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Suburb Insights · NSW 2118

Carlingford, NSW 2118 Property Profile

ABS 2021 Census · Updated 21 May 2026

Suburb Overview

Carlingford is a well-established middle-ring suburb of Sydney, Australia, with a population of approximately 28,044, making it a sizeable community. Located approximately 18 km from the Sydney CBD, Carlingford is a middle ring area in New South Wales. The median household income is $108,368 per year.

Investment Score

72 / 100 Good

Strong household incomes in Carlingford underpin solid property demand.

Location

Sydney
Carlingford
New South Wales · 2118
18 km from Sydney CBD
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Key Indicators

Postcode
2118

Official Australia Post postcode for Carlingford. A postcode may cover multiple suburbs.

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Population
28,044

Usual resident population at the most recent census.

Median weekly rent
$500/wk

Weekly median rent for occupied homes. Live rental data integration coming soon.

Median household income
$108,368/yr

Annual median household income (before tax) across all households.

Distance to CBD
18 km

Straight-line distance from the suburb centroid to the nearest capital city CBD. Actual driving distance will be longer.

Lifestyle & Amenities

Schools nearby
7

Estimated 7 schools within or near this suburb.

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Parks & green spaces
11

Estimated 11 parks and green spaces near this suburb.

Median monthly mortgage
$2,500/mo

Monthly median mortgage repayment for households currently paying off a mortgage.

Home type
53% houses

Proportion of separate houses versus units, townhouses, and other home types. Useful for investors assessing rental demand mix.

Why People Like Living in Carlingford

Who Carlingford Suits

👨‍👩‍👧FamiliesSchool count or dwelling mix is lighter here.
📊InvestorsRent covers a solid share of the median mortgage.
🏡First-home buyersPrices sit above the New South Wales median — stretch goal.
💼ProfessionalsAround 18 km from the CBD with good access.

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Rent sits within an affordable share of local incomes, supporting tenant demand.
  • Access to several schools nearby (around 7).
  • Local parks and reserves (around 11) add to liveability.
  • Solid transport links into employment hubs.

Cons

  • Median mortgage sits above the New South Wales state median — entry costs are stretched.
  • Traffic can build during peak hours, especially on arterial roads.

Investment Insight

With 28,044 residents, Carlingford is one of New South Wales's more populous suburbs — roughly 5.3× the state median of 5,325 — giving it a deep buyer and tenant pool that typically supports higher transaction volumes and shorter average days on market. Households here earn $108,368/year on average — 11% above the NSW suburb median of $97,552 — a modest premium that supports resilient owner-occupier demand. Rent of $500/week (87% coverage of the $2,500/month median mortgage) leaves a gap of roughly $333/month that a typical investor bridges with negative gearing, depreciation and capital growth. 18 km from Sydney places Carlingford in the middle commuter belt, close enough for daily trips by car or rail but at a materially lower price point than inner suburbs. Only 53% of dwellings are separate houses (vs 76% state median), so this is a unit-heavy market where body-corporate decisions and strata supply meaningfully shape investor returns.

Investment Tip

This suburb suits long-term investors looking for a balance of rental yield and capital growth. Schools and transport underpin family demand. Local rents consume roughly 24% of household income — a useful sanity check on tenant affordability.

Carlingford vs New South Wales Median

How Carlingford stacks up against the median of all New South Wales suburbs in our dataset. Positive values mean Carlingford sits above the state median; negative means below.

MetricCarlingfordNSW medianΔ vs state
Population28,0445,325+427%
Median household income$108,368/yr$97,552/yr+11%
Median rent (weekly)$500$430+16%
Median mortgage (monthly)$2,500$2,167+15%
Distance to CBD18 km45 km-60%
Separate houses53%76%-23pp

Investor Checklist

Pre-inspection briefing for Carlingford — every item is derived from public datasets, with full citations in our data sources page.

Investment Strategy

Buy & Hold

Solid buy-and-hold profile: a population of 28,044 and household income close to the NSW median ($108,368 vs $97,552) give the market enough depth for patient capital growth without the premium entry price of inner suburbs.

