QLD · Gold Coast Council
Mermaid Waters, 4218
Current weather
17.2°CClear sky
87% humidity · 8.1 km/h wind · 21.9° / 15° today · 0.2 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- Excellent transport
- Cycling
- High desirability
Suburb profile
In Gold Coast, Mermaid Waters is a settled established suburb with a familiar suburban feel and good links to the wider city. Well placed between the city and outer suburbs, it offers practical access in every direction. Tree-lined streets and leafy pockets give the suburb a noticeably green, settled character.
Residents are mostly families and working professionals, with family life visible on every street. Daily life is practical and well connected, with the city and nearby suburbs easy to tap into. Outdoor life is easy here, with generous parks and room for kids, dogs and weekend strolls.
Public transport links make it easy to move between neighbouring suburbs without relying on the car. Homes here are sought-after, with many people drawn to the lifestyle the area offers.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits around average overall, mainly because housing affordability and local dining and lifestyle amenities lag similar metro suburbs, despite relative strength in parks and green space and transport and access.
Population
- Population
- 13,088
- Median age
- 40
- Median household income / week
- $1,766
- Dwelling vacancy
- 7.9%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 423 of 5,386
- Median monthly mortgage
- $2,167
- Employment rate
- 60.6%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 324 / 1,584 / 328
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)
- $900
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)
- 924
- Against the person
- 101
- Against property
- 499
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 70.6
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 130 residents
- State safety percentile
- 84.2th (lower crime is better)
- Decrease (daily rate, partial year)
- -3.5%
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Drug Offences545
- Good Order Offences125
- Other Property Damage129
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)884
- Unlawful Entry163
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
- 2
- Median school ICSEA (2 schools)
- 1,041
- Merrimac State High SchoolSecondary
- Miami 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
Public transport
50 public transport stops in this suburb
- Gold Coast Hwy at Nobby Beach station
- Nerang Broadbeach Rd at Lakes Esp
- Nerang Broadbeach Rd at Rawle Court
- Sunshine Bvd at Bordeaux Street
- Sunshine Bvd at Surfers Avenue
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Public transport stop coverage
Data sources & freshness
- GTFS public transport stops — State transport authority open-data feeds · Period: current · Updated on site · GTFS static feed
Amenities
196 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- BWSAlcohol
- Dan Murphy'sAlcohol
- LiquorlandAlcohol
- ANZATM
- Commonwealth BankATM
- Heritage BankATM
- SuncorpATM
- BOQBank
- Commonwealth BankBank
- Heritage BankBank
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
61 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Albert Waterways ParkPark
- Allandale Entrance ReservePark
- Bel Air ParkPark
- Bermuda Street ParklandPark
- Bermuda Street ParklandsPark
- Cadence ParkPark
- Cessnock Close ReservePark
- Cottesloe Drive ReservePark
- Crocker ParkPark
- Deloraine Court ReservePark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Period: current · Updated on site
Health access
- Hospitals & GP clinics
- 5
- Emergency department
- Not in suburb
- Amcalpharmacy
- Australian Skin Cancer Clinicsclinic
- DP Pharmacy Outletpharmacy
- Gold Coast Dermatology Clinicdoctor
- Mermaid Robina Family ChiropracticMarkeri Streetalternative
Contributes to desirability score · Accessibility (15%)
Hospitals and GP clinics
Data sources & freshness
- Hospitals & clinics — OpenStreetMap + state health datasets · Period: current · Updated on site
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 8/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 7/10
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
Childcare
1 childcare service from OpenStreetMap
- Aussie Kids Mermaid WatersRope Courtkindergarten
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
Childcare centre count
Data sources & freshness
- Childcare services — OpenStreetMap · Period: current · Updated on site
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)
- 68
- Parks (OSM)
- 64
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
- 55.6/100 — Good
- State standing
- Top 19% of Queensland's suburbs
- National rank
- 1308th in Australia
- State rank
- 278th in QLD
- Peer rank
- #160 among Metro Brisbane · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #165 among Metro Brisbane suburbs
- Data confidence
- 85%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- ANZamenitiesatm
- Aldiamenitiessupermarket
- Amcalamenitiespharmacy
- Australia Postamenitiespost_box
- Australia Post Shopamenitiespost_office
- Australian Skin Cancer Clinicsamenitiesclinic
- BOQamenitiesbank
- BWSamenitiesalcohol
- Barrier Reef Dr near Deloraine Ctamenitiesbus_stop
- Barrier Reef Dr near Halborne Dramenitiesbus_stop
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
More in Gold Coast Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Queensland.