Thornlands
QLDThornlands is a growing suburb in QLD with 19,263 residents.
- SAL code
- 32815
- SA2
- 301021012
- Population
- 19,263
- LGA
- Redland
Thornlands, QLD had 19,263 residents at the 2021 Census, with the broader statistical area showing a 16.3% growth over the last five years. The predominant age group is 5-14 years, and the median age sits at 36. Households are most often couples with children, and those with a mortgage repay a median of $2,167 a month. Around 71.1% of homes are owner-occupied, with the largest single tenure being owned with a mortgage at 46.5%. Most dwellings are separate houses, making up 87.4% of the suburb's housing stock. The suburb has 43 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
Thornlands, QLD at a glance
Thornlands is a bayside suburb in Redland City, ~28 km southeast of Brisbane CBD. Standalone houses on 600m²-quarter-acre lots dominate, the streetscape is semi-rural, and a state-declared Priority Development Area to the south is set to reshape supply. The data tiles below cover the demographic baseline; this card adds the live market, lifestyle, and council pipeline.
For homebuyers
Thornlands suits people who want a bayside, semi-rural pace without losing Brisbane reach. Stock is dominated by free-standing 4-bedroom homes on 600m² to quarter-acre blocks, and there is no train station in the suburb itself — Cleveland (~5 min north) is the line terminus into the CBD (~50 min). Day-to-day shopping centres on Victoria Point Shopping Centre (~5 min south) and Cleveland Central; Wellington Point and Raby Bay foreshores are within 10 minutes. Schools include Thornlands and Bay View State (primary), Carmel College and Redlands College (private K-12) and Redland District Special School; the nearest state secondary catchments are Cleveland District SHS and Victoria Point SHS. In short: a settled bayside suburb with detached-house feel and easy access to the Redlands hubs, with state-led growth visible to the south.
For investors
Thornlands is a growth-led house market with moderate yield. Median house sale ~$1.10M against ~$750/wk rent gives a ~3.5% gross yield; units sit around $612/wk for a ~4.6% yield (Your Investment Property May 2026). 12-month house growth +17.89%; ~340-358 house sales in the past year and just 16 days on market. Brisbane-wide vacancy was 0.6-0.8% at March 2026 (Tora Finance) — Redlands sits inside that tight band.
Strengths
- Strong recent capital growth (~+17-19% YoY houses) with 16 days on market signals genuine demand depth.
- Deep transaction market (~340+ house sales in 12 months) — easy to enter and exit at scale.
- Tight Brisbane-region vacancy (0.6-0.8% March 2026, Tora Finance) supports rent-roll resilience.
- Bayside lifestyle + detached-house dominance underpins owner-occupier demand and tenant stability.
Trade-offs
- Yield is moderate (~3.5% houses) on a >$1M median — not a cashflow play; serviceability matters.
- Southern Thornlands PDA was declared 4 April 2025 with potential for ~8,000 new homes (~900 in the early release) — meaningful future supply could compress yield from 2027 onward.
- No train station in suburb; commute via Cleveland line or Eastern Busway depends on car-then-rail.
- Limited stratified stock (units only ~4-5% of sales mix) constrains lower-entry buy-in.
What's coming
Redland City Council's 2025/26 Capital Works program ($151.68M total) includes $6.92M for the Wellington Street / Panorama Drive upgrade and the $8.6M Kinross Road trunk gravity sewer (to Sept 2026) to unlock growth capacity. The state-declared Southern Thornlands PDA Interim Land Use Plan is in effect; the formal development scheme goes to public notification in 2026.
Bottom line
For homebuyers: a bayside, detached-house suburb with Redlands hubs on the doorstep. For investors: a growth + scale play with reliable rent, but yield is modest and PDA supply is the watch-item.
Population
?19,263
Suburb · Census 2021
5-Year Growth
+16.3%
3yr: +8.1% · 10yr: +51.6%
SA2 · 5yr
Household Income
$2,218/wk
Suburb · Census 2021 median
Median Age
36
Suburb · Census 2021
Socio-Economic Index
?8/10
SA2 · least disadvantaged
Unemployment
?1.8%
SA2 · Q4 2025
Schools
4
2 primary, 1 secondary
Hospitals
No data for this suburb
Childcare services
?8
6 long day, 3 OSHC
Parks & green space
?43
Parks, reserves
Transport stops
?59
GTFS stops
Dwelling approvals
?142
Redland · Feb 2026
Median Weekly Rent
Based on rental bond lodgements recorded by the state government.
Median House Sale Price
state Valuer-General sale price data not yet loaded for QLD
Safety & Crime
2025 Q4Reported incidents from QLD police. Offence rates may not reflect all crime.
Population over time — Thornlands (SA2)
ABS publishes annual estimates only at SA2; Thornlands suburb alone is ~19,263 (Census 2021).
Source: ABS ERP (latest release · 2025) · Census 2021. Numbers refreshed quarterly.
Growth at a Glance
Population grew from 7,544 to 21,863 over 24 years, averaging 4.5% per year.
Schools
4 in suburbSector
3 public · 1 private
Type
2 primary · 1 secondary · 1 special
Total enrolment
1,733(3 of 4 reporting)
Avg per school
578
Government school catchment
Catchment data is not yet available for QLD.
Source when available: QLD Department of Education — QSpatial State School Catchment Areas.
Profile
Census snapshot
Housing
Public housing 0.6%Almost entirely detached houses (87.4%), owner-occupied (71.1%), built for families (55% are 4 bed).
Dwelling mix
Tenure
QLD 33%
Number of bedrooms
Bushfire risk
Source: QLD QRA Bushfire Prone Area
As of Apr 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
Flood data is not yet available for QLD.
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: QLD Reconstruction Authority — Bushfire Prone Area + Floodplain Assessment Overlay.
Planning zones
Planning-zone data is not yet available for QLD.
Source when available: QLD Department of State Development, Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning.