Pelican Waters is a suburb in Queensland, 94 km from Brisbane CBD, around 1 hour 20 minutes by car. Population is 7,393; the median age is 55 and the median household income is $80,704 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the top 40% nationally. Population grew 17.8% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $540 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $2,200. The area shows no recorded bushfire exposure. 1 school sits within the suburb boundary, and walkability is moderate.
Is Pelican Waters a good suburb?
Pelican Waters scores a A (78/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — strong on transit, safety, and community.
Mixed results
1 school
Very walkable
Walkability 68/100 · 94 km · 81 min drive to Brisbane
Median available
Median $1.53M
Low all-round risk
Fire 0/100 · Crime 27/100
Advantaged
SEIFA decile 8/10 · median age 55 · 7,393 residents
Liveability Rating
78 / 100 · Ranked #76 in QLDEach bar is Pelican Waters's rank among QLD suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better). Scored on 4 of 5 factors: no school data, so the other factors carry its weight.
Flood data for Queensland covers only the areas mapped there — a blank here is not an all-clear.
How do you rate the liveability in Pelican Waters?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
78 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataPelican Waters's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $1.53 million, roughly 13% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$1,530,000
Based on 233 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 38 days — median across 118 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 3 bed 20 sales $1.46M
- 4 bed 167 sales $1.45M
- 5 bed 37 sales $1.75M
Units
$900,000
Based on 41 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 41 days — median across 16 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 20 sales $845K
- 3 bed 14 sales $1.04M
- 4 bed 5 sales $2.1M
Currently for Sale
Last 6 monthsHouses in Pelican Waters are currently listed at around $1.55 million on average. Based on 67 houses listed in the past six months.
Houses
$1.55M
67 houses listed in the last 6 months.
Units
$975K
9 units listed in the last 6 months.
76 of the suburb's 2,777 dwellings (2.7%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.
Rental Market
Advertised rents · last 6 monthsHouses in Pelican Waters rent for around $1,035 a week on average, based on 36 houses listed for rent in the past six months.
Houses
$1,035/wk
36 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
Units
$910/wk
15 units advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
51 rentals advertised against an estimated 358 rented homes (14.2%) in the last 6 months.
Rent agreed on new leases
Jul–Sep 2026- All rentals
- $1,025/wk
- 35 bonds
- +44% since 2021
Median weekly rent on bonds lodged for new tenancies. 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 202589 Unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 34% of its income on the median rent in postcode 4551.
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.
Gross rental yield
Indicative$1,035/week ($54,000 a year) on a $1.55 million median
$910/week ($47,000 a year) on a $975,000 median
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.
Short-Stay Rentals
25 active Airbnb listings: 19 whole homes and 6 rooms. Whole homes are about 0.6% of the suburb'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 Pelican Waters safe? Crime statistics
2025Crime in Pelican Waters sits in the low band, with 16 incidents recorded in 2025 — down roughly 47% on the prior year.
16 offences
46.7% since 2024Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2020–20247 crashes
where someone was killed or admitted to hospital
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.
Schools
One school serve Pelican Waters, and performance is broadly on par with peer-suburb schools.
- • 228 students in one school (avg 228)
Combined
Walkability
Pelican Waters is somewhat walkable on foot — at 68/100, 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 Pelican Waters.
- Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
- 11.0 arrivals/hr
- Off-peak weekday
- 7.3 arrivals/hr
- Saturday
- 7.6 arrivals/hr
- Median peak wait
- 2 min
- Span of service
- 12.2 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 Pelican Waters.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 62%
- Premises covered
- 3,598
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
Sunshine Coast: 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 16 small areas inside this suburb and averages them into the single decile above. They fall into 6 different deciles — a wide range, so parts of this suburb rank well above the average and parts well below it.
Pelican Waters is home to about 7,400 residents, with a median age of 55 — noticeably older than the national figure of 38. Median household income runs at $81,000 a year, with unemployment at 4.8%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
7,393
Median Age
55
Median Household Income
$80,704/yr
Census Median Rent
$540/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$2,200/mo
Avg Household Size
2.5
Median Personal Income
$34,892/yr
Unemployment Rate
4.8%
Unoccupied Dwellings
6.8%
Total Dwellings
2,777
Owner-Occupier Rate
87.1%
Houses
88.0%
Rental Stress
34.8%
Mortgage Stress
32.7%
Work From Home
24.0%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 71.7%
- English Spoken at Home
- 91.2%
- Employment Rate
- 45.5%
- Completed Year 12
- 43.1%
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.
194 residents (2.6%) 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.
17.0% of residents (1,216) lived in a capital city five years earlier, most of them in Brisbane (617).
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 7,168 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
3% of employed residents work in a capital's city centre (95 of 2,895).
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 $1,690 a year through Sunshine Coast based on 2025 figures.
Building Approvals: Sunshine Coast
In the year to August 2026, 2,962 new dwellings were approved across Sunshine Coast. That mix is 1,757 houses and 1,205 units. Approvals are down 41.1% on the same period a year earlier.
New Homes Planned
New homes planned in this suburb: 244 to 1,100 homes
- Within 2 years 223 to 1,050 homes
- In 2 to 5 years 21 to 50 homes
Land the Queensland Government's residential land supply study identifies for future housing (4 parcels), by when it expects lots to be registered. Yields are published in ranges, so these are too.
Aboriginal Cultural Heritage
The Aboriginal party for this area is Kabi Kabi First Nation Traditional Owners Native Title Claim Group.
Under Queensland's Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003 the Aboriginal party for an area follows native title. A native title claim over this area is registered with the Federal Court.
Air Quality
CLEANPM2.5 averaged 5 µg/m³ in 2025 — below the WHO 2021 annual guideline (5 µg/m³).
