Get a property report and suburb profile for any property in Charlestown

Charlestown is a substantial suburban centre in the Lake Macquarie region near Newcastle, anchored by Charlestown Square, a regional shopping centre with department stores, specialty shops and a cinema. The area mixes established, tree-lined streets of brick cottages and postwar homes with newer townhouses and low-rise apartments, and it attracts families, professionals and downsizers. Some streets sit on higher ground with views towards Lake Macquarie and there are nearby pockets of bushland, parks and walking tracks; regular bus links and main roads connect to Newcastle and the coast, while local schools, medical services, cafés and restaurants support everyday suburban life.

Charlestown is a community of 13,601 people with a median age of 38 and a median total household income of $1,839 a week. Homes are mostly owner-occupied, with about three in four dwellings owned outright or with a mortgage and around 27% rented. Local investments include the Charlestown Health and Hospital Hub, which brings together a large IPN general practice, specialist surgical services, allied pathology and imaging providers and a regional Phase I clinical trials facility, plus active-transport works on the Charlestown to Whitebridge corridor and an indoor learn-to-swim pool at the Swim Centre. Whether Charlestown suits you comes down to what you value in a suburb.

Housing in Charlestown sits above what a typical local household earned at the last Census. The median house price of $1,077,500 is about 11.3 times a typical local annual household income at the last Census, while the median unit price of $740,000 is about 7.7 times that income.

On the rental side, a house rent of $740 a week would take roughly 40.2% of a typical local household's weekly income at the last Census (a large share), and a unit rent of $575 a week would take about 31.3% (a sizeable share). On these figures, buying looks more stretched against local incomes than renting, and whether that feels expensive depends on your own income and circumstances.

Everyone's financial situation is different, so it's important to consider your own circumstances when deciding which suburb is right for you.

Over the past 12 months Charlestown saw strong growth in both values and rents. House values rose 15.9% and unit values rose 15.4%, while house rents climbed 8.8% and unit rents climbed 7.9%. Put simply, capital growth outpaced rental growth this year, and houses edged units on both value and rent movements.

If you are weighing Charlestown as an investment, these figures describe the last year’s split between capital growth and rental income; whether that mix fits your goals and financial situation is for you to decide.

This information has been prepared without taking your objectives, needs and overall financial situation into account. It is not meant to be a substitute for professional financial advice. For this reason, you should consider the appropriateness of the information and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice.