Is Lake Cathie a nice place to live?

Lake Cathie is a relaxed village on the Mid North Coast, centred on a lake estuary beside the Tasman Sea. The community is older, with many households owning their homes outright (54.0%) and a large share of couples without children at home. A compact main street supplies shops, cafes and services, and walking, fishing and other water-based recreation are popular on the nearby surf beaches and through the coastal bushland. The Foreshore Reserve Master Plan has been adopted, and interim bank retention works using geobags and new tree planting were completed.

Is it expensive to live in Lake Cathie?

A typical local household earned $1,275 a week at the most recent Census. On those figures, a median house price of $930,000 in Lake Cathie works out to about 14.0 times a typical local annual household income, which sits well above local incomes. Rents are also a large share of income: a house renting for $700 a week would take about 55% of a typical local household's weekly income, while a unit at $450 a week would take about 35%. So buying sits well above local incomes, and renting would take a sizeable to large share of what a typical local household earned at the last Census. Everyone's financial situation is different, so it's important to consider your own circumstances when deciding which suburb is right for you.

Is Lake Cathie a good place to invest?

The most striking movement in Lake Cathie in the past 12 months is a strong 16.3% rise in median unit values while unit rents fell by 3.2% over the same period. By contrast, median house values rose 5.0% and house rents increased 2.9%. Put together by property type, that means for units capital growth outpaced rental income, with values up 16.3% while rents fell 3.2%. For houses, values rose a solid 5.0% while rents edged up a modest 2.9%. 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.

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Lake Cathie suburb profile

Lake Cathie is a relaxed village on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, set beside Lake Cathie and near the Tasman Sea. The town centres on a lake estuary framed by coastal bushland and surf beaches, making water-based recreation, fishing and walking popular pastimes.

Housing is predominantly low-density, with classic beach cottages, single-storey family homes and holiday residences, and some streets backing onto native scrub. A compact main street supplies shops, cafes and services, and the suburb is within easy reach of Port Macquarie and regional transport links.

Lake Cathie property market performance

Property growth+10.7%Past 12 months

Lake Cathie has a median house price of $930,000, with house values up a solid 5.0% over the last 12 months. It's primarily a house market; there is no reliable unit median because too few units sold recently for a median to be published. Units sold more quickly than houses, with median times on market of 47 days for units and 77 days for houses over the last 12 months.

In Lake Cathie, house rents rose modestly over the last 12 months, up 2.9%, while unit rents fell 3.2%, so house rents rose faster than unit rents.

	Houses	Units
Median price Past 3 months	$930K	N/A
Change in value Past 12 months	5.0%	16.3%
Sold Past 3 months	17	2
Median days on market Past 12 months	77	47
Average rent Past 12 months	$700	$450
Change in rent Past 12 months	2.9%	-3.2%

5 year median price trend for houses and units

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Lake Cathie demographics

Lake Cathie is an older community with many households owning their homes outright and a large share of couples without children at home.

Couples without children make up 54.4% of families and 54.0% of homes are owned outright. At the 2021 Census there were 4,296 people living in Lake Cathie.

Lake Cathie and NSW

	Suburb	NSW
Median age years	52	39
Median household income weekly	$1,275	$1,829
Couples with children share of families	31.6%	44.7%
Couples without children share of families	54.4%	37.9%
One-parent families share of families	13.0%	15.8%
Homes owned outright share of homes	54.0%	32.6%
Homes with a mortgage share of homes	28.3%	33.6%
Homes rented share of homes	17.7%	33.7%

Source: ABS 2021 Census. Shares of homes exclude other and not-stated tenure.

Lake Cathie infrastructure, key developments and investment opportunities

Lake Cathie’s Foreshore Reserve Master Plan was adopted by Port Macquarie-Hastings Council in 2025, and interim bank retention works using geobags and new tree planting were completed in 2025; council also scheduled beach nourishment works to backfill parts of the foreshore with marine sand in early December 2025.

The Southern Arm Trunk Main Extension will install about 1.7 kilometres of new water main along Ocean Drive, with construction scheduled to finish in 2027. The Lake Cathie Ambulance Station opened in 2024 and includes internal parking for four emergency vehicles.

Suburbs near Lake Cathie

Some popular suburbs near Lake Cathie include:

How does Lake Cathie compare to nearby suburbs?

Median house prices: Lake Cathie’s median house price is 5.6% higher than Crestwood’s.
House price growth: Over the past 12 months, house prices in Lake Cathie have grown 5.7% higher than in Crestwood.
Unit price growth: Over the past 12 months, unit prices in Lake Cathie have grown 15.9% higher than in Crestwood.
Selling speed for houses: Properties in Lake Cathie are selling 16.3% faster than in North Haven.
Selling speed for units: Properties in Lake Cathie are selling 6.0% faster than in Crestwood.

Common questions about Lake Cathie

Is Lake Cathie a nice place to live?
Lake Cathie is a relaxed village on the Mid North Coast, centred on a lake estuary beside the Tasman Sea.

The community is older, with many households owning their homes outright (54.0%) and a large share of couples without children at home. A compact main street supplies shops, cafes and services, and walking, fishing and other water-based recreation are popular on the nearby surf beaches and through the coastal bushland. The Foreshore Reserve Master Plan has been adopted, and interim bank retention works using geobags and new tree planting were completed.
Is it expensive to live in Lake Cathie?
A typical local household earned $1,275 a week at the most recent Census. On those figures, a median house price of $930,000 in Lake Cathie works out to about 14.0 times a typical local annual household income, which sits well above local incomes. Rents are also a large share of income: a house renting for $700 a week would take about 55% of a typical local household's weekly income, while a unit at $450 a week would take about 35%. So buying sits well above local incomes, and renting would take a sizeable to large share of what a typical local household earned at the last Census.

Everyone's financial situation is different, so it's important to consider your own circumstances when deciding which suburb is right for you.
Is Lake Cathie a good place to invest?
The most striking movement in Lake Cathie in the past 12 months is a strong 16.3% rise in median unit values while unit rents fell by 3.2% over the same period. By contrast, median house values rose 5.0% and house rents increased 2.9%.

Put together by property type, that means for units capital growth outpaced rental income, with values up 16.3% while rents fell 3.2%. For houses, values rose a solid 5.0% while rents edged up a modest 2.9%.

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.

Choose the right real estate agents in Lake Cathie

Choosing the right real estate agent in Lake Cathie can have a big impact on your sale. While there are 39 real estate agents working in the suburb, but just 5 of them were responsible for 57.9% of all property sales over the past year, showing a strong footprint and track record in the area.

Commission rates typically range from 2.63% to 3.25%, depending on the agent and what’s included. Comparing both performance and fee structures can help you find someone who's well-suited to your needs, and set them up for a successful result.