Forestville (NSW)

An assessment of population growth drivers in Forestville reveals an overall ranking slightly below national averages considering recent, and medium term trends

As of Nov 2025, Forestville's population is estimated at around 8,693 people. This reflects an increase of 34 people since the 2021 Census, which reported a population of 8,659 people. The change was inferred from AreaSearch's resident population estimate of 8,686 following examination of ABS ERP data release in June 2024 and validation of three new addresses since the Census date. This level of population equates to a density ratio of 1,881 persons per square kilometer. Forestville's growth rate of 0.4% since census positions it within 2.8 percentage points of the SA3 area (3.2%). Population growth was primarily driven by overseas migration.

AreaSearch adopts ABS/Geoscience Australia projections for each SA2 area, released in 2024 with a base year of 2022. For areas not covered, NSW State Government's SA2 level projections are used, released in 2022 with a base year of 2021. Growth rates by age group from these aggregations are applied to all areas for years 2032 to 2041. By 2041, the Forestville (NSW) statistical area is expected to increase by 367 persons based on aggregated SA2-level projections, reflecting an overall increase of 3.9% over the 17-year period.

AreaSearch assessment of residential development drivers sees a low level of activity in Forestville, placing the area among the bottom 25% of areas assessed nationally

Forestville has received around 12 dwelling approvals per year on average over the past five financial years, totalling an estimated 61 homes. In FY-26 so far, 9 approvals have been recorded. This supply meets or exceeds demand, with approximately 0.2 new residents arriving per new home annually between FY-21 and FY-25. The average construction value of these dwellings is $866,000, indicating a focus on the premium segment.

Additionally, $90,000 in commercial approvals have been registered this financial year. Compared to Greater Sydney, Forestville has significantly less development activity, being 52.0% below the regional average per person. This constrained new construction typically reinforces demand and pricing for existing homes, although building activity has accelerated recently. The area's established nature is also reflected in its level of development activity being under the national average, potentially suggesting planning limitations. Recent construction comprises 88.0% detached houses and 12.0% attached dwellings, maintaining Forestville's traditional suburban character focused on family homes.

With around 368 people per dwelling approval, the area shows a developed market. According to AreaSearch's latest quarterly estimate, Forestville is projected to gain 340 residents by 2041. At current development rates, new housing supply should comfortably meet demand, providing good conditions for buyers and potentially supporting growth beyond current population projections.

Forestville has very high levels of nearby infrastructure activity, ranking in the top 10% nationally

Changes in local infrastructure significantly impact an area's performance. AreaSearch has identified 20 projects that could affect this region. Notable projects include Forestway Shopping Centre Redevelopment, Forestville RSL Club Redevelopment, Angel Place Seniors Living, and Forest High School Science and Technology Centre. The following list details those most likely to be relevant.

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.

Employment performance in Forestville exceeds national averages across key labour market indicators

Forestville has a highly educated workforce with strong representation in professional services. Its unemployment rate is 2.8%, as per AreaSearch's statistical area data aggregation.

As of September 2025, 4,450 residents are employed, with an unemployment rate of 1.4% below Greater Sydney's rate of 4.2%. Workforce participation in Forestville matches Greater Sydney's 60.0%. The dominant employment sectors among residents include professional & technical, health care & social assistance, and education & training. Notably, professional & technical employment is at 1.3 times the regional average.

Conversely, transport, postal & warehousing is under-represented, with only 2.7% of Forestville's workforce compared to Greater Sydney's 5.3%. The area appears to offer limited local employment opportunities, as indicated by Census data comparing working population and resident population. Between September 2024 and September 2025, Forestville's labour force decreased by 0.5% while employment declined by 1.2%, increasing the unemployment rate by 0.8 percentage points. Meanwhile, Greater Sydney saw employment growth of 2.1% and labour force growth of 2.4%, with a 0.2 percentage point rise in unemployment. State-level data from NSW to 25-Nov-25 shows employment contracted by 0.03% (losing 2,260 jobs), with the state unemployment rate at 3.9%. Nationally, the unemployment rate is 4.3%. Jobs and Skills Australia's national employment forecasts from May-25 project a 6.6% increase over five years and 13.7% over ten years. Applying these projections to Forestville's employment mix suggests local employment could grow by 7.2% over five years and 14.4% over ten years, though this is a simple weighting extrapolation for illustrative purposes and does not account for localised population projections.

