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Suburb Insights · QLD 4580

Tin Can Bay, QLD 4580 Property Profile

ABS 2021 Census · Updated 21 May 2026

Suburb Overview

Tin Can Bay is a coastal suburb in Queensland, Australia, with a population of approximately 2,293, making it a boutique locality. Located approximately 177 km from the Brisbane CBD, Tin Can Bay is a coastal area in Queensland. The median household income is $38,168 per year.

Investment Score

32 / 100 Weak

Tin Can Bay's income profile suggests a value-oriented market with competitive purchase prices. The coastal setting provides a lifestyle factor that underpins property values.

Location

Brisbane
Tin Can Bay
Queensland · 4580
177 km from Brisbane CBD
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Key Indicators

Postcode
4580

Official Australia Post postcode for Tin Can Bay. A postcode may cover multiple suburbs.

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Population
2,293

Usual resident population at the most recent census.

Median weekly rent
$260/wk

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

Median household income
$38,168/yr

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

Distance to CBD
177 km

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

Lifestyle & Amenities

Schools nearby
1

Estimated 1 school within or near this suburb.

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Parks & green spaces
1

Estimated 1 park and green spaces near this suburb.

Median monthly mortgage
$1,300/mo

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

Home type
63% houses

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

Why People Like Living in Tin Can Bay

Who Tin Can Bay Suits

👨‍👩‍👧FamiliesSchool count or dwelling mix is lighter here.
📊InvestorsRent covers a solid share of the median mortgage.
🏡First-home buyersEntry costs sit at or below the Queensland median.
💼ProfessionalsLonger commute to the CBD.

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Mortgage costs are lower than the Queensland median, improving cash-flow margins.
  • Coastal lifestyle attracts renters and owner-occupiers alike.
  • Established infrastructure and existing community base.

Cons

  • Rent-to-income ratio is above comfortable thresholds — watch tenant affordability.
  • Long distance to the CBD (177 km) — plan for commute time or local employment.
  • Transport options are limited — car dependency is likely.
  • Fewer schools inside the suburb itself — verify catchments for neighbouring areas.

Investment Insight

Tin Can Bay is a smaller community of 2,293 — about 42% of the Queensland suburb median (5,474) — so investors should factor in the narrower buyer pool and longer average time-on-market. Tin Can Bay's median household income of $38,168/year is 58% below the Queensland suburb median ($90,298) — this is an affordability play where returns lean on yield and patient capital growth rather than demographic premium. Rent of $260/week (87% coverage of the $1,300/month median mortgage) leaves a gap of roughly $173/month that a typical investor bridges with negative gearing, depreciation and capital growth. Tin Can Bay is 177 km from Brisbane, so the local market tracks regional employment and lifestyle drivers more than CBD-driven commuter demand.

Investment Tip

Coastal markets benefit from lifestyle appeal but require a buffer for higher insurance and occasional weather-driven vacancies. Local rents consume roughly 35% of household income — a useful sanity check on tenant affordability.

Tin Can Bay vs Queensland Median

How Tin Can Bay stacks up against the median of all Queensland suburbs in our dataset. Positive values mean Tin Can Bay sits above the state median; negative means below.

MetricTin Can BayQLD medianΔ vs state
Population2,2935,474-58%
Median household income$38,168/yr$90,298/yr-58%
Median rent (weekly)$260$385-32%
Median mortgage (monthly)$1,300$1,733-25%
Distance to CBD177 km62 km+185%
Separate houses63%77%-14pp

Investor Checklist

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

Investment Strategy

Buy & Hold

Limited buy-and-hold upside: a small population of 2,293 means liquidity is thin and capital growth tends to lag the wider Queensland market over full cycles.

Rental Yield

Strong rental coverage: $260/week (~$1,127/month) covers 87% of the $1,300/month median mortgage repayment, so the shortfall sits at just $173/month. Investors targeting positive cash flow should shortlist this suburb.

Renovation / Flip

Only 63% of dwellings are separate houses (vs 77% QLD 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 Tin Can Bay property

Full Property Analysis

30-year projections for Tin Can Bay

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2026 Outlook

Growth: Low Rental Demand: Low Investor Sentiment: Low

Capital-growth expectations for Tin Can Bay are modest for 2026 — incomes 58% below the QLD median of $90,298 and a population of 2,293 suggest gains will lag headline metro markets. Rental coverage runs at ~87% of the typical mortgage ($1,127/month rent vs $1,300/month repayment), keeping cash flow in positive or near-neutral territory. The EquitySight investment score of 32/100 places Tin Can Bay in the lower tier of Australian suburbs we profile, and overall investor sentiment is cautious heading into the second half of 2026.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Tin Can Bay a good suburb for investment?

Tin Can Bay scores 32/100 on our EquitySight investment framework — a weak rating. That score is driven by a population of 2,293, median household income of $38,168/year and median weekly rent of $260. 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 Tin Can Bay?

The main demand drivers in Tin Can Bay are a median household income of $38,168/year, a dwelling mix that is 63% separate houses, roughly 1 schools and 1 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 Tin Can Bay?

Tin Can Bay has a usual resident population of approximately 2,293, compared with a Queensland suburb median of 5,474 — placing it in the lower 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 Tin Can Bay from the Brisbane CBD?

Tin Can Bay sits 177 km straight-line from the Brisbane CBD. This is a regional market where CBD distance is only indicative — local industry diversity and commute alternatives matter more.

What is the median rent in Tin Can Bay?

The most recent census recorded a median weekly rent of $260 in Tin Can Bay, equating to approximately $13,520/year in gross rental income (state median $385/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 Tin Can Bay?

The median monthly mortgage repayment in Tin Can Bay is $1,300, or approximately $15,600/year (vs $1,733/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 Tin Can Bay cash-flow positive for investors?

A median weekly rent of $260 works out to $1,127/month, covering 87% of the median mortgage repayment of $1,300/month. That leaves a $173/month shortfall (around $2,076/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 Tin Can Bay?

The main risks are a thin buyer pool (2,293 residents), interest-rate sensitivity on the $1,300 median mortgage, below-median household incomes ($38,168 vs $90,298 state median), the broader Queensland 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 Tin Can Bay 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.

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