Deer Vale flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Deer Vale
(Bellingen, NSW) - 94.35 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 3 October 2026.
Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.
Constraint readout
94.35 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Deer Vale's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over Deer Vale
Two different things, kept apart on purpose. The ANEF contour is the planning instrument - a forecast published per airport that planning schemes use to control noise-sensitive development. Observed overflight is what a sampled aircraft-tracking feed actually recorded over the suburb - where aircraft flew, how low and how often.
Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 2 Oct 2026
Night movements: not established - night is sampled as often as day, but too few night flights have been seen here to conclude either way.
Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously, so every figure is a floor: aircraft not captured between samples are not represented. Rates are per 500 m square - the busiest square in the suburb, not a count of flights over the suburb - and a square is only rated where enough traffic was seen to measure it. Altitudes are above mean sea level. Flight paths change with runway use, weather, season and airspace design. This is a record of observed traffic; it is not a noise contour and not a planning control.
Deer Vale at a glance
How Deer Vale is zoned
Buying in Deer Vale? The zoning, flood and bushfire lines on the section 10.7 certificate attached to the contract are mapped controls - see our s10.7 certificate guide.
Across its 94.35 km², Deer Vale is highly constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 100% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 27 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Primary Production. The median lot measures about 22,168 m² across 284 parcels.
Who lives in Deer Vale
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Deer Vale suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.
Socio-economic standing
ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.
Score 982, and decile 5 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Deer Vale's 128 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Dorrigo, the wider ABS statistical area containing Deer Vale. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Deer Vale itself.
3,473 in 2001 to 3,250 in 2025, down 6%.
Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.
Deer Vale data sources and coverage
“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.
| Dataset | Coverage | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Flood mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Bushfire-prone mapping | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Zoning | Mapped | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Heritage and environment | Mapped where published | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies |
| Aircraft noise contours (ANEF) | Not held | NSW Government spatial services, NSW ePlanning and published council flood studies, Defence |
| Observed flight paths | Observed | adsb.lol, under the Open Database License |
| Demographics | Available | Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA) |
Profile last materially updated 3 October 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.
Check a specific Deer Vale address
See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Deer Vale lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Deer Vale planning - frequently asked
Is Deer Vale flood-prone?
Flood mapping covers Deer Vale and none of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay.
Is Deer Vale bushfire-prone?
Around 100% of Deer Vale is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Bellingen average of 98%.
Is Deer Vale under a flight path?
No aircraft were observed over Deer Vale in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 2 Oct 2026). Sampling is intermittent, so that is a floor rather than proof that none fly over. Traffic is sampled rather than watched continuously and flight paths change with runway use, weather and season; the ANEF contour is the planning instrument.
What is the zoning in Deer Vale?
The dominant planning zone in Deer Vale is Primary Production, though the suburb also includes Rural Landscape and Environmental Management.
Does Deer Vale have heritage-listed places?
Deer Vale has 27 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Deer Vale?
Across 284 surveyed parcels in Deer Vale, the median lot size is about 22,168 m². There are also 3 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
What is the population of Deer Vale?
At the 2021 Census Deer Vale had 128 usual residents, with a median age of 47 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Dorrigo statistical area, which contains Deer Vale, went from 3,473 people in 2001 to 3,250 in 2025, down 6%.
Is Deer Vale an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Deer Vale scores 982 and sits in decile 5 of 10 nationally and decile 5 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Deer Vale?
Median household income in Deer Vale was $1,125 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,268 for the typical suburb in Bellingen. Median rent was $280 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,230 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fernbrook | 8.4 km | Not mapped | 100% |
| Bostobrick | 10.0 km | 0% | 100% |
| Hernani Clarence Valley |
11.0 km | 0% | 100% |
| Tyringham Clarence Valley |
11.8 km | 0% | 100% |
| Bielsdown Hills | 12.4 km | Not mapped | 100% |
| Darkwood | 13.1 km | Not mapped | 100% |
| Brinerville | 14.2 km | 0% | 100% |
| Dorrigo | 15.2 km | Not mapped | 95% |
| North Dorrigo | 16.1 km | 0% | 99% |
| Moonpar Clarence Valley |
17.1 km | 0% | 100% |