Varsity Lakes flood map & planning overlays
16,493 residents and 4 schools on median lots of 526 m², with a median age of 36.
Things you won't regret: spending $9 to know the lot before you commit.
Free map preview, then PDF reports from $9 - about the price of an iced latte on a public holiday.
A planning-constraint profile of Varsity Lakes
(Gold Coast City, QLD) - 5.91 km², mapped from live council and
state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 7 November 2026.
Constraint readout
5.91 km² - this suburb is highly constrained by planning overlays.
Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Varsity Lakes'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
How common is mapped flood risk across Varsity Lakes properties?
Counts of properties, not share of land, across 7,652 analysed Varsity Lakes properties; no individual property result is identified.
Lot-level readout
Flood-risk rating across all 7,652 properties
From LayeredGeo's lot-risk engine: council flood overlays, historical flooding and terrain, resolved to each individual lot in Varsity Lakes.
Aircraft noise and flight paths over Varsity Lakes
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
typical observed square 1 a day
Night movements: observed, lowest 1,500 ft - night is sampled as often as day, but night traffic is light, so this is a floor and no rate can be put on it.
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.
Varsity Lakes at a glance
Schools in and near Varsity Lakes
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
2 schools providing primary years and 3 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.
Nearest school availability
Primary: inside the suburb
Secondary: inside the suburb
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 Varsity Lakes is zoned
Selling in Varsity Lakes? 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 5.91 km², Varsity Lakes is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 43% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay, and 12% is flagged bushfire-prone. The dominant land-use zone is Medium density residential. The terrain is gently undulating, and the median lot measures about 526 m² across 8,275 parcels.
Recent development applications in Varsity Lakes
Applications are counted across the whole gazetted suburb from the public City of Gold Coast register. No application address or individual property is published here.
Submitted in the past 12 months
Latest included submission: 27 October 2026.
Previous 12 months: 21 (29% higher in the latest period).
Counts depend on applications that the council publishes and that can be assigned to a suburb. Categories can overlap when one application covers several types. Totals below five and their latest dates are suppressed. Register last synchronised 7 November 2026. Check the official council register.
Who lives in Varsity Lakes
Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Varsity Lakes 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 1008, and decile 8 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.
Age profile
Share of Varsity Lakes's 16,493 residents in each ABS age band.
Population trend, 2001 to 2025
Estimated resident population of Varsity Lakes, the wider ABS statistical area containing Varsity Lakes. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Varsity Lakes itself.
6,969 in 2001 to 18,207 in 2025, up 161%.
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.
Varsity Lakes 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 |
| Development applications | Available as suburb totals | City of Gold Coast |
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 Varsity Lakes 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 95% of Varsity Lakes. 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 Varsity Lakes. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.
The Terrain Report shows the fall of the block - contours, cross sections and a 3D model of the lot to spin round in your browser (+$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 Varsity Lakes lot.
Varsity Lakes planning - frequently asked
Is Varsity Lakes flood-prone?
About 43% of Varsity Lakes falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 35%. Across the suburb, 73% of the 7,652 properties we analysed carry some level of mapped flood risk, including 3726 rated high risk or historically affected. Published flood models are held over parts of Varsity Lakes; the free check on the Flood Model Report page says whether one reaches a given address.
Is Varsity Lakes bushfire-prone?
Around 12% of Varsity Lakes is mapped as bushfire-prone, compared with a Gold Coast City average of 50%.
Is Varsity Lakes under a flight path?
Aircraft were observed below 3,000 ft over about 95% of Varsity Lakes, and over about 100% 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 1,000 ft, with an average of 2,000 ft. At the busiest point in the suburb about 3 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 Varsity Lakes?
The dominant planning zone in Varsity Lakes is Medium density residential, though the suburb also includes Unzoned and Low density residential.
Does Varsity Lakes have heritage-listed places?
No heritage-listed places are on record within Varsity Lakes.
Is Varsity Lakes hilly or flat?
Varsity Lakes is gently undulating: the median ground slope is about 5%, and 3% of measured points sit on grades of 15% or steeper. Ground level runs from roughly 4 m to 22 m AHD across the suburb.
What is the typical lot size in Varsity Lakes?
Across 8,275 surveyed parcels in Varsity Lakes, the median lot size is about 526 m². There are also 901 registered easements mapped in the suburb.
Does Varsity Lakes have a train station?
Yes - Varsity Lakes has 1 train station: Varsity Lakes station. It is also served by 41 bus stops.
What is the population of Varsity Lakes?
At the 2021 Census Varsity Lakes had 16,493 usual residents, with a median age of 36 and an average household size of 2.5 people. The wider Varsity Lakes statistical area, which contains Varsity Lakes, went from 6,969 people in 2001 to 18,207 in 2025, up 161%.
Is Varsity Lakes an advantaged suburb?
On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Varsity Lakes scores 1008 and sits in decile 7 of 10 nationally and decile 8 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).
What is the median household income in Varsity Lakes?
Median household income in Varsity Lakes was $1,646 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,830 for the typical suburb in Gold Coast City. Median rent was $490 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,842 a month.
Compare nearby suburbs
| Nearby suburb | Distance | Flood mapped | Bushfire-prone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burleigh Waters | 2.3 km | 64% | 11% |
| Robina | 2.8 km | 41% | 6% |
| Miami | 3.1 km | 23% | 21% |
| Reedy Creek | 3.1 km | 3% | 81% |
| Burleigh Heads | 3.7 km | 17% | 47% |
| Mermaid Waters | 4.0 km | 80% | 5% |
| Mermaid Beach | 5.0 km | 16% | 0% |
| Clear Island Waters | 5.1 km | 88% | 8% |
| Mudgeeraba | 5.3 km | 18% | 82% |
| Palm Beach | 5.5 km | 78% | 13% |