Lismore flood map & planning overlays

A planning-constraint profile of Lismore (Lismore, NSW) - 3.91 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 schematicLismore

Constraint readout

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

Flood overlay 53%

≈ council avg (46%) · #16 of 39 mapped council suburbs

Bushfire-prone 22%

below council avg (33%) · #38 of 65 mapped council suburbs

Environmental5%

≈ council avg (4%) · #10 of 65 in council

Heritage sites 47 Mostly General Residential Flood 16th most affected of 39 → Bushfire 38th most affected of 65 →

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

Nearby suburbs, nearest first

Aircraft noise and flight paths over Lismore

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.

Lismore at a glance

Parcels 2,090 Median lot 649 m² Mapped easements 3 Bus stops 55

How Lismore is zoned

General Residential 34%

Commercial Centre 20%

Public Recreation 14%

Infrastructure 8%

Private Recreation 5%

Environmental Conservation 5%

Buying in Lismore? 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 3.91 km², Lismore is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 53% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 22% is flagged bushfire-prone. There are 47 heritage-listed sites on record, and the dominant land-use zone is General Residential. The median lot measures about 649 m² across 2,090 parcels.

Who lives in Lismore

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

Population

3,656

usual residents, 2021

Median age

years

Median household income

$1,035

per week, Lismore suburb typical $1,458

Median rent

$280

per week, Lismore suburb typical $313

Median mortgage

$1,300

per month

Household size

2.1

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 1

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 876, and decile 1 within New South Wales. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 1

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Lismore's 3,656 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 4.5%

5-14 11.3%

15-19 5.8%

20-24 6.3%

25-34 13.9%

35-44 13.3%

45-54 12.6%

55-64 13.4%

65-74 11.0%

75-84 5.0%

85+ 3.0%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

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

16,516 in 2001 to 13,679 in 2025, down 17%.

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.

Lismore 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 Lismore 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 Lismore lot.

See what's in the $9 report →

Lismore planning - frequently asked

Is Lismore flood-prone?

About 53% of Lismore falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 46%.

Is Lismore bushfire-prone?

Around 22% of Lismore is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Lismore average of 33%.

Is Lismore under a flight path?

No aircraft were observed over Lismore 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 Lismore?

The dominant planning zone in Lismore is General Residential, though the suburb also includes Commercial Centre and Public Recreation.

Does Lismore have heritage-listed places?

Lismore has 47 heritage-listed places on record.

What is the typical lot size in Lismore?

Across 2,090 surveyed parcels in Lismore, the median lot size is about 649 m². There are also 3 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

Does Lismore have a train station?

There is no train station inside Lismore itself. The suburb is served by 55 bus stops.

What is the population of Lismore?

At the 2021 Census Lismore had 3,656 usual residents, with a median age of 41 and an average household size of 2.1 people. The wider Lismore statistical area, which contains Lismore, went from 16,516 people in 2001 to 13,679 in 2025, down 17%.

Is Lismore an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Lismore scores 876 and sits in decile 1 of 10 nationally and decile 1 within New South Wales (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Lismore?

Median household income in Lismore was $1,035 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,458 for the typical suburb in Lismore. Median rent was $280 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,300 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburb	Distance	Flood mapped	Bushfire-prone
Girards Hill	1.4 km	27%	22%
Lismore Heights	1.4 km	8%	22%
East Lismore	1.9 km	21%	33%
North Lismore	2.3 km	45%	17%
Howards Grass	2.4 km	84%	10%
South Lismore	2.9 km	69%	8%
Lagoon Grass	3.7 km	66%	5%
Loftville	4.1 km	82%	8%
Goonellabah	4.2 km	<1%	34%
Booerie Creek	4.5 km	32%	17%

See all Lismore suburb profiles →