Urban Centre · Area profile
Emu Park
15 km²
Casting a quiet profile across 15 square kilometres of the Queensland coast, Emu Park is a growing seaside community with a notably older population. The typical resident is 48, far older than the national figure of 38, and the area has seen a significant rise in seniors since 2011. This shift toward an older demographic is reflected in the local health needs and the high number of homes owned outright. It is a place where detached houses dominate and most people rely on cars to get around.
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The population grew 36% since 2011 to reach 4,860 people. It is an older community, with 27.2% aged 65 and over, which is far above the Queensland figure of 17.0%.
Most residents were born in Australia, and the area has far fewer overseas-born people (9.9%) compared to the national figure of 27.7%. English and Australian are the most common ancestries.
English is the primary language for 89.4% of the community. Only 2.3% of people use another language at home, which is far below the national figure of 22.3%.
About half of the population identifies as Christian, while 39.3% report no religion. The number of people with no religion rose 6.3 points since 2011.
The area has far fewer adults with a bachelor degree or higher (12.6%) and fewer who completed Year 12 (39.0%) than the state and national figures.
Typical weekly household income is $1,263, which is well below the national figure of $1,746. However, the proportion of households earning $3,000 or more a week rose 4.3 points since 2011.
Health needs are higher than usual here, with 35% of people living with a long-term health condition. About 7.7% of residents need help with daily activities, which is a little above the national figure.
The area has a strong connection to the Defence Force, with 5.0% of people having served, which is much higher than most similar areas. Unpaid care is also more common here than the national average.
Homes tend to be larger than average with 2.4 people per home. There has been a rise in one-parent families and people living alone since 2011.
Detached houses are very common, making up 90.9% of all homes. While 39.5% of homes are owned outright, the proportion of renters rose 17 points since 2011, and typical weekly rent is $350.
The community is highly reliant on cars, as only 2.0% of people commute by public transport. Working from home is also uncommon, at 5.9%, which is far below the national figure.
The area is quite mobile, with 45.9% of people moving house in the last five years. This is well above the national figure of 40.7%.
About 48.7% of adults are working or looking for work, which is far below the national figure of 61.1%. Those employed are most commonly found in health care and social assistance.
The area is very car-dependent, with a walkability score of 1.5. There are no grocery stores or health services within a 15-minute walk for any residents.