Lake Cathie flood map & planning overlays
A planning-constraint profile of Lake Cathie
(Port Macquarie-Hastings, NSW) - 18.4 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
18.4 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Lake Cathie'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 Lake Cathie
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.
Lake Cathie at a glance
How Lake Cathie is zoned
Buying in Lake Cathie? 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 18.4 km², Lake Cathie is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 33% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 85% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is National Parks and Nature Reserves. The median lot measures about 631 m² across 2,186 parcels.
Who lives in Lake Cathie
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Lake Cathie 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 975, and decile 4 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Lake Cathie's 4,296 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Laurieton - Bonny Hills, the wider ABS statistical area containing Lake Cathie. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Lake Cathie itself.
13,784 in 2001 to 19,995 in 2025, up 45%.
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.
Lake Cathie 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 Lake Cathie 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 71% of Lake Cathie. 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 Lake Cathie lot.
See what's in the $9 report →Lake Cathie planning - frequently asked
Is Lake Cathie flood-prone?
About 33% of Lake Cathie falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 36%.
Is Lake Cathie bushfire-prone?
Around 85% of Lake Cathie is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Port Macquarie-Hastings average of 93%.
Is Lake Cathie under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 71% of Lake Cathie, and over about 77% 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 5 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 Lake Cathie?
The dominant planning zone in Lake Cathie is National Parks and Nature Reserves, though the suburb also includes Primary Production and Large Lot Residential.
Does Lake Cathie have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within Lake Cathie.
What is the typical lot size in Lake Cathie?
Across 2,186 surveyed parcels in Lake Cathie, the median lot size is about 631 m². There are also 5 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Lake Cathie have a train station?
There is no train station inside Lake Cathie itself. The suburb is served by 73 bus stops.
What is the population of Lake Cathie?
At the 2021 Census Lake Cathie had 4,296 usual residents, with a median age of 52 and an average household size of 2.4 people. The wider Laurieton - Bonny Hills statistical area, which contains Lake Cathie, went from 13,784 people in 2001 to 19,995 in 2025, up 45%.
Is Lake Cathie an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Lake Cathie scores 975 and sits in decile 5 of 10 nationally and decile 4 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Lake Cathie?
Median household income in Lake Cathie was $1,275 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,381 for the typical suburb in Port Macquarie-Hastings. Median rent was $380 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,850 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bonny Hills | 3.3 km | 5% | 94% |
| Lake Innes | 5.4 km | 38% | 87% |
| Jolly Nose | 6.6 km | 38% | 69% |
| Grants Beach | 8.0 km | 21% | 100% |
| Bobs Creek | 9.4 km | 27% | 100% |
| Thrumster | 9.8 km | 35% | 86% |
| North Haven | 10.1 km | 79% | 78% |
| King Creek | 10.1 km | 16% | 80% |
| Camden Head | 10.7 km | 61% | 47% |
| Port Macquarie | 10.9 km | 38% | 52% |