/100, most daily errands can be done on foot. Within the town there are 1 supermarket, 4 parks and 9 cafes to anchor that walking radius.
Public transport
Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Pambula.
- Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
- 14.2 arrivals/hr
- Off-peak weekday
- 6.7 arrivals/hr
- Saturday
- 1.5 arrivals/hr
- Median peak wait
- 2 min
- Span of service
- 15.0 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 Pambula.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 30%
- Premises covered
- 666
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
Bega Valley: council population
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
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.
Pambula is home to about 1,000 residents, with a median age of 54 — noticeably older than the national figure of 38. Median household income runs at $58,000 a year, with unemployment at 2.4%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
1,002
Median Age
54
Median Household Income
$58,084/yr
Census Median Rent
$313/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$1,300/mo
Avg Household Size
2.2
Median Personal Income
$26,364/yr
Unemployment Rate
2.4%
Unoccupied Dwellings
15.2%
Total Dwellings
382
Owner-Occupier Rate
77.6%
Houses
72.3%
Rental Stress
28.0%
Mortgage Stress
26.9%
Work From Home
12.6%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 83.0%
- English Spoken at Home
- 92.4%
- Employment Rate
- 46.2%
- Completed Year 12
- 30.2%
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.
6 residents (0.6%) 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.
6.6% of residents (63) lived in a capital city five years earlier, most of them in Melbourne (26).
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 956 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
1% of employed residents work in a capital's city centre (4 of 394).
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
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,767 a year through Bega Valley based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Environmental 65%
- Rural and farming 11%
- Residential 9%
- Parks and recreation 6%
- Industrial 5%
- Infrastructure and transport 3%
- Commercial 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: Bega Valley
In the year to August 2026, 109 new dwellings were approved across Bega Valley. That mix is 99 houses and 10 units. Approvals are down 32.1% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Land Council
Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Eden 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 Bega (Newtown Road), 27.2 kmModerate rainfall.
- Elevation
- 4 m
- above sea level, at the town centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 2.4 km
- 3.0 km to a named beach
- Annual rainfall
- 768 mm
- 69 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.
Industrial Emissions Nearby
2 facilities within 5 km- 1.9 kmSewerage and Drainage ServicesTop reported: Total Phosphorus · Total Nitrogen · Ammonia (total)
- 3.1 kmPetroleum Product WholesalingTop reported: Total Volatile Organic Compounds · Toluene (methylbenzene) · Xylenes (individual or mixed isomers)
EV adoption
In postcode 2549, 15 of 3,661 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 2.2% (79 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 2.6%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 2549, 980 rooftop-solar systems totalling 6.2 MW have been installed since 2001, against 1,878 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 52 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 postcode 2549.
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 $765,000 this is $165,000 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 Kristy Mcbain Australian Labor Party
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Kristy Mcbain | 57.2% | 42.8% | +1.1 |
| 2022 | Kristy Mcbain | 58.2% | 41.8% | -7.3 |
| 2019 | Mike Kelly | 50.9% | 49.1% | +2.1 |
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
Currently held by Michael Holland Labor
Next state election: 13 March 2027.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Michael Holland ALP | 60.4% |
| 2019 | Andrew Constance LP | 56.9% |
| 2015 | Andrew Constance LP | 58.2% |
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 Pambula?
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.
- The census for a few hundred neighbours, not all 1,002 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
Merimbula NSW 2548
Pambula Beach NSW 2549
Millingandi NSW 2549
South Pambula NSW 2549
Lochiel NSW 2549
Bald Hills NSW 2549
Compare Pambula 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 Pambula
Is Pambula a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Pambula is low (39/100, ranked against other NSW suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Pambula?
Pambula has no recorded bushfire history. These are town-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Pambula a good place to live?
Pambula has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of B (51/100), 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 Pambula?
Pambula, NSW had a population of 1,002 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Pambula, NSW?
The postcode for Pambula, NSW is 2549.
How far is Pambula from Sydney?
Pambula is 528 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 365 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Pambula?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Pambula was $58,084 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 Pambula?
There are too few current rental listings in Pambula for a reliable median. At the 2021 ABS Census the median weekly rent was $313, across all dwelling types.
What is the median age in Pambula?
The median age of residents in Pambula was 54 at the 2021 ABS Census.
How are the schools in Pambula?
There are 2 schools inside the Pambula boundary: 1 above similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Pambula walkable?
Pambula scores 77/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it very walkable. 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 Pambula?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Pambula, Bega (Newtown Road) (27.2 km away), 768 mm of rain a year over 69 rainy days over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Pambula?
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 Pambula belong to?
Pambula sits within the Bega Valley local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Pambula?
The average residential rates bill through Bega Valley is $1,767 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Pambula?
Across Bega Valley, 109 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 32.1% 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 Pambula in?
Pambula sits within the federal Division of Eden-monaro, currently held by Kristy Mcbain (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
- 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.