Forde

Forde has seen population growth performance typically on par with national averages when looking at short and medium term trends

Forde's population was approximately 4,401 as of February 2026, reflecting a decrease of 34 people since the 2021 Census which reported a population of 4,435. This change is inferred from the estimated resident population of 4,401 in June 2024 and address validation since the Census date. The population density equated to 2,292 persons per square kilometer, above the average seen across national locations assessed by AreaSearch. Overseas migration contributed approximately 59.4% of overall population gains during recent periods. AreaSearch adopts ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, released in 2024 with a base year of 2022.

For areas not covered and years post-2032, age group growth rates from the ACT Government's SA2 area projections are adopted, also based on 2022. Projections indicate an overall population decline of 22 persons by 2041, but specific age cohorts like the 55 to 64 group are expected to increase by 142 people.

The level of residential development activity in Forde is very low in comparison to the average area assessed nationally by AreaSearch

Forde has seen minimal dwelling approvals in recent years. Between FY-21 and FY-25, only 4 homes were approved, with none yet approved in FY-26. The population decline over these years suggests that new supply has been meeting demand, providing good options for buyers.

The average construction cost value of new properties is $398,000, indicating a focus on the premium market by developers. In FY-26, $2.8 million in commercial development approvals have been recorded, reflecting Forde's primarily residential nature. Compared to the Australian Capital Territory, Forde has significantly less development activity.

This limited new supply generally supports stronger demand and values for established properties, although building activity has increased recently. Nationally, Forde's development activity is below average, likely due to its maturity and possible planning constraints. With stable or declining population forecasts, Forde may experience less housing pressure in the future, creating favourable conditions for buyers.

Forde has limited levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the 16thth percentile nationally

Eight projects have been identified by AreaSearch that are likely to impact the area, with key projects including Gungahlin Tennis Facility (Amaroo Tennis Centre), Amaroo Village Development - Block 9 Section 111, Moncrieff East Residential Estate, and Gungahlin Community Centre. The following list details those most relevant.

Professional plan users can use the search below to filter and access additional projects.

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AreaSearch analysis of employment trends sees Forde performing better than 90% of local markets assessed across Australia

Forde's workforce is highly educated with significant representation in professional services. The unemployment rate was 1.7% as of September 2025. This represents a 1.5% increase over the past year.

The unemployment rate in Forde is 1.9% lower than that of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), which stood at 3.6%. Workforce participation in Forde is high at 80.6%, compared to the ACT's 72.5%. According to Census responses, 14.0% of residents work from home.

The dominant employment sectors are public administration & safety, professional & technical services, and education & training. However, health care & social assistance shows lower representation at 8.4%, below the regional average of 11.7%. Employment opportunities locally may be limited as indicated by the ratio of working population to resident population. Between September 2024 and September 2025, employment increased by 1.5% while labour force grew by 0.8%, leading to a decrease in unemployment rate by 0.7 percentage points. In contrast, ACT experienced employment growth of 1.4% with a labour force growth of 1.2%, resulting in a drop of 0.2 percentage points in unemployment rate. Jobs and Skills Australia's national employment forecasts from May-25 project national employment to expand by 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years. Applying these projections to Forde's employment mix suggests local employment should increase by 6.3% over five years and 12.9% over ten years, although this is a simple weighting extrapolation for illustrative purposes and does not account for localised population projections.

The economic profile demonstrates exceptional strength, placing the area among the top 10% nationally based on comprehensive AreaSearch income analysis

According to AreaSearch's aggregation of the latest postcode level ATO data released for financial year ended June 2023, Forde SA2 had a median income among taxpayers of $90,368. The average income stood at $102,483. This places Forde in the top percentile nationally, compared to levels of $72,206 and $85,981 across Australian Capital Territory respectively. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 9.26% from financial year ended June 2023 to September 2025, current estimates for Forde would be approximately $98,736 (median) and $111,973 (average). From the Census conducted in August 2021, household, family, and personal incomes in Forde rank highly, between the 98th and 99th percentiles nationally. Income analysis reveals that 41.7% of residents (1,835 people) fall within the $4000+ bracket, unlike trends in the broader area where 34.3% fall within the $1,500 - 2,999 range. A substantial proportion of high earners (61.6% above $3,000/week) indicates strong economic capacity throughout the locality. Housing accounts for 13.6% of income while strong earnings rank residents within the 99th percentile for disposable income. The area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 10th decile.

