The numbers, in plain English
To rent in North Lakes without housing stress, a household income of about $126,000/year keeps the rent of $725/week at or below 30% of gross income — the standard affordability benchmark. That rent is the official median for a 4-bedroom house — the most common new lease here (79 bonds lodged). Check your income →
To buy the median home ($740,000) with a 20% deposit of $148k, repayments at 6.2% over 30 years come to about $3,626/month — comfortable on roughly $145,000/year under the same 30% rule. Saving that deposit at $1,500/month takes about 8.2 years, before stamp duty of $26k ($9k for eligible first home buyers). Run your own loan →
That price is an estimate, and probably too low. Unlike the rent above, no government publishes open sale prices for Queensland, so we model it from distance, population and income. Where we can check that model against real sales, it runs about 40% under — so treat this figure, and the deposit and repayments built on it, as a rough scale rather than a number to plan around. How we're fixing this →
Compared to the rest of Queensland, North Lakes is more expensive to buy than 94% of the state's suburbs (state median $360k) and pricier to rent than 88% (state median $434/week). It sits roughly 27 km from the Brisbane CBD as the crow flies.
For investors, the median rent against the median price gives a gross rental yield of about 5.1% before costs. Net yield calculator →
Modelled medians, not valuations — every formula above is documented on our methodology page.
Actual rents lodged here
Bonds lodged, June 2026Unlike the modelled figures above, these are the real median rents from every rental bond lodged with the Queensland RTA in North Lakes — a typical 4-bedroom house rents for $725/week.
| Bedrooms | Type | Median rent | Bonds lodged |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | house | $650/wk | 44 |
| 4 | house | $725/wk | 79 |
Source: Queensland Residential Tenancies Authority (CC BY 4.0), by suburb with at least 5 lodgements per figure. Updated quarterly — see data sources.
Affordability by income
$60k income
Rent ($725/wk)
Over budget
Budget: $346/wk
Buy ($740k)
Repayments are a stretch
$3,549/mo · deposit in ~16.5yr
$90k income
Rent ($725/wk)
Over budget
Budget: $519/wk
Buy ($740k)
Repayments are a stretch
$3,549/mo · deposit in ~11yr
$120k income
Rent ($725/wk)
Over budget
Budget: $692/wk
Buy ($740k)
Repayments are a stretch
$3,549/mo · deposit in ~8.3yr
Based on 30% gross income rule for rent; 6% p.a. / 30-year P&I loan at 20% deposit for purchase; 15% savings rate for deposit timeline.
Upfront buying costs
| Purchase price | $740k |
| 20% deposit (no LMI) | $148k |
| Stamp duty (Queensland) | $26k |
| Stamp duty (first home buyer) | $9k |
| Conveyancing (est.) | $1,500 – $3,000 |
| Building inspection (est.) | $400 – $700 |
| Total upfront (est.) | $177k |
Who lives here & what's nearby
Real figures for North Lakes — measured, not modelled.
How North Lakes compares
- Households here earn about 53% more than the typical suburb in Queensland.
- Fewer owners than most of Queensland — 56% own their home, against a 69% median.
- Younger than average — a median age of 33 vs 42 statewide.
- 41% of homes here are rented, against 25% across Queensland — a rental market.
Demographics and tenure from the ABS 2021 Census; the socio-economic score is the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative disadvantage, scaled 0–100 against every Australian postcode; distances and school counts from OpenStreetMap. Comparisons are against the median suburb in Queensland. Suburb-level price trends aren't shown because no open source publishes them reliably yet — see our data sources.
What's around North Lakes
Real places nearby — the little things that make a suburb feel like home.
- Denison Parade Park500 m
- Stapylton Park700 m
- Springsure Parade Park900 m
- Canundra Street Park1.0 km
- Dakabin Treasure Market2.2 km
- Aquatic Achievers1.1 km
- North Lakes Sports Club1.3 km
- North Lakes Parkrun1.5 km
- Club Pilates1.6 km
- North Lakes Library1.6 km
- North Lakes Community Centre1.6 km
- The Corso1.6 km
- Mango Hill Community Centre1.6 km
- Glenwood Community Centre2.7 km
Places within about 3 km, from OpenStreetMap contributors — distances as the crow flies. Something missing or moved? Tell us.
Get to know North Lakes
Real places to see and hear what living here is actually like.
Neighbourhood at a Glance
Indicative scores based on ABS Census data modelling. Always conduct your own research.
Related reading
Government schemes that may apply
First Home Guarantee (FHBG)
Buy with as little as 5% deposit, no LMI. Up to 35,000 places/year nationwide.
Learn more →First Home Owner Grant (FHOG)
Queensland offers a grant for eligible first home buyers purchasing new builds. Amounts vary.
Learn more →First Home Super Saver (FHSS)
Save up to $50k inside super (taxed at 15% instead of marginal rate), then withdraw for a deposit.
Learn more →Stamp duty concessions
On North Lakes's median of $740,000, a QLD first home buyer pays about $8,740 instead of $26,325 — roughly $17,585 less.
That median is modelled, not observed, and our modelled prices run low — treat the duty figure as indicative.
Learn more →Nearby suburbs in Queensland
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Rent data for North Lakes sourced from the ABS 2021 Census, scaled by rental CPI to current values. Calculations use 30% gross income rule, 20% deposit, 6% p.a. loan rate over 30 years. Not financial advice.