Burleigh Waters Liveability Snapshot
Burleigh Waters, at a glance
Position: Central southern Gold Coast, established canal and lake suburb inland from Burleigh Heads, between Miami, Mermaid Waters, Varsity Lakes and West Burleigh
Distance to Brisbane: Approximately a 1-hour 20-minute drive, traffic dependent
Commute to Gold Coast Airport: Approximately 20 to 25 minutes, traffic dependent
Vibe: Established family suburb, canal and lake living, quiet residential streets with strong local routines
Best for: Buyers who want space, schools nearby, and water frontage options without beachfront density
Day to day: School runs, shopping centres close by, sport and parks, easy access to the beach precincts without living in them
Walkability: Moderate, higher around local parks, Lake Burleigh and the shopping pockets, lower in the canal streets
Transport: Car first, buses on the main roads, quick access to the M1 and the Burleigh and Robina employment corridors
Schools: Catchment dependent; address must be checked via EdMap
Hazards: Property specific; always check overlays and insurance early
If you want the investor view as well, including how the house, unit, and duplex market behaves and what drives price movement in different Southport pockets, email me and I can give you a quick, plain-English summary tailored to your budget and property type.
If you are moving over from NZ, start here, at my Moving from NZ hub, with checklists, early admin steps, and Gold Coast suburb guidance.
Overview
Burleigh Waters is an established suburb on the southern Gold Coast, inland from Burleigh Heads. It is predominantly residential and well known for its canal and lake system, with a mix of waterfront homes, standard family housing, and some townhouse and unit stock. Compared with Burleigh Heads, it generally feels more suburban and routine-based, with less visitor activity day to day.
Who Burleigh Waters suits best
Burleigh Waters suits families, move-up buyers, and downsizers who want an established neighborhood, access to parks and schools, and the option of waterfront living without being in a high-rise or tourism-focused precinct. It is also a practical choice for buyers who want proximity to Burleigh Heads and Miami for lifestyle while keeping the day-to-day feel more residential.
Why choose Burleigh Waters
Buyers often choose Burleigh Waters for its established streets, canal and lake living options, and its practical access to schools, shopping, and the southern Gold Coast lifestyle hubs.
Housing and streetscape feel
Housing is dominated