Fingal Head flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Fingal Head
(Tweed, NSW) - 6.03 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
6.03 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Fingal Head's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top. Magenta is where aircraft were observed in the sampled period, brightest below 3,000 ft.
Nearby suburbs, nearest first
Aircraft noise and flight paths over Fingal Head
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
typical observed square 1 a day
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.
Fingal Head at a glance
How Fingal Head is zoned
Buying in Fingal Head? 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 6.03 km², Fingal Head is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 77% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 52% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 3 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Deferred Matter. The median lot measures about 809 m² across 318 parcels.
Who lives in Fingal Head
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Fingal Head 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 1030, and decile 7 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Fingal Head's 615 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Kingscliff - Fingal Head, the wider ABS statistical area containing Fingal Head. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Fingal Head itself.
8,525 in 2001 to 15,489 in 2025, up 82%.
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.
Fingal Head 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 Fingal Head 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.
Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 67% of Fingal Head. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.
Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Fingal Head lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Fingal Head planning - frequently asked
Is Fingal Head flood-prone?
About 77% of Fingal Head falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 29%.
Is Fingal Head bushfire-prone?
Around 52% of Fingal Head is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Tweed average of 91%.
Is Fingal Head under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 67% of Fingal Head, and over about 83% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 2 Oct 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 500 ft, with an average of 2,000 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 7 aircraft a day were recorded passing over one 500 m square. 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 Fingal Head?
The dominant planning zone in Fingal Head is Deferred Matter, though the suburb also includes Working Waterways and Low Density Residential.
Does Fingal Head have heritage-listed places?
Fingal Head has 3 heritage-listed places on record.
What is the typical lot size in Fingal Head?
Across 318 surveyed parcels in Fingal Head, the median lot size is about 809 m². There are also 3 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Fingal Head have a train station?
There is no train station inside Fingal Head itself. The suburb is served by 8 bus stops.
What is the population of Fingal Head?
At the 2021 Census Fingal Head had 615 usual residents, with a median age of 46 and an average household size of 2.6 people. The wider Kingscliff - Fingal Head statistical area, which contains Fingal Head, went from 8,525 people in 2001 to 15,489 in 2025, up 82%.
Is Fingal Head an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Fingal Head scores 1030 and sits in decile 8 of 10 nationally and decile 7 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Fingal Head?
Median household income in Fingal Head was $1,614 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,394 for the typical suburb in Tweed. Median rent was $400 a week and the median mortgage repayment $2,350 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tweed Heads South | 3.0 km | 85% | 42% |
| Banora Point | 3.5 km | 55% | 18% |
| Tweed Heads | 4.0 km | 77% | 8% |
| Chinderah | 5.8 km | 99% | 64% |
| Tweed Heads West | 6.1 km | 79% | 46% |
| Kingscliff | 6.7 km | 44% | 37% |
| Terranora | 7.1 km | 30% | 70% |
| Bilambil Heights | 8.0 km | 27% | 80% |
| Cudgen | 8.1 km | 25% | 54% |
| Cobaki Lakes | 9.5 km | 54% | 100% |