NSW · Port Stephens Council
Brandy Hill, 2324
Current weather
17.6°CClear sky
61% humidity · 14.4 km/h wind · 21.9° / 12.6° today · 2.2 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- High desirability
- Green suburb
Suburb profile
In Port Stephens, Brandy Hill keeps a rural calm, a smaller community with room to breathe and a strong local rhythm. Life revolves around the local community, with the wider region offering trips and services when needed. Wide horizons and a country quiet give the area a restorative, unhurried atmosphere.
An older demographic makes it especially popular with retirees, with families and grandchildren still a visible part of community life. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice, and that is part of the charm. Reasonable public transport access helps with commuting and getting around locally.
Housing carries a premium, but residents tend to feel the lifestyle justifies the commitment. Construction and infill projects are noticeably reshaping parts of the area.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits below average overall, mainly because local dining and lifestyle amenities and transport and access lag similar regional towns, despite relative strength in community and employment. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 713
- Median age
- 48
- Median household income / week
- $2,384
- Dwelling vacancy
- 1.7%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 4 of 235
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,167
- Employment rate
- 62%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 12 / 0 / 0
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Housing
- Flats / units (January to March 2026)
- $498
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $610
- All types (January to March 2026)
- $578
- Rental bonds lodged (January to March 2026)
- 194
Median weekly rent from NSW DCJ rent tables. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.
Contributes to desirability score · Housing (15%) · Future Growth (7%)
Median price, rental yield and vacancy Recent price momentum
Data sources & freshness
- DCJ rent tables — NSW Department of Communities and Justice · Period: January to March 2026 · Updated on site · Quarterly releases
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2025 to Dec 2025)
- 80
- Against the person
- 25
- Against property
- 27
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 112.2
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 29 residents
- State safety percentile
- 79.4th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate)
- -10.9%
Reported offences decreased compared with the previous period.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Breach Bail Conditions384
- Domestic Violence Related Assault228
- Fraud159
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment331
- Malicious Damage To Property237
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- BOCSAR postcode crime statistics — NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research · Period: Jan 2024 to Dec 2024 → Jan 2025 to Dec 2025; Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 · Updated on site · Rolling 12-month windows
Public transport
8 public transport stops in this suburb
- Brandy Hill Dr At Seaham Rd
- Brandy Hill Dr At Werai Cl
- Brandy Hill Rd Opp Eloura Cl
- Seaham Rd At Brandy Hill Dr
- Seaham Rd At Brandy Hill Dr
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- Timetables Complete GTFS stops (© Transport for NSW, CC BY 4.0) — Transport for NSW — Open Data Hub · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed (updated nightly)
Planning & development
Development applications from NSW Planning Portal (lodged 2020–2026).
58 planning-related records
2026· 3 proposals
May 2026
- Subdivision88 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Under Assessment
April 2026
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Function centre; Tourist and visitor accommodation6 ELOUERA CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Under Assessment
March 2026
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure19 WARRIGAL CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
2025· 10 proposals
December 2025
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool21 CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
September 2025
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Minor building alterations (external)86 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Shed; Erection of a new structure21 CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
July 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure6 WERAI CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
June 2025
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool17 CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
April 2025
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Balcony, deck, patio, terrace or verandah98 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Change of use of land or a building or the classification of a building under the Building Code of Australia; Animal boarding or training establishment22 LEUMEAH CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool17 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
February 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure6 WERAI CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
January 2025
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure79 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
2024· 14 proposals
December 2024
- Shed; Erection of a new structure14 CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
November 2024
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Garage, carport or carparking space; Minor building alterations (internal); Minor building alterations (external)23 GWANDALAN CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Garage, carport or carparking space10 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
September 2024
- Secondary dwelling; Erection of a new structure7 ELOUERA CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
August 2024
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure15 MERINDAH CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Garage, carport or carparking space; Minor building alterations (internal); Minor building alterations (external)23 GWANDALAN CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure23 WERAI CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Driveways and hard stand spaces8 LEUMEAH CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
June 2024
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool74 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Shed; Erection of a new structure9 CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
May 2024
- Dwelling house; Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure17 BANGALAY CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
April 2024
- Erection of a new structure; Garage, carport or carparking space6 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
March 2024
- Erection of a new structure; Swimming pool90A BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
February 2024
- Shed; Erection of a new structure23 WERAI CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
2023· 11 proposals
November 2023
- Erection of a new structure; Garage, carport or carparking space6 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
October 2023
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure76 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
September 2023
- Shed; Erection of a new structure1 ELOUERA CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
July 2023
- Alterations and additions to residential development; Shed72 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Shed67 BRANDY HILL DRIVE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
June 2023
- Balconies, decks, patios, terraces or verandahs9 CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Pools / decks / fencing20 ELOUERA CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
May 2023
- ShedLOT 212 DP 785775 GWANDALAN CLOSE BRANDY HILLDetermined
March 2023
- Shed2A CARRAMAR CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
- Subdivision of land22 WARRIGAL CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
January 2023
- Alterations and additions to residential development22 GWANDALAN CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
2022· 2 proposals
December 2022
- Shed6 NEIKA CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
October 2022
- Shed7 LEUMEAH CLOSE BRANDY HILL 2324Determined
Contributes to desirability score · Future Growth (7%)
Development and planning activity
Data sources & freshness
- Online DA development application register — NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure · Period: 2020–2026 · Updated on site · Daily open-data feed (applications from Oct 2018)
Amenities
No OpenStreetMap amenities mapped for this suburb yet.
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 9/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 9/10
SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- Overlay applies
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via NSW bush fire prone land mapping.
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Bushfire hazard overlays
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site
Desirability Index
- Desirability score
- 27.0/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 5768th in Australia
- State rank
- 1805th in NSW
- Peer rank
- #434 among Country & regional · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #815 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 60%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Breach Bail Conditionscrime384
- Domestic Violence Related Assaultcrime228
- Fraudcrime159
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassmentcrime331
- Malicious Damage To Propertycrime237
- Brandy Hill Dr At Seaham Rdtransport
- Brandy Hill Dr At Werai Cltransport
- Brandy Hill Rd Opp Eloura Cltransport
- Seaham Rd At Brandy Hill Drtransport
- Seaham Rd At Brandy Hill Drtransport
Data sources & freshness
- BOCSAR postcode crime statistics — NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research · Updated on site · Rolling 12-month windows
- Timetables Complete GTFS stops (© Transport for NSW, CC BY 4.0) — Transport for NSW — Open Data Hub · Updated on site · GTFS static feed (updated nightly)
More in Port Stephens Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of New South Wales.