Forde is characterized by a predominantly suburban housing profile, with ownership patterns similar to the broader region

The dwelling structure in Forde, as per the latest Census, consisted of 84.9% houses and 15.1% other dwellings such as semi-detached homes, apartments, and 'other' dwellings, compared to the Australian Capital Territory's (ACT) 63.3% houses and 36.7% other dwellings. The home ownership rate in Forde was 16.4%, with mortgaged dwellings at 60.2% and rented dwellings at 23.3%. The median monthly mortgage repayment in the area was $2,481, higher than the ACT average of $2,080. The median weekly rent figure was recorded at $590, compared to the ACT's $450. Nationally, Forde's median monthly mortgage repayments were significantly higher than the Australian average of $1,863, and rents were substantially above the national figure of $375.

Forde features high concentrations of family households, with a higher-than-average median household size

Family households comprise 87.0% of all households, including 56.3% couples with children, 20.9% couples without children, and 8.9% single parent families. Non-family households constitute the remaining 13.0%, with lone person households at 11.2% and group households comprising 1.9%. The median household size is 3.2 people, which is larger than the Australian Capital Territory average of 2.5.

Forde shows strong educational performance, ranking in the upper quartile nationally when assessed across multiple qualification and achievement indicators

Forde's educational attainment exceeds national averages significantly. Among residents aged 15+, 51.2% possess university qualifications compared to Australia's 30.4%. This high level of educational attainment positions Forde favourably for knowledge-based opportunities. Bachelor degrees are most prevalent at 28.1%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (18.0%) and graduate diplomas (5.1%).

Vocational pathways account for 22.8% of qualifications among those aged 15+, with advanced diplomas at 10.7% and certificates at 12.1%. Educational participation is notably high, with 37.4% of residents currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 14.5% in primary education, 10.6% in secondary education, and 6.1% pursuing tertiary education.

Transport servicing is good compared to other areas nationally based on assessment of service frequency, route connectivity and accessibility

Forde has 20 operational public transport stops, all providing bus services. These stops are served by 38 different routes, together facilitating 2,187 weekly passenger trips. Transport accessibility is rated highly, with residents typically situated 185 meters from the nearest stop. Most residents commute outward due to Forde's residential nature. Cars remain the primary transport mode at 91%. Vehicle ownership averages 1.8 per dwelling, exceeding the regional average.

According to the 2021 Census, 14.0% of residents work from home, which may be influenced by COVID-19 conditions. On average, there are 312 trips daily across all routes, equating to around 109 weekly trips per individual stop.

Forde's residents are extremely healthy with both young and old age cohorts seeing low prevalence of common health conditions

Analysis shows strong health performance in Forde. Mortality rates and chronic condition prevalence were low across both young and old age cohorts. Private health cover was exceptionally high at approximately 72% of the total population (3,181 people), compared to 62.4% in Australian Capital Territory and 55.7% nationally.

The most common conditions were asthma and mental health issues, affecting 8.0 and 6.7% respectively. 77.0% of residents reported no medical ailments, higher than the 70.2% across Australian Capital Territory. Working-age residents had low chronic condition prevalence. Forde has 7.7% of residents aged 65 and over (340 people), lower than the 14.3% in Australian Capital Territory. Health outcomes among seniors were above average, aligning with national rankings for the general population.

Forde was found to be more culturally diverse than the vast majority of local markets in Australia, upon assessment of a range of language and cultural background related metrics

Forde's population showed high cultural diversity, with 31.9% born overseas and 31.8% speaking a language other than English at home. Christianity was the predominant religion in Forde, accounting for 48.8%. Hinduism was notably higher in Forde at 7.6%, compared to the Australian Capital Territory's 4.8%.

The top three ancestral groups were Australian (22.8%), English (20.3%), and Other (11.9%). Some ethnic groups showed significant variations: Croatian at 2.2% (regional average 0.9%), Spanish at 0.8% (regional average 0.5%), and Indian at 5.9% (regional average 3.3%).

Forde's population is younger than the national pattern

Forde's median age is 36 years, nearly matching the Australian Capital Territory average of 35 but younger than Australia's 38 years. Compared to the Australian Capital Territory, Forde has a higher concentration of residents aged 45-54 (18.4%) but fewer residents aged 25-34 (10.3%). This concentration is well above the national average of 12.0%. Between the 2021 Census and now, residents have aged by an average of 1.4 years, with the median age rising from 35 to 36. Specifically, the 55-64 age group has grown from 7.1% to 9.3%, while the 15-24 cohort increased from 12.5% to 14.6%. Conversely, the 35-44 cohort has declined from 20.3% to 17.2%, and the 5-14 group dropped from 19.5% to 16.6%. Population forecasts for 2041 indicate substantial demographic changes in Forde. The 55-64 age group is projected to grow by 22%, adding 91 residents to reach 499. Those aged 65 and above are expected to comprise 53% of this growth. Meanwhile, the 0-4 and 25-34 cohorts are forecasted to experience population declines.