Preston flood map & planning overlays

Preston households out-earn the whole valley at $2,472 a week.

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A planning-constraint profile of Preston (Lockyer Valley Regional, QLD) - 9.11 km², mapped from live council and state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 7 November 2026.

Planning schematicPreston

Constraint readout

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

Flood overlay <1%

below council avg (29%) · #70 of 71 mapped council suburbs

Modelled flood depth held over parts of Preston

See the Lockyer Valley flood map by suburb.

Bushfire-prone 97%

1.6× council avg (61%) · #9 of 79 mapped council suburbs

Environmental90%

1.8× council avg (51%) · #20 of 79 in council

Heritage sites 0 Noise corridor <1% Aircraft seen below 3,000 ft 27% Mostly Rural Bushfire 9th most affected of 79 →

Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Preston'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 Preston

The ANEF contour is a published planning forecast and observed overflight is what a sampled tracking feed recorded - neither describes any individual property.

Observed overflight - sampled 4 Sep to 7 Nov 2026

Under observed aircraft

90%

of the suburb, at or below 10,000 ft

Below 3,000 ft

27%

of the suburb's area

Lowest measured

2,000 ft

averaging 4,000 ft

Busiest square

~1 a day

0 a day below 3,000 ft · ±18% · area average
typical observed square 0 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.

How this is measured

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.

Preston at a glance

Parcels 141 Median lot 13,081 m² Mapped easements 70 Schools in suburb 0

Schools in and near Preston

Public school-location data shows availability across the suburb; it does not rate schools or assign any individual address to a catchment.

Inside the suburb boundary

0 schools providing primary years and 0 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.

Nearest school availability

Primary: 1.72 km from the suburb boundary

Secondary: 1.92 km from the suburb boundary

Source: Queensland Government school geographic information. Catchment boundaries can divide a suburb and change over time; use the official catchment finder for a specific address.

How Preston is zoned

Rural 95%

Community Facilities 4%

Conservation 1%

Sport And Recreation 0%

Selling in Preston? The lot-level zone is the zoning Part 3 of Queensland's Form 2 seller disclosure statement asks for - see our Form 2 planning data guide.

Across its 9.11 km², Preston is highly constrained by planning overlays. Flood mapping covers the suburb and none of it falls within a mapped flood overlay, and 97% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Rural. The median lot measures about 13,081 m² across 141 parcels.

Who lives in Preston

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

Population

644

usual residents, 2021

Median age

years

Median household income

$2,472

per week, Lockyer Valley Regional suburb typical $1,521

Median rent

$420

per week, Lockyer Valley Regional suburb typical $310

Median mortgage

$2,167

per month

Household size

3.1

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 10

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 1089, and decile 10 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 10

most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Preston's 644 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 5.7%

5-14 21.7%

15-19 6.7%

20-24 2.5%

25-34 6.5%

35-44 13.9%

45-54 18.0%

55-64 13.3%

65-74 7.4%

75-84 4.3%

85+ 0.0%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

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

8,973 in 2001 to 13,029 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.

Preston 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	the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Bushfire-prone mapping	Mapped	the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Zoning	Mapped	the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Heritage and environment	Mapped where published	the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Aircraft noise contours (ANEF)	Not held	the relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data, Defence
Observed flight paths	Observed	adsb.lol, under the Open Database License
Demographics	Available	Australian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA)
School availability	Available	Queensland Government

Profile last materially updated 7 November 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 Preston 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.

See what's in the $9 report →

Aircraft have been seen below 3,000 ft over about 27% of Preston. The report's Aircraft Overflight page narrows that to the address itself: how many aircraft a day, how low, and at what heights.

Published flood models are held over parts of Preston. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.

Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and the indicative soil reactivity range to expect for a Preston lot.

Preston planning - frequently asked

Is Preston flood-prone?

Flood mapping covers Preston and less than 1% of the suburb falls within a mapped flood overlay (the council-wide suburb average is 29%). Published flood models are held over parts of Preston; the free check on the Flood Model Report page says whether one reaches a given address.

Is Preston bushfire-prone?

Around 97% of Preston is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Lockyer Valley Regional average of 61%.

Is Preston under a flight path?

Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 27% of Preston, and over about 90% at any altitude up to 10,000 ft, in the period sampled (4 Sep 2026 to 7 Nov 2026). The lowest measured aircraft was at 2,000 ft, with an average of 4,000 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 1 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 Preston?

The dominant planning zone in Preston is Rural, though the suburb also includes Community Facilities and Conservation.

Does Preston have heritage-listed places?

No heritage-listed places are on record within Preston.

What is the typical lot size in Preston?

Across 141 surveyed parcels in Preston, the median lot size is about 13,081 m². There are also 70 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

What is the population of Preston?

At the 2021 Census Preston had 644 usual residents, with a median age of 40 and an average household size of 3.1 people. The wider Lockyer Valley - West statistical area, which contains Preston, went from 8,973 people in 2001 to 13,029 in 2025, up 45%.

Is Preston an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Preston scores 1089 and sits in decile 10 of 10 nationally and decile 10 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Preston?

Median household income in Preston was $2,472 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,521 for the typical suburb in Lockyer Valley Regional. Median rent was $420 a week and the median mortgage repayment $2,167 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburb	Distance	Flood mapped	Bushfire-prone
Preston Toowoomba Regional	2.0 km	7%	75%
Upper Flagstone	2.6 km	6%	99%
Rockmount	4.7 km	<1%	94%
Hodgson Vale Toowoomba Regional	4.7 km	18%	27%
Middle Ridge Toowoomba Regional	5.1 km	2%	55%
Top Camp Toowoomba Regional	5.5 km	18%	29%
Kearneys Spring Toowoomba Regional	6.8 km	11%	21%
Silver Ridge	7.2 km	<1%	97%
Rangeville Toowoomba Regional	7.3 km	6%	51%
Stockyard	7.5 km	9%	96%

See all Lockyer Valley Regional suburb profiles →