Rutherford NSW 2320
Rutherford is a suburb in New South Wales, 172 km from Sydney CBD, around 2 hours 10 minutes by car. Population is 13,091; the median age is 35 and the median household income is $76,700 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the bottom 20% nationally. Population grew 10.2% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $360 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $1,733. The area shows high crime risk and no recorded bushfire exposure. 3 schools sit within the suburb boundary, and walkability is low.
Is Rutherford a good suburb?
Rutherford scores a D (28/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — weaker on schools, transit, safety, and community.
Below the state average
3 schools
Car-dependent
Walkability 28/100 · 171.6 km · 132 min drive to Sydney
Around the state median
Median $755K
High crime risk
Fire 0/100 · Crime 86/100
Highly disadvantaged
SEIFA decile 2/10 · median age 35 · 13,091 residents
Liveability Rating
28 / 100 · Ranked #1316 in NSWEach bar is Rutherford's rank among NSW suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better).
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 Rutherford?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
28 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataRutherford's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $755,000, roughly 10% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$755,000
6% below its 6 neighbours (median $800,000)
Based on 399 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 23 days — median across 192 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 14 sales $575K
- 3 bed 198 sales $725K
- 4 bed 158 sales $815K
- 5 bed 15 sales $950K
Units
$565,000
Based on 25 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 20 days — median across 8 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 12 sales $512K
- 3 bed 13 sales $595K
Currently for Sale
Last 6 monthsHouses in Rutherford are currently listed at around $808,000 on average. Based on 60 houses listed in the past six months.
Houses
$808K
60 houses listed in the last 6 months.
Units
$625K
7 units listed in the last 6 months.
67 of the suburb's 4,834 dwellings (1.4%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.
Rental Market
Advertised rents · last 6 monthsHouses in Rutherford rent for around $655 a week on average, based on 90 houses listed for rent in the past six months.
Houses
$655/wk
In line with its 3 neighbours (median $670/wk)
90 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
Units
$500/wk
3 units advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
93 rentals advertised against an estimated 1,740 rented homes (5.3%) in the last 6 months.
Rent agreed on new leases
Jul–Sep 2026- 3-bed houses
- $610/wk
- 143 bonds
- +38% since 2021
- 2-bed units
- $500/wk
- 14 bonds
- +37% since 2021
Median weekly rent on bonds lodged for new tenancies across postcode 2320 (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 202590 Unaffordable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 33% of its income on the median rent in postcode 2320.
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$655/week ($34,000 a year) on a $808,000 median
$500/week ($26,000 a year) on a $625,000 median
Based on a small sample (3 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 Rutherford safe? Crime statistics
2025Crime in Rutherford sits in the high band, with 1,189 incidents recorded in 2025 — down roughly 11% on the prior year.
1,189 offences
10.9% since 2024Crime Trend
Serious Road Crashes
2021–202522 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
Maitland City Council has published 6 flood studies on the NSW Flood Data Portal. The mapped flood areas are in those studies; SuburbScan does not hold them.
Schools
Three schools serve Rutherford, and performance is broadly on par with peer-suburb schools.
- • 2,782 students across 3 schools (avg 927)
- • Sectors: 2 Government, 1 Catholic
- • ICSEA 922-996, median 933 (below the national baseline of 1000)
- • Largest: Rutherford Technology High School (1,405 students)
Primary
Secondary
Walkability
Rutherford is car-dependent on foot — at 28/100, most errands require a car. Within the suburb there are 3 supermarkets, 6 parks and 7 cafes to anchor that walking radius.
Public transport
Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Rutherford.
- Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
- 253.5 arrivals/hr
- Off-peak weekday
- 164.2 arrivals/hr
- Saturday
- 100.3 arrivals/hr
- Median peak wait
- 0 min
- Span of service
- 17.7 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 Rutherford.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 53%
- Premises covered
- 6,279
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
Maitland: 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 30 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.
Rutherford is home to about 13,100 residents, with a median age of 35, broadly in line with the national figure. Median household income runs at $77,000 a year, with unemployment at 5.7%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
13,091
Median Age
35
Median Household Income
$76,700/yr
Census Median Rent
$360/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$1,733/mo
Avg Household Size
2.6
Median Personal Income
$36,972/yr
Unemployment Rate
5.7%
Unoccupied Dwellings
4.7%
Total Dwellings
4,834
Owner-Occupier Rate
64.0%
Houses
86.9%
Rental Stress
24.4%
Mortgage Stress
27.1%
Work From Home
13.3%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
295 rented from a state or territory housing authority and 99 from a community housing provider, as a share of the 1,635 rented dwellings above — not of all dwellings.
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 86.2%
- English Spoken at Home
- 89.8%
- Employment Rate
- 54.9%
- Completed Year 12
- 26.6%
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.
182 residents (1.4%) 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.
3.7% of residents (450) lived in a capital city five years earlier, most of them in Sydney (319).
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 12,108 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
Local Jobs
People who work in this suburb against employed people who live here, 2021 Census.
About 6,914 people work here; 5,612 employed residents live here.
Roughly as many jobs as working residents (1.2 per resident). At least 15% of the people who work here must live elsewhere.
