Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau is positioned among the lower quartile of areas assessed nationally for population growth based on AreaSearch's assessment of recent, and medium term trends

Based on AreaSearch's analysis, Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's population is around 14,225 as of Feb 2026. This reflects an increase of 245 people (1.8%) since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 13,980 people. The change is inferred from the estimated resident population of 14,155 from the ABS as of June 2024 and an additional 13 validated new addresses since the Census date. This population level equates to a density ratio of 3,444 persons per square kilometer, placing it in the upper quartile relative to national locations assessed by AreaSearch. Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's 1.8% growth since the census positions it within 1.5 percentage points of the SA3 area (3.3%), demonstrating competitive growth fundamentals. Population growth for the area was primarily driven by overseas migration, which contributed approximately 76.6% of overall population gains during recent periods.

AreaSearch is adopting ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, as released in 2024 with 2022 as the base year. For any SA2 areas not covered by this data, AreaSearch is utilizing the NSW State Government's SA2 level projections, as released in 2022 with 2021 as the base year. Growth rates by age group from these aggregations are also applied to all areas for years 2032 to 2041. Regarding demographic trends, projections indicate a decline in overall population, with the area's population expected to decline by 357 persons by 2041 according to this methodology. However, growth across specific age cohorts is anticipated, led by the 85 and over age group, which is projected to increase by 630 people. See the age section for more details.

Residential development activity is lower than average in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau according to AreaSearch's national comparison of local real estate markets

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau has experienced around 36 dwellings receiving development approval annually, with 181 homes approved over the past 5 financial years (between FY-21 and FY-25) and 12 so far in FY-26. Given the population has fallen over this period, new supply has likely kept up with demand, offering good choice to buyers, while new homes are being built at an average value of $782,000, revealing that developers are targeting the premium market segment with higher-end properties. Additionally, $322,000 in commercial approvals have been registered this financial year, indicating minimal commercial development activity.

Relative to Greater Sydney, Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau records 13.0% less building activity (per person), placing it among the 50th percentile of areas assessed nationally, though building activity has accelerated in recent years. This level is below the national average, indicating the area's established nature and suggesting potential planning limitations. Recent construction comprises 59.0% detached houses and 41.0% townhouses or apartments, showing an expanding range of medium-density options creating a mix of opportunities across price brackets, from traditional family housing to more affordable compact alternatives. The location has approximately 361 people per dwelling approval, reflecting an established area.

Given stable or declining population forecasts, Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau may experience less housing pressure, creating favourable conditions for buyers.

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau has moderate levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the 41stth percentile nationally

Nothing can influence an area's performance as much as changes to local infrastructure, major projects, and planning initiatives. In total 18 projects have been identified by AreaSearch that are likely to have an impact on the area. Key projects include Montecito Collaroy, 1010-1014 Pittwater Road Mixed Use Development, 1129-1131 Pittwater Road Mixed Use, and Cromer Village Green (Proposed Mixed-Use Precinct), with the list below detailing those likely to be of most relevance.

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

Denotes AI-based impression for illustrative purposes only, not to be taken as definitive under any circumstances. Please follow links and conduct other investigations from the project's source for actual imagery. Developers and project owners wishing us to use original imagery please Contact Us and we will do so.

The employment landscape in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau shows performance that lags behind national averages across key labour market indicators

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau has a well-educated workforce, with professional services showing strong representation and an unemployment rate of 4.1%. As of December 2025, 8,063 residents are in work, while the unemployment rate is in line with Greater Sydney's rate of 4.2%, and workforce participation is broadly similar to Greater Sydney's 70.2%. Based on Census responses, a high 44.5% of residents were found to work from home, though Covid-19 lockdown impacts should be considered.

Leading employment industries among residents comprise construction, professional & technical, and health care & social assistance. The area shows particularly strong specialization in construction, with an employment share of 1.5 times the regional level. Meanwhile, transport, postal & warehousing has a limited presence with 3.2% employment compared to 5.3% regionally. The predominantly residential area appears to offer limited employment opportunities locally, as indicated by the count of the Census working population versus the resident population.

Based on AreaSearch analysis of SALM and ABS data, over the 12 months to December 2025, labour force levels decreased by 0.2% combined with employment decreasing by 1.3%, causing the unemployment rate to rise by 1.0 percentage points. By comparison, Greater Sydney recorded employment growth of 2.2%, labour force growth of 2.3%, with unemployment rising marginally. Jobs and Skills Australia's national employment forecasts from May-25 can offer further insight into potential future demand within Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau. These projections, covering five and ten-year periods, have been mapped against the local employment profile to estimate growth patterns. While national employment is forecast to expand by 6.6% over five years and 13.7% over ten years, growth rates differ significantly between industry sectors. Applying these industry-specific projections to Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's employment mix suggests local employment should increase by 7.0% over five years and 13.9% over ten years (please note this is a simple weighting extrapolation for illustrative purposes and does not take into account localised population projections).

Income metrics indicate excellent economic conditions, with the area achieving higher performance than 75% of national locations assessed by AreaSearch

The Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau SA2 shows a median taxpayer income of $65,091 and an average of $104,080 according to the latest postcode level ATO data aggregated by AreaSearch for FY-23. This is among the top percentile nationally, contrasting with Greater Sydney's median income of $60,817 and average income of $83,003. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 8.86% since FY-23, current estimates would be approximately $70,858 (median) and $113,301 (average) as of September 2025. Census 2021 income data shows household, family and personal incomes all rank highly in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau, between the 84th and 92nd percentiles nationally. Distribution data shows 30.2% of the population (4,295 individuals) fall within the $4000+ income range, differing from patterns across regional levels where $1,500 - 2,999 dominates with 30.9%. The substantial proportion of high earners (43.6% above $3,000/week) indicates strong economic capacity throughout the district. High housing costs consume 15.9% of income, though strong earnings still place disposable income at the 91st percentile and the area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 9th decile.

