NSW · Cessnock Council
Neath, 2326
Current weather
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66% humidity · 11.5 km/h wind · 21.5° / 13.2° today · 3.3 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Neath is a well-connected smaller community in Cessnock with everyday amenities close at hand. You get space and calm here, while the city and neighbouring suburbs are still close enough for regular outings. An older demographic makes it especially popular with retirees, with families and grandchildren still a visible part of community life.
Local shops and services cover the basics well, with more choice a short trip into neighbouring suburbs. Buses and nearby services make commuting and cross-suburb trips straightforward. Homes are relatively affordable, which helps families and first-time residents put down roots.
Steady development is bringing new homes and gradual renewal to parts of the suburb.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits below average overall, with local dining and lifestyle amenities and community and employment the main drags compared with similar metro suburbs. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 430
- Median age
- 55
- Median household income / week
- $792
- Dwelling vacancy
- 6.3%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 13 of 205
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,127
- Employment rate
- 35.2%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 29 / 4 / 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
- Houses (January to March 2026)
- $520
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)
- 38
- Against the person
- 12
- Against property
- 17
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 88.4
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 36 residents
- State safety percentile
- 61.9th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate)
- -11.4%
Reported offences decreased compared with the previous period.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Domestic Violence Related Assault51
- Intimidation, Stalking And Harassment91
- Malicious Damage To Property80
- Motor Vehicle Theft55
- Non-Domestic Violence Related Assault41
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
26 public transport stops in this suburb
- Cessnock Rd After Aberdare St
- Cessnock Rd After Northumberland St
- Cessnock Rd At Kemp St
- Cessnock Rd Before Fisher St
- Cessnock Rd Opp Henderson St
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).
34 planning-related records
2026· 2 proposals
February 2026
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Caravan park40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
January 2026
- Demolition; Subdivision; Driveways and hard stand spaces57 NORTHUMBERLAND STREET NEATH 2326Determined
2025· 3 proposals
August 2025
- Shed; Erection of a new structure106 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
May 2025
- Subdivision; Erection of a new structure; Dual occupancy (detached)59 NORTHUMBERLAND STREET NEATH 2326Determined
February 2025
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Caravan park56 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
2024· 8 proposals
December 2024
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Caravan park56 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Rejected
November 2024
- Dwelling house; Erection of a new structure32 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
- Erection of a new structure; Caravan park40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Withdrawn
October 2024
- Erection of a new structure; Caravan park40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Withdrawn
March 2024
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Erection of a new structure; Caravan park40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Caravan park56 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Erection of a new structure; Caravan park40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Withdrawn
- Shed; Erection of a new structure174 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
2023· 7 proposals
December 2023
- Shed; Erection of a new structure110 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
October 2023
- Alterations or additions to an existing building or structure; Manufactured home56 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Withdrawn
August 2023
- Other1 NEATH ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
June 2023
- Other40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
April 2023
- Dual occupancy; Alterations and additions to residential development; Shed32 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
- Shed209 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
February 2023
- Alterations and additions to residential development53 NORTHUMBERLAND STREET NEATH 2326Determined
2022· 4 proposals
September 2022
- Signage133 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
May 2022
- Shed156 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
March 2022
- Other56 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
January 2022
- Shed186 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
2021· 6 proposals
December 2021
- Alterations and additions to residential development53 NORTHUMBERLAND STREET NEATH 2326Determined
October 2021
- Dwelling152 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
September 2021
- Dual occupancy; Subdivision of land; Retaining walls, protection of trees59 NORTHUMBERLAND STREET NEATH 2326Determined
May 2021
- Other40 CARRS ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
March 2021
- Other133 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
- Shed156 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Rejected
2020· 4 proposals
December 2020
- Other1 NEATH ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
August 2020
- Subdivision of land59 NORTHUMBERLAND STREET NEATH 2326Determined
May 2020
- Secondary dwelling160 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
March 2020
- Other133 CESSNOCK ROAD NEATH 2326Determined
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
13 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Cessnock Rd after Carrs RdBus stop
- Cessnock Rd after Northumberland StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd at Kemp StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd before Fisher StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd before Henderson StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd before Kemp StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd opp 144Bus stop
- Cessnock Rd opp Fisher StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd opp Henderson StBus stop
- Cessnock Rd opp Northumberland StBus stop
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe).
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)
- 1/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 1/10
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
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 3
- Parks (OSM)
- 0
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)
Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability Index
- Desirability score
- 22.4/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 6340th in Australia
- State rank
- 1975th in NSW
- Peer rank
- #133 among Metro Sydney · Mature suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #852 among Metro Sydney suburbs
- Data confidence
- 70%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Cessnock Rd after Carrs Rdamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd after Northumberland Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd at Kemp Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd before Fisher Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd before Henderson Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd before Kemp Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd opp 144amenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd opp Fisher Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd opp Henderson Stamenitiesbus_stop
- Cessnock Rd opp Northumberland Stamenitiesbus_stop
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
More in Cessnock Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of New South Wales.