QLD · Townsville Council
Kelso, 4815
Current weather
20.1°CMainly clear
84% humidity · 1 km/h wind · 25.9° / 15.9° today · 0.2 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- National parks
- High desirability
Suburb profile
Kelso is a quieter established suburb in Townsville, where peace, space and a country-town pace still dominate. Distance from the capital is noticeable, but the trade-off is space, calm and a community that knows its neighbours. Tree-lined streets and leafy pockets give the suburb a noticeably green, settled character.
Working households and growing families are the backbone of local life, with plenty of young families in the mix. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice, and that is part of the charm. Outdoor life is easy here, with generous parks and room for kids, dogs and weekend strolls.
Homes are relatively affordable, which helps families and first-time residents put down roots. Tree-lined streets and established homes set the tone, with little pressure to reinvent the neighbourhood.
The desirability score is below average, weighed down by weaker local dining and lifestyle amenities and schools and education against similar regional towns, even with parks and green space and housing affordability holding up better. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 10,599
- Median age
- 34
- Median household income / week
- $1,626
- Dwelling vacancy
- 7.4%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 279 of 3,752
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,496
- Employment rate
- 57.4%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 378 / 56 / 12
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
- All types (Mar 2026)
- $530
Median weekly rent from Queensland RTA rental bond data. 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
- RTA bond statistics — Residential Tenancies Authority (Queensland) · Period: Mar 2026 · Updated on site · Quarterly releases
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2026 to Jul 2026)
- 615
- Against the person
- 141
- Against property
- 326
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 58
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 75 residents
- State safety percentile
- 74.4th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate, partial year)
- +5.7%
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Assault194
- Drug Offences165
- Other Property Damage161
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)237
- Unlawful Entry164
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Period: Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Jul 2026; Jan 2026 to Jul 2026 · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 1
- Median school ICSEA
- 828
- Kelso State SchoolPrimary
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
Roadworks & transport
1 active roadworks / incidents
- Between Allambie lane and Dunlop StreetRiverway Drive, n/a23 Sep 2024 – 30 Sep 2026
Data sources & freshness
- Road incidents & closures — State road authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site · Hourly refresh where supported
Amenities
3 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Post Box
- Sports field
- TelstraTelephone
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
Parks & reserves
11 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Bartlett ParkPark
- Blue Hills ParkPark
- Blue Wren Drive ParkPark
- Charles Moroney ParkPark
- Framara ParkPark
- Kelso Club ParkPark
- North Ross ParkPark
- Ponti Road ParkPark
- Rosemead ParkPark
- Rosewood Avenue ParkPark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Period: current · Updated on site
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 2/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 2/10
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
- No overlay at centroid
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via Queensland Bushfire Prone Area 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)
- 13
- Parks (OSM)
- 13
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
- 37.0/100 — Below average
- National rank
- 4036th in Australia
- State rank
- 939th in QLD
- Peer rank
- #305 among Country & regional · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #494 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 66%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Post Boxamenitiespost_box
- Sports fieldamenitiespitch
- Telstraamenitiestelephone
- Assaultcrime194
- Drug Offencescrime165
- Other Property Damagecrime161
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)crime237
- Unlawful Entrycrime164
- Bartlett Parkgovernmentpark
- Blue Hills Parkgovernmentpark
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Updated on site
More in Townsville Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Queensland.