Rental Yield

Strong rental coverage: $500/week (~$2,167/month) covers 87% of the $2,500/month median mortgage repayment, so the shortfall sits at just $333/month. Investors targeting positive cash flow should shortlist this suburb.

Renovation / Flip

Only 53% of dwellings are separate houses (vs 76% NSW median) — this is a unit and townhouse market, where cosmetic flips struggle against body-corporate restrictions, thinner after-reno uplift and competing new supply.

Risk Factors

Run the numbers on a Carlingford property

Full Property Analysis

30-year projections for Carlingford

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2026 Outlook

Growth: Moderate Rental Demand: Strong Investor Sentiment: Strong

Property values in Carlingford should track the wider New South Wales market through 2026, with the $108,368/year median household income (11% above the $97,552 state median) keeping the suburb firmly mid-pack. Rental coverage runs at ~87% of the typical mortgage ($2,167/month rent vs $2,500/month repayment), keeping cash flow in positive or near-neutral territory. The EquitySight investment score of 72/100 places Carlingford in the upper-middle tier of Australian suburbs we profile, and overall investor sentiment is constructive heading into the second half of 2026.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Carlingford a good suburb for investment?

Carlingford scores 72/100 on our EquitySight investment framework — a good rating. That score is driven by a population of 28,044, median household income of $108,368/year and median weekly rent of $500. Whether it fits your portfolio depends on whether you are targeting cash flow, capital growth, or a value-add renovation — all three are scored with suburb-specific numbers elsewhere on this page.

What drives property demand in Carlingford?

The main demand drivers in Carlingford are proximity to Sydney (18 km), an above-state-median household income of $108,368/year, a dwelling mix that is 53% separate houses, roughly 7 schools and 11 parks within the catchment. Together these shape both owner-occupier and tenant demand and are the factors we weight most heavily in the suburb's investment score.

What is the population of Carlingford?

Carlingford has a usual resident population of approximately 28,044, compared with a New South Wales suburb median of 5,325 — placing it in the upper half of the state's suburbs by size. Population is the clearest proxy for market depth: more residents mean more transactions and typically a shorter average days-on-market on resale.

How far is Carlingford from the Sydney CBD?

Carlingford sits 18 km straight-line from the Sydney CBD. This is comfortable commuter territory, with reasonable rail and road access to the city.

What is the median rent in Carlingford?

The most recent census recorded a median weekly rent of $500 in Carlingford, equating to approximately $26,000/year in gross rental income (state median $430/week). Market rents have typically drifted above the recorded figure — verify against current listings on realestate.com.au and Domain before making an offer.

What is the typical mortgage repayment in Carlingford?

The median monthly mortgage repayment in Carlingford is $2,500, or approximately $30,000/year (vs $2,167/month state median). Stress-test your own borrowing at rates 1–2 percentage points above today's to make sure you can still service the loan through an RBA tightening cycle.

Is Carlingford cash-flow positive for investors?

A median weekly rent of $500 works out to $2,167/month, covering 87% of the median mortgage repayment of $2,500/month. That leaves a $333/month shortfall (around $3,996/year before tax benefits), so a typical owner-occupier-priced property here is negatively geared. Actual cash flow depends on your deposit, loan terms, ownership costs and marginal tax rate — run the full numbers in our rental yield calculator.

What are the main risks of investing in Carlingford?

The main risks are interest-rate sensitivity on the $2,500 median mortgage, the broader New South Wales market cycle. Each of these is covered in the Risk Factors section above with suburb-specific numbers rather than generic warnings.

How we built this Carlingford profile

Every number on this page comes from the ABS 2021 Census of Population and Housing, Australia Post postcode reference data, and OpenStreetMap amenity tiles. The investment score, strategy verdicts, and comparison table are computed deterministically from those inputs — no opinion, no estimation. See our full methodology and the data sources and licences for the formulas we use.

Nearby Suburbs

New South Wales Property Resources