Desirability Index

The eight pillars

The ASDI score groups metrics into eight pillars with fixed weights. The weights stay stable; the metrics inside each pillar can change over time.

• Safety18%

  Crime rate and year-on-year trend (ranked within each state), plus bushfire hazard overlays.

• Housing15%

  Affordability and market stability: an ideal price band and low-but-not-zero vacancy, not the most expensive postcodes.

• Education15%

  School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA, and childcare access.

• Accessibility15%

  Public transport coverage (ranked within the state), hospitals and GP clinics in the suburb, and distance from the capital.

• Lifestyle15%

  Food and drink, shopping, recreation, sport and weather comfort. Count-based metrics use diminishing returns.

• Environment10%

  Parks and public open space in the suburb, plus green cover from OpenStreetMap.

• Future Growth7%

  Development and planning activity, plus recent price momentum where available.

• Community5%

  SEIFA advantage, employment and income, and age diversity from the 2021 Census.

How scores are built

1. Each metric is converted to a 0–100 score by percentile against comparable suburbs. Counts like shops and parks use diminishing returns. Population, price and vacancy score highest around a healthy band, not at the extremes.
2. Related metrics are grouped into categories, then into the eight weighted pillars above. Pillars combine into the overall ASDI score. Missing data lowers a suburb's data confidence; it does not fill in a default score.
3. Essential-service gaps (no supermarket, GP, pharmacy, fuel, childcare, primary school or public transport) apply a capped penalty.
4. Each suburb gets a national rank, a state rank and a peer rank among similar suburbs, all from the same overall score.

Cohorts and ranks

State-specific datasets (crime, public transport, planning) are ranked within each state so different reporting and network sizes do not skew results. Each suburb is grouped into metro, coastal or regional cohorts using the ABS Remoteness Structure: metro is the major-city (or greater-capital) area, and regional covers inland country towns. Any suburb whose boundary meets the coast is grouped as coastal — city beaches and holiday towns alike — so beaches are compared with beaches. Industrial and remote ports without beach-lifestyle appeal stay regional. Peer ranks compare suburbs with a similar growth stage (for example, established metro suburbs).

• Metro Adelaide

  The Adelaide metropolitan area as defined by the ABS Remoteness Structure, so close-but-rural fringes (like the hills) are excluded.

• Coastal & beach

  Beachside suburbs and towns whose boundary meets the coast — city beaches and regional holiday towns alike — so beaches are ranked against beaches.

• Country & regional

  Inland country towns and localities beyond the metropolitan area.