The area exhibits notably strong income performance, ranking higher than 70% of areas assessed nationally through AreaSearch analysis

Forestville's median taxpayer income was $58,481, with an average of $98,558, according to AreaSearch's postcode level ATO data for financial year 2023. Nationally, this places Forestville in the top percentile, compared to Greater Sydney's median income of $60,817 and average income of $83,030. Based on Wage Price Index growth of 8.86% since financial year 2023, current estimates for Forestville would be approximately $63,662 (median) and $107,290 (average) as of September 2025. According to the 2021 Census, Forestville's household incomes rank at the 90th percentile ($2,507 weekly). Income analysis shows that 32.1% of locals fall into the $4000+ category, differing from the surrounding region where the $1,500 - 2,999 category predominates at 30.9%. The suburb exhibits considerable affluence with 43.4% earning over $3,000 per week, supporting premium retail and service offerings. High housing costs consume 16.8% of income, yet strong earnings place disposable income at the 89th percentile. The area's SEIFA income ranking places it in the 9th decile.

Forestville is characterized by a predominantly suburban housing profile, with above-average rates of outright home ownership

As per the latest Census evaluation in Forestville, dwelling structures consisted of 80.4% houses and 19.6% other dwellings (semi-detached, apartments, 'other' dwellings). This compares to Sydney metro's figures of 57.6% houses and 42.4% other dwellings. Home ownership in Forestville stood at 41.2%, with mortgaged dwellings at 38.3% and rented ones at 20.5%. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $3,250, higher than Sydney metro's average of $3,000. Median weekly rent in Forestville was recorded at $650, compared to Sydney metro's $592. Nationally, Forestville's mortgage repayments were significantly higher than the Australian average of $1,863, while rents were substantially above the national figure of $375.

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

Family households account for 78.1% of all households, including 46.2% couples with children, 21.4% couples without children, and 9.6% single parent families. Non-family households make up the remaining 21.9%, with lone person households at 21.0% and group households comprising 1.1% of the total. The median household size is 2.9 people, which is larger than the Greater Sydney average of 2.7.

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

Forestville's residents aged 15+ have a higher educational attainment than national and state averages. 43.2% hold university qualifications, compared to Australia's 30.4% and NSW's 32.2%. Bachelor degrees are most common at 28.6%, followed by postgraduate qualifications (11.0%) and graduate diplomas (3.6%). Vocational credentials are held by 25.8% of residents, including advanced diplomas (11.2%) and certificates (14.6%).

Educational participation is high, with 33.4% currently enrolled in formal education. This includes 11.7% in primary education, 11.1% in secondary education, and 5.6% pursuing tertiary education.

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

Forestville has 41 active public transport stops, all of which are bus stops. These stops are served by 53 different routes that together facilitate 3,802 weekly passenger trips. The accessibility of these services is rated as good, with residents on average being located 298 meters from the nearest stop.

On average, there are 543 trips per day across all routes, which amounts to approximately 92 weekly trips per individual stop.

Forestville'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 Forestville. Both young and old age cohorts have a low prevalence of common health conditions. The rate of private health cover is exceptionally high at approximately 66% of the total population (5,718 people), compared to 71.5% across Greater Sydney and 55.7% nationally.

The most common medical conditions in the area are arthritis and asthma, impacting 7.1 and 6.2% of residents respectively. A total of 73.2% of residents declared themselves completely clear of medical ailments, compared to 74.7% across Greater Sydney. Forestville has 19.7% of residents aged 65 and over (1,712 people), which is higher than the 17.8% in Greater Sydney. Health outcomes among seniors are particularly strong, broadly in line with the general population's health profile.

Forestville 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

Forestville's population showed high cultural diversity, with 33.2% born overseas and 25.4% speaking a language other than English at home. Christianity was the predominant religion, accounting for 54.1%. Judaism, however, was overrepresented compared to Greater Sydney, comprising 0.8% versus 0.3%.

In terms of ancestry, the top groups were English (25.4%), Australian (21.8%), and Other (13.6%). Some ethnicities had notable divergences: French (1.9% vs regional 1.1%), Serbian (0.6% vs 0.6%), and Croatian (1.0% vs 0.7%) were overrepresented in Forestville.

Forestville hosts a notably older demographic compared to the national average

The median age in Forestville is 43 years, which is higher than Greater Sydney's average of 37 years and exceeds the national average of 38 years. The age profile shows that individuals aged 5-14 years make up 15.5% of the population, while those aged 25-34 years comprise only 5.8%. Between 2021 and present, the proportion of individuals aged 15-24 has increased from 12.2% to 15.3%, while the proportion of those aged 75-84 has decreased from 8.1% to 7.3%. By 2041, demographic projections indicate that the age group of 65-74 years is expected to grow by 294 people, increasing from 695 to 990 individuals. Notably, those aged 65 and above will account for 91% of the total population growth in Forestville. Conversely, the age groups of 55-64 and 45-54 are projected to experience population declines.