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau displays a diverse mix of dwelling types, with above-average rates of outright home ownership

Dwelling structure within Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau, as evaluated at the latest Census, comprised 58.1% houses and 41.9% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings), in comparison to Sydney metro's 55.9% houses and 44.1% other dwellings. Meanwhile, the level of home ownership within Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau was well beyond that of Sydney metro, at 36.6%, with the remainder of dwellings either mortgaged (36.9%) or rented (26.5%). The median monthly mortgage repayment in the area was well above the Sydney metro average at $3,000, while the median weekly rent figure was recorded at $600, compared to Sydney metro's $2,427 and $470. Nationally, Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's mortgage repayments are significantly higher than the Australian average of $1,863, while rents are substantially above the national figure of $375.

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau has a typical household mix, with a fairly typical median household size

Family households dominate at 76.0% of all households, comprising 38.9% couples with children, 26.6% couples without children, and 9.5% single parent families. Non-family households make up the remaining 24.0%, with lone person households at 21.1% and group households comprising 2.9% of the total. The median household size of 2.7 people matches the Greater Sydney average.

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau demonstrates exceptional educational outcomes, ranking among the top 5% of areas nationally based on AreaSearch's comprehensive analysis of qualification and performance metrics

Educational qualifications in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau trail regional benchmarks, with 35.6% of residents aged 15+ holding university degrees compared to 41.5% in the SA4 region. This gap highlights the potential for educational development and skills enhancement. Bachelor degrees lead at 25.4%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (7.4%) and graduate diplomas (2.8%). Trade and technical skills feature prominently, with 33.5% of residents aged 15+ holding vocational credentials, including advanced diplomas (13.3%) and certificates (20.2%).

Educational participation is notably high, with 29.2% of residents currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 9.3% in primary education, 8.4% in secondary education, and 5.5% pursuing tertiary education.

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

Public transport analysis reveals 79 active transport stops operating within Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau, comprising a mix of buses. These stops are serviced by 60 individual routes, collectively providing 5,648 weekly passenger trips. Transport accessibility is rated as excellent, with residents typically located 172 meters from the nearest transport stop. As a primarily residential area, most residents commute outward; the car remains the dominant mode at 85%, with 7% by bus. Vehicle ownership averages 1.5 per dwelling, which is above the regional average. A high 44.5% of residents work from home (2021 Census; may reflect COVID-19 conditions).

Service frequency averages 806 trips per day across all routes, equating to approximately 71 weekly trips per individual stop.

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

Analysis of health metrics shows strong performance throughout Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau, based on AreaSearch's assessment of mortality rates and chronic condition prevalence. Both young and old age cohorts show a low prevalence of common health conditions, and the rate of private health cover is exceptionally high at approximately 73% of the total population (10,398 people). This compares to 59.9% across Greater Sydney and a national average of 55.7%.

The most common medical conditions in the area are asthma and arthritis, impacting 6.4% and 6.2% of residents, respectively, while 75.2% declared themselves as completely clear of medical ailments compared to 74.6% across Greater Sydney. The area has 19.0% of residents aged 65 and over (2,699 people), which is higher than the 15.4% in Greater Sydney. Health outcomes among seniors are particularly strong, with national rankings even higher than those of the general population.

The level of cultural diversity witnessed in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau was found to be slightly above average when compared nationally for a number of language and cultural background related metrics

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau was found to be above average in terms of cultural diversity, with 13.4% of its population speaking a language other than English at home and 26.0% born overseas. The main religion in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau is Christianity, which makes up 54.9% of people. However, the most apparent overrepresentation was in Judaism, which comprises 0.3% of the population, compared to 0.8% across Greater Sydney.

In terms of ancestry (country of birth of parents), the top three represented groups in Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau are English, comprising 29.2% of the population, which is substantially higher than the regional average of 19.0%, Australian, comprising 24.0% of the population, which is substantially higher than the regional average of 17.8%, and Irish, comprising 9.4% of the population. Additionally, there are notable divergences in the representation of certain other ethnic groups: French is notably overrepresented at 0.8% of Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau (vs 0.5% regionally), Serbian at 0.6% (vs 0.5%) and New Zealand at 1.0% (vs 0.5%).

Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's population is slightly older than the national pattern

At 41 years, Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's median age is significantly above the Greater Sydney average of 37 as well as somewhat older than the Australian median of 38. Compared to the Greater Sydney average, the 55 - 64 cohort is notably over-represented (13.6% locally), while 25 - 34 year-olds are under-represented (10.8%). Following the 2021 Census, the 15 to 24 age group has grown from 12.7% to 15.2% of the population, while the 75 to 84 cohort increased from 5.3% to 6.8%. Conversely, the 35 to 44 cohort has declined from 13.1% to 11.1% and the 5 to 14 group dropped from 12.4% to 11.1%. Demographic modeling suggests Collaroy - Collaroy Plateau's age profile will evolve significantly by 2041. The 85+ cohort shows the strongest projected growth at 161%, adding 594 residents to reach 963. Demographic aging continues as residents 65 and older represent 100% of anticipated growth. On the other hand, population declines are projected for the 45 to 54 and 55 to 64 cohorts.