PM10 averaged 14 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.31 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 0 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 0.
From the Mountain Creek (Sunshine Coast, South East Queensland) monitoring station, 15.6 km away.
Climate & Setting
from Cape Moreton Lighthouse, 42.4 kmHigh rainfall — mild summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 1 m
- above sea level, at the suburb centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 1.5 km
- 2.9 km to a named beach
- Annual rainfall
- 1,052 mm
- 98 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 27.8°C
- 0 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 14.7°C
- 0 frost days ≤ 0°C
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- 3.8 kmPetroleum Product WholesalingTop reported: Total Volatile Organic Compounds · Toluene (methylbenzene) · Ethylbenzene
EV adoption
In postcode 4551, 610 of 59,733 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 2.9% (1,759 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 4.0%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 4551, 21,541 rooftop-solar systems totalling 128.2 MW have been installed since 2001, against 29,745 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 1,486 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$30,000 for new homes priced up to $750,000.
$30,000 for contracts signed on or after 20 November 2023, with no end date. IT DID NOT REVERT TO $15,000: the tier was due to end 30 June 2026 and the 2026-27 Queensland Budget (23 June 2026) continued it for contracts signed from 1 July 2026. This file carried a "due to revert" note until 2026-09-18 — it was never true, and a note predicting a change is not the same as a change. Cap is "less than $750,000" including land and contract variations — less than, not up to. New homes only: "There are no home owner grants for established homes."
Mortgage repayments
2 mortgage brokers are registered in this suburb, 34 across postcode 4551.
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 Queensland Revenue Office
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 $750,000 may qualify for $30,000 — see what qualifies with Queensland Revenue Office.
At $1,530,000 this is $780,000 above the $750,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $30,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with Queensland Revenue Office.
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 Andrew Wallace Liberal National Party of Queensland
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Andrew Wallace | 44.0% | 56.0% | +2.6 |
| 2022 | Andrew Wallace | 41.3% | 58.7% | -4.0 |
| 2019 | Andrew Wallace | 37.3% | 62.7% | +3.5 |
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 Kendall Morton Liberal National Party of Queensland
Next state election: 28 October 2028.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Kendall Morton LNP | 51.8% |
| 2020 | Jason Hunt ALP | 52.5% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2017, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this suburb's voters. Results: Electoral Commission of Queensland.
Looking at a specific address in Pelican Waters?
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 7,393 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
- #2 in Highest-yielding Sunshine Coast suburbs (units)
- #2 in The most liveable suburbs in Sunshine Coast
- #2 in Sunshine Coast suburbs where the most homes are owned outright
- #5 in Sunshine Coast suburbs where seniors live
- #6 in Sunshine Coast suburbs where the most residents moved from a capital city
- #7 in Sunshine Coast suburbs with the best NBN connectivity
- #10 in Queensland suburbs where the most residents moved from a capital city
- #10 in Sunshine Coast suburbs that added the most residents, 2016-2021
- #11 in The safest suburbs in Sunshine Coast
- #12 in Sunshine Coast suburbs with the biggest house blocks
- #12 in Best Sunshine Coast suburbs for first-home buyers (units)
Nearby suburbs
Compare Pelican Waters to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other QLD suburb — type a name and pick one.
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Common questions about Pelican Waters
Is Pelican Waters a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Pelican Waters is low (27/100, ranked against other QLD suburbs on offences per resident).
What natural hazards affect Pelican Waters?
Pelican Waters has no recorded bushfire history. These are suburb-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Pelican Waters a good place to live?
Pelican Waters has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of A (78/100), ranked against other QLD 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 Pelican Waters?
Pelican Waters, QLD had a population of 7,393 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Pelican Waters, QLD?
The postcode for Pelican Waters, QLD is 4551.
How far is Pelican Waters from Brisbane?
Pelican Waters is 94 km from Brisbane CBD by road, about 81 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Pelican Waters?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Pelican Waters was $80,704 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 Pelican Waters?
The median advertised rent in Pelican Waters is $1,035 a week for houses (36 listings) and $910 a week for units (15 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.
What is the median age in Pelican Waters?
The median age of residents in Pelican Waters was 55 at the 2021 ABS Census.
How are the schools in Pelican Waters?
There is 1 school inside the Pelican Waters boundary: 1 at similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Pelican Waters walkable?
Pelican Waters scores 68/100 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 Pelican Waters?
The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Pelican Waters (Mountain Creek (Sunshine Coast, South East Queensland)) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 5.0 µg/m³ and PM10 of 14.0 µg/m³. That puts Pelican Waters below the WHO annual guideline of 5 µg/m³.
What is the weather like in Pelican Waters?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Pelican Waters, Cape Moreton Lighthouse (42.4 km away), summer days average 27.8°C, winter nights 14.7°C, 1,052 mm of rain a year over 98 rainy days, and 0 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Pelican Waters?
First-home buyers in QLD may be eligible for $30,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $750,000. The grant is administered by Queensland Revenue Office; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Pelican Waters belong to?
Pelican Waters sits within the Sunshine Coast local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Pelican Waters?
The average residential rates bill through Sunshine Coast is $1,690 a year (2025). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Pelican Waters?
Across Sunshine Coast, 2,962 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's down 41.1% 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 Pelican Waters in?
Pelican Waters sits within the federal Division of Fisher, currently held by Andrew Wallace (Liberal National Party of Queensland).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- For-sale & rental market · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2025–26
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- Public transport · Oct 2026
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Crime · 2025
- Road crashes · 2020–2024
- Air quality · 2025
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- Short-stay rentals · Jun 2026
- State electorate · 2024
- 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.