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ABS 2021 Census · Updated 21 May 2026
Hay Flat is a regional centre in South Australia, Australia, with a population of approximately 72, making it a boutique locality. Located approximately 69 km from the Adelaide CBD, Hay Flat is a regional area in South Australia. The median household income is $61,724 per year.
Household earnings in Hay Flat are below the state average, which may affect long-term capital growth. Distance from major centres is a consideration, though regional markets can offer higher rental yields.
Official Australia Post postcode for Hay Flat. A postcode may cover multiple suburbs.
Australia Post Postcode Finder →Usual resident population at the most recent census.
Weekly median rent for occupied homes. Live rental data integration coming soon.
Annual median household income (before tax) across all households.
Straight-line distance from the suburb centroid to the nearest capital city CBD. Actual driving distance will be longer.
Estimated 1 school within or near this suburb.
Find schools near Hay Flat on My School →Estimated 1 park and green spaces near this suburb.
Monthly median mortgage repayment for households currently paying off a mortgage.
Proportion of separate houses versus units, townhouses, and other home types. Useful for investors assessing rental demand mix.
Hay Flat is a smaller community of 72 — about 2% of the South Australia suburb median (3,699) — so investors should factor in the narrower buyer pool and longer average time-on-market. Hay Flat's median household income of $61,724/year is 24% below the South Australia suburb median ($80,964) — this is an affordability play where returns lean on yield and patient capital growth rather than demographic premium. Median rent of $200/week (~$867/month) covers only 53% of the median mortgage of $1,634/month — the remaining $767/month must be funded from other income, so this suburb tilts toward capital growth rather than yield. Hay Flat is 69 km from Adelaide, so the local market tracks regional employment and lifestyle drivers more than CBD-driven commuter demand.
How Hay Flat stacks up against the median of all South Australia suburbs in our dataset. Positive values mean Hay Flat sits above the state median; negative means below.
| Metric | Hay Flat | SA median | Δ vs state |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 72 | 3,699 | -98% |
| Median household income | $61,724/yr | $80,964/yr | -24% |
| Median rent (weekly) | $200 | $320 | -37% |
| Median mortgage (monthly) | $1,634 | $1,616 | +1% |
| Distance to CBD | 69 km | 13 km | +431% |
| Separate houses | 85% | 73% | +12pp |
Pre-inspection briefing for Hay Flat — every item is derived from public datasets, with full citations in our data sources page.
Limited buy-and-hold upside: a small population of 72 means liquidity is thin and capital growth tends to lag the wider South Australia market over full cycles.
Weak cash flow: $200/week rent covers only 53% of the $1,634/month median mortgage — a $767/month gap that must be funded from other income. This suburb is a capital-growth play, not a yield play.
With 85% houses in a 72-person market, renovation margins depend on individual street and aspect rather than any suburb-wide story — do comparable-sales analysis before committing capital.
Run the numbers on a Hay Flat property
Scenario comparison, cash flow analysis, tax modelling, and PDF export — all in one place.
Create free account →Capital-growth expectations for Hay Flat are modest for 2026 — incomes 24% below the SA median of $80,964 and a population of 72 suggest gains will lag headline metro markets. Rental coverage runs at ~53% of the typical mortgage ($867/month rent vs $1,634/month repayment), meaning investors will rely on capital growth rather than yield. The EquitySight investment score of 27/100 places Hay Flat 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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Hay Flat scores 27/100 on our EquitySight investment framework — a weak rating. That score is driven by a population of 72, median household income of $61,724/year and median weekly rent of $200. 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.
The main demand drivers in Hay Flat are a median household income of $61,724/year, a dwelling mix that is 85% 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.
Hay Flat has a usual resident population of approximately 72, compared with a South Australia suburb median of 3,699 — 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.
Hay Flat sits 69 km straight-line from the Adelaide CBD. This is a regional market where CBD distance is only indicative — local industry diversity and commute alternatives matter more.
The most recent census recorded a median weekly rent of $200 in Hay Flat, equating to approximately $10,400/year in gross rental income (state median $320/week). Market rents have typically drifted above the recorded figure — verify against current listings on realestate.com.au and Domain before making an offer.
The median monthly mortgage repayment in Hay Flat is $1,634, or approximately $19,608/year (vs $1,616/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.
A median weekly rent of $200 works out to $867/month, covering 53% of the median mortgage repayment of $1,634/month. That leaves a $767/month shortfall (around $9,204/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.
The main risks are a thin buyer pool (72 residents), interest-rate sensitivity on the $1,634 median mortgage, below-median household incomes ($61,724 vs $80,964 state median), the broader South Australia market cycle. Each of these is covered in the Risk Factors section above with suburb-specific numbers rather than generic warnings.
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.