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

Nowra sits on the Shoalhaven River as the service and commercial centre for its coastal hinterland, with riverfront parks, boat ramps and a compact town centre of shops and cafés. The suburb bridges town and country, with suburban streets and riverside homes alongside nearby rural blocks and bushland on the Cambewarra Range, and Jervis Bay and other beaches within easy reach. Transport links along the Princes Highway and the South Coast rail corridor keep the town connected to neighbouring centres.

Local life in Nowra is varied: it caters to families, tradespeople, retirees and people working in regional services or at the nearby naval air station. The population is 9,956 with a median age of 40, and owner-occupiers slightly outnumber renters (52.3% versus 47.8%). Recent planning controls for riverfront and Mandalay areas enable several hundred new homes and include social and affordable housing requirements on some sites, and there is ongoing investment in health and transport infrastructure. Whether that mix suits you depends on what you are looking for in a suburb.

On the figures, housing in Nowra looks stretched against local incomes as recorded at the most recent Census. The median house price of $715,000 works out to about 13.3 times a typical local household's annual income at the last Census, which sits well above those local incomes.

Renting is also a large share of income: a house renting for $550 a week would take about 53.0% of a typical local household's weekly income at the last Census, while a unit at $420 a week would take about 40.5%. Which of those numbers matters most depends on whether you plan to rent or buy, and 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 Nowra shows a clear split between the house and unit markets. Median house values climbed 12.5% over the year, a strong rise, while median unit values fell 14.6%, a sharp decline.

House rents rose 5.8% over the same period, a solid increase, so for houses capital growth outpaced rental income growth (12.5% v 5.8%). The unit side saw a drop in capital value over the year. Whether that balance fits your plans will come down to whether you prioritise capital growth or rental income and your own circumstances.

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.