Grafton flood map & planning overlays

A planning-constraint profile of Grafton (Clarence Valley, NSW) - 12.24 km², mapped from live council and state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 26 September 2026.

Suburb-wide figures; the free map shows which overlays touch your lot.

Planning schematicGrafton

Constraint readout

12.24 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.

Flood overlay 91%

3.8× council avg (24%) · #24 of 155 mapped council suburbs

Bushfire-prone 10%

below council avg (94%) · #155 of 155 mapped council suburbs

Environmental2%

below council avg (19%) · #78 of 155 in council

Heritage sites 503 Mostly General Residential Flood 24th most affected of 155 → Bushfire 155th most affected of 155 →

Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Grafton's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.

Nearby suburbs, nearest first

Aircraft noise and flight paths over Grafton

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 to

No aircraft observed

of the suburb, in the sampled period - a floor, not a census

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.

Grafton at a glance

Parcels 4,811 Median lot 687 m² Mapped easements 14 Bus stops 148

How Grafton is zoned

General Residential 44%

Recreational Waterways 20%

Public Recreation 9%

Infrastructure 5%

Rural Landscape 5%

Private Recreation 4%

Buying in Grafton? 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 12.24 km², Grafton is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 91% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 10% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 503 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is General Residential. The median lot measures about 687 m² across 4,811 parcels.

Who lives in Grafton

Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Grafton suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.

Population

10,563

usual residents, 2021

Median age

years

Median household income

$1,179

per week, Clarence Valley suburb typical $1,187

Median rent

$300

per week, Clarence Valley suburb typical $300

Median mortgage

$1,348

per month

Household size

2.2

people, average

Socio-economic standing

ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.

Advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD) Decile 2

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 906, and decile 2 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 2

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Grafton's 10,563 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 5.6%

5-14 12.1%

15-19 5.5%

20-24 5.6%

25-34 11.4%

35-44 10.6%

45-54 11.1%

55-64 12.5%

65-74 12.0%

75-84 8.7%

85+ 4.9%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

Estimated resident population of Grafton, the wider ABS statistical area containing Grafton. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Grafton itself.

18,513 in 2001 to 19,905 in 2025, up 8%.

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.

Grafton 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 26 September 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 Grafton 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 Grafton lot.

See what's in the $9 report →

Grafton planning - frequently asked

Is Grafton flood-prone?

About 91% of Grafton falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 24%.

Is Grafton bushfire-prone?

Around 10% of Grafton is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Clarence Valley average of 94%.

Is Grafton under a flight path?

No aircraft were observed over Grafton in the period sampled (recent weeks to now). 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 Grafton?

The dominant planning zone in Grafton is General Residential, though the suburb also includes Recreational Waterways and Public Recreation.

Does Grafton have heritage-listed places?

Grafton has 503 heritage-listed places on record.

What is the typical lot size in Grafton?

Across 4,811 surveyed parcels in Grafton, the median lot size is about 687 m². There are also 14 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

Does Grafton have a train station?

There is no train station inside Grafton itself. The suburb is served by 148 bus stops.

What is the population of Grafton?

At the 2021 Census Grafton had 10,563 usual residents, with a median age of 44 and an average household size of 2.2 people. The wider Grafton statistical area, which contains Grafton, went from 18,513 people in 2001 to 19,905 in 2025, up 8%.

Is Grafton an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Grafton scores 906 and sits in decile 2 of 10 nationally and decile 2 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Grafton?

Median household income in Grafton was $1,179 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,187 for the typical suburb in Clarence Valley. Median rent was $300 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,348 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburb	Distance	Flood mapped	Bushfire-prone
Carrs Island	2.6 km	100%	77%
Carrs Creek	3.2 km	96%	100%
Waterview	3.5 km	92%	91%
Southampton	4.7 km	27%	100%
Alumy Creek	4.7 km	99%	100%
Carrs Peninsula	4.8 km	100%	75%
Junction Hill	4.8 km	57%	67%
South Grafton	5.1 km	23%	66%
Great Marlow	5.4 km	99%	84%
Swan Creek	5.8 km	95%	97%

See all Clarence Valley suburb profiles →