Broken Hill
NSWBroken Hill is a declining suburb in NSW with 17,706 residents.
- SAL code
- 10589
- SA2
- 105021097
- Population
- 17,706
- LGA
- Unincorporated NSW
Broken Hill, NSW had 17,706 residents at the 2021 Census, with the broader statistical area showing a 1.1% decline over the last five years. The predominant age group is 55-64 years, and the median age sits at 44. Households are most often couples without children, and those with a mortgage repay a median of $867 a month. Around 72.2% of homes are owner-occupied, with the largest single tenure being owned outright at 42.2%. Most dwellings are separate houses, making up 95.0% of the suburb's housing stock. The suburb has 30 parks and reserves mapped within its boundary. Source: ABS Census 2021 and Estimated Resident Population, with amenity counts from state Open Data and OpenStreetMap.
Suburb analysis
Broken Hill, NSW at a glance
Broken Hill is a far-west NSW mining city ~1,150 km from Sydney and ~510 km from Adelaide, sitting on the Line of Lode silver-lead-zinc seam that has been worked continuously for 130+ years. It became the first Australian city listed on the National Heritage Register (2015). The data tiles below cover the demographic baseline; this card adds the live market, lifestyle, and council pipeline.
For homebuyers
Broken Hill suits people who want space, a low cost-of-living and a strong sense of place — corrugated-iron heritage cottages and Federation-era terraces dominate the older grid, with later weatherboard and brick infill on the fringes. The Line of Lode mullock heap is the visual anchor; Sturt Park, the Living Desert sculpture site and the Pro Hart and Regional Art Gallery (the oldest in NSW) carry the cultural weight. Day-to-day shopping centres on Argent Street and Westside Plaza. Schooling includes Broken Hill High and Willyama High plus several primary options. There's no rail to the coast, but the Indian Pacific stops in town and Rex Air flies daily to Sydney, Adelaide and Mildura. Adelaide is closer culturally and logistically than Sydney. In short: a characterful, affordable outback city with deep heritage and isolation trade-offs that won't suit everyone.
For investors
Broken Hill is a high-yield income play with a thin unit market. Median house sale $220,000 against $360/week rent gives a ~10.22% gross yield (Your Investment Property May 2026); 12-month house growth +13.26% and quarterly +8.64% off a low base. Days-on-market 70 and 598 house sales in 12 months — a deep transaction market for a city of ~17k. Vacancy sits at ~1.3% (SQM Research April 2026). Just 1 unit sale in 12 months, so this is effectively a houses-only market.
Strengths
- Among the highest gross yields in NSW (~10.22% houses, Your Investment Property May 2026) — a genuine cashflow market.
- Tight vacancy (~1.3%, SQM April 2026) despite stable population, indicating durable rental demand.
- Low entry price ($220k median house) keeps gearing modest and improves equity-deployment math.
- Deep transaction volume (598 house sales/yr) means you can actually enter and exit at quoted prices.
Trade-offs
- Single-industry exposure — mining cycles drive the local economy and asset values.
- Days-on-market 70 (Your Investment Property May 2026) is well above metro norms; capital event timing is slow.
- Effectively no unit market (1 sale in 12 months) limits diversification and resale audience.
- Population has been stable-to-declining for decades; long-run capital growth has historically lagged coastal NSW.
What's coming
Broken Hill City Council adopted its Delivery Program 2025-29 and Operational Plan 2025/26 in mid-2025, alongside a new Sustainability Strategy 2025-2030. The EnergyConnect interconnector linking NSW, Victoria and SA is scheduled for completion in 2026, routing through the region and easing the grid-isolation issues that have caused recent outages. The 53 MW AGL solar plant and existing wind/battery assets continue to operate.
Bottom line
For homebuyers: a heritage outback city with low costs and serious isolation. For investors: a top-decile NSW yield play with mining-cycle and liquidity risks attached.
Population
?17,706
Suburb · Census 2021
5-Year Growth
-1.1%
3yr: -0.6% · 10yr: -4.6%
SA2 · 5yr
Household Income
$1,176/wk
Suburb · Census 2021 median
Median Age
44
Suburb · Census 2021
Socio-Economic Index
?2/10
SA2 · more disadvantaged
Unemployment
?3.6%
SA2 · Q4 2025
Schools
9
7 primary, 2 secondary
Hospitals
?1
Within suburb
Childcare services
?8
4 long day, 2 OSHC
Parks & green space
?30
Parks, reserves
Transport stops
No data for this suburb
Dwelling approvals
No council coverage for this area
Unincorporated NSW
Median Weekly Rent
Based on NSW rental bond lodgements, aggregated at postcode level. All SALs sharing this postcode show the same median.
Median House Sale Price
Source: state Valuer-General (suburb-level quarterly medians).
→ Calculate stamp duty on this suburb's median price→ Estimate mortgage repayments→ Calculate rental yield (price + median rent)
Safety & Crime
2025 Q4Reported incidents from NSW police. Offence rates may not reflect all crime.
Population over time — Broken Hill (SA2)
ABS publishes annual estimates only at SA2; Broken Hill suburb alone is ~17,706 (Census 2021).
Source: ABS ERP (latest release · 2025) · Census 2021. Numbers refreshed quarterly.
Growth at a Glance
Population grew from 20,929 to 17,515 over 24 years, averaging -0.7% per year.
Schools
9 in suburbSector
9 public
Type
7 primary · 2 secondary
Total enrolment
2,338
Avg per school
260
Government school catchment
Intake zonePrimary
Alma PS48.3%
- Railway Town PS 30.0%
- Burke Ward PS 9.0%
- Broken Hill NPS 8.0%
- Morgan St PS 2.2%
- Menindee CS 1.6%
- Pomona PS 0.8%
- Broken Hill PS 0.0%
Secondary
Willyama HS58.5%
- Broken Hill HS 39.0%
- Menindee CS 1.6%
- Coomealla HS 0.8%
Source: NSW Department of Education — School Intake Zones. Boundaries can be amended without notice; confirm with the school before relying on enrolment.
Profile
Census snapshot
Housing
Public housing 1.6%Almost entirely detached houses (95%), owner-occupied (72.2%), built for families (55% are 3 bed).
Dwelling mix
Tenure
NSW 33%
Number of bedrooms
Bushfire risk
Source: NSW RFS BFPL via SEED
As of May 2026
Overlap is the percentage of the suburb's land area inside the mapped bushfire polygons. Always verify the exact property address with the relevant authority before making decisions.
Flood risk
This suburb falls outside every flood polygon mapped by the relevant authority. Always confirm at the property address — local conditions and unmapped overlays can still apply.
Overlap is the percentage of the suburb's land area inside the mapped flood polygons. Always verify the exact property address with the relevant authority before making decisions. Source when available: NSW Rural Fire Service (BFPL) and NSW DPHI EPI Flood.
Planning zones
4 zones in suburb| Code | Zone | % covered | Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| RU2 | ZoneRural | 0.5% | 70.34 km² |
| C2 | ZoneEnvironmental | 0.3% | 39.08 km² |
| R1 | ZoneResidential | 0.1% | 17.61 km² |
| SP1 | ZoneSpecial use | 0.1% | 14.91 km² |
Source: NSW DPHI EPI Land Zoning (ZONE_NSW/2026-04-29/1eccf1a530fa1be5) · As of Apr 2026. Zone boundaries are amended periodically; verify the exact property with the relevant council before relying on permitted use.