Sources & methodology
Every figure on the site carries a source and an as-of date. This page documents where each data type comes from, how often we refresh, and how to flag anything that looks off.
Sourced
Every figure cites the body that publishes it. No second-hand ‘industry estimates’.
Dated
Every figure carries the as-of date in a tooltip on the suburb page.
Corrected
We log every correction in the footer of the page where the error appeared.
Data sources, line by line
Quarterly
Headline median prices and annual growth come from each state's Valuer-General office. Where multiple sources disagree, we cite the most recent one. ABS is used as cross-validation.
SourceState Valuer-General offices, Australian Bureau of Statistics
Annually for census-derived; quarterly for REIA indicators
Weekly rent figures come from the most recent census plus REIA's published medians. Gross yield is calculated as (annual rent ÷ median price) × 100.
SourceABS Census 2021, REIA quarterly indicators
Census refresh (5-yearly)
Population, median age, ownership rate, household composition, and language data are all sourced from the most recent ABS Census. We re-import on each Census release.
SourceAustralian Bureau of Statistics — Census 2021
Annually
School name, location, sector, year range, enrolment and ICSEA scores are pulled from ACARA's annual school data publication, licensed under CC BY 4.0. We don't publish individual NAPLAN results.
SourceAustralian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA)
Re-computed quarterly
Walk, transit, and bike scores are computed from OpenStreetMap network data — counts of nearby amenities, transit stops, and bike infrastructure within walking distance of the suburb centroid.
SourceOpenStreetMap-derived metrics
Annually, plus immediately after major events
Flood class and bushfire risk derived from Geoscience Australia's national flood hazard mapping and state bushfire prone land overlays. Suburb-level rating reflects the dominant exposure across the suburb polygon.
SourceGeoscience Australia, state hazard mapping authorities
Annually (BoM long-term averages)
Mean monthly rainfall and temperature are sourced from BoM's long-term station averages. Each suburb is matched to its nearest active BoM station.
SourceBureau of Meteorology (BoM)
Updated as published (varies by jurisdiction)
Crime data is sourced from each state's official open-data portal. Categories and reporting periods vary by jurisdiction, so we display the source-as-provided figures rather than re-categorising across states.
SourceState and territory police open data portals
Re-imported on each official release
Suburb and postcode geometry uses ABS Statistical Areas and Australia Post's locality file. Where these disagree (which they sometimes do at the edge), we follow the ABS boundary.
SourceABS, Australia Post
Monthly (after each RBA decision)
Cash rate history is sourced directly from RBA published decisions. Updated within 24 hours of each decision.
SourceReserve Bank of Australia
Editorial process
Every guide and every data refresh goes through the same three steps: a writer drafts to a published outline, a domain reviewer (broker, agent, accountant, or planner depending on the topic) sanity-checks the technical claims, and the editor signs off for plain-English clarity.
For data, we run a structural validation pass on every refresh (no negative medians, growth bounded to ±50%, ICSEA in valid range) and a freshness check (any field older than its expected cadence is flagged for re-source).
Corrections & feedback
We’ll investigate and respond within a week. Confirmed corrections are logged in the footer of the affected page.