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 $1,908 a year through Maitland based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Residential 38%
- Industrial 31%
- Parks and recreation 13%
- Infrastructure and transport 10%
- Environmental 8%
- Rural and farming 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 suburb around it — the property page shows the zone for one address.
Building Approvals: Maitland
In the year to August 2026, 1,413 new dwellings were approved across Maitland. That mix is 773 houses and 640 units. Approvals are up 19.7% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Land Council
Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Mindaribba 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 6.3 µg/m³ in 2025 — below Australia's NEPM annual standard (8 µg/m³), slightly above the stricter WHO guideline (5 µg/m³). 1 day exceeded the daily threshold of 25 µg/m³.
PM10 averaged 17.5 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.72 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 1 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 0.
From the Beresfield monitoring station, 16.8 km away.
Climate & Setting
from Paterson (Tocal AWS), 11.9 kmHigh rainfall — hot summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 13 m
- above sea level, at the suburb centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 28.2 km
- Annual rainfall
- 996 mm
- 89 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 30.0°C
- 20 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 7.1°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
5 facilities within 5 km- 1.0 kmOther Ceramic Product ManufacturingTop reported: Sulfur dioxide · Carbon monoxide · Oxides of Nitrogen
- 1.1 kmOil and Fat ManufacturingTop reported: Particulate Matter ≤10.0 µm (PM10) · Oxides of Nitrogen · Carbon monoxide
- 1.3 kmOther Petroleum and Coal Product ManufacturingTop reported: Oxides of Nitrogen · Carbon monoxide · Particulate Matter ≤2.5 µm (PM2.5)
- 2.4 km
- 3.4 kmSewerage and Drainage ServicesTop reported: Hydrogen sulfide · Ammonia (total)
EV adoption
In postcode 2320, 187 of 34,368 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 3.4% (1,176 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 4.0%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 2320, 8,346 rooftop-solar systems totalling 69.7 MW have been installed since 2001, against 14,845 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 625 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
1 mortgage broker is registered in this suburb, 16 across postcode 2320.
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 $755,000 this is $155,000 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 2026-10-26 — 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 Meryl Swanson Australian Labor Party
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Meryl Swanson | 56.9% | 43.1% | +4.3 |
| 2022 | Meryl Swanson | 53.3% | 46.7% | +1.7 |
| 2019 | Meryl Swanson | 55.0% | 45.0% | +5.7 |
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 Jenny Aitchison Labor
Next state election: 13 March 2027.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Jenny Aitchison ALP | 68.6% |
| 2019 | Jenny Aitchison ALP | 63.2% |
| 2015 | Jenny Aitchison ALP | 63.8% |
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 Rutherford?
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 13,091 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 Newcastle suburbs where the most Filipino is spoken at home
- #3 in Newcastle suburbs with the most rooftop solar
- #4 in Newcastle suburbs where the most Punjabi is spoken at home
- #8 in Newcastle suburbs that added the most residents, 2016-2021
- #8 in Best Newcastle suburbs for first-home buyers (units)
- #9 in Where the Filipino community lives in Newcastle
- #10 in Newcastle suburbs with the largest Sikh community
- #11 in Newcastle suburbs with the fastest EV adoption growth
- #12 in Newcastle suburbs where 2-bedroom unit rents rose most
- #14 in Best Newcastle suburbs for first-home buyers (houses)
- #15 in Highest-yielding Newcastle suburbs (houses)
- #15 in Where the Indian community lives in Newcastle
Nearby suburbs
Aberglasslyn NSW 2320
Telarah NSW 2320
Maitland NSW 2320
Lochinvar NSW 2321
Windella NSW 2320
Farley NSW 2320
Compare Rutherford 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 Rutherford
Is Rutherford a safe place to live?
Recorded crime in Rutherford is high (86/100, 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 Rutherford?
Rutherford has no recorded bushfire history. These are suburb-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Rutherford a good place to live?
Rutherford has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of D (28/100), 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 Rutherford?
Rutherford, NSW had a population of 13,091 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Rutherford, NSW?
The postcode for Rutherford, NSW is 2320.
How far is Rutherford from Sydney?
Rutherford is 172 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 132 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Rutherford?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Rutherford was $76,700 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 Rutherford?
The median advertised rent in Rutherford is $655 a week for houses (90 listings) and $500 a week for units (3 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.
What is the median age in Rutherford?
The median age of residents in Rutherford was 35 at the 2021 ABS Census.
How are the schools in Rutherford?
There are 3 schools inside the Rutherford boundary: 3 at similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Rutherford walkable?
Rutherford scores 28/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it 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 Rutherford?
The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Rutherford (Beresfield) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 6.3 µg/m³ and PM10 of 17.5 µg/m³. That puts Rutherford 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 Rutherford?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Rutherford, Paterson (Tocal AWS) (11.9 km away), summer days average 30°C, winter nights 7.1°C, 996 mm of rain a year over 89 rainy days, and 20 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Rutherford?
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 Rutherford belong to?
Rutherford sits within the Maitland local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Rutherford?
The average residential rates bill through Maitland is $1,908 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Rutherford?
Across Maitland, 1,413 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's up 19.7% 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 Rutherford in?
Rutherford sits within the federal Division of Paterson, currently held by Meryl Swanson (Australian Labor Party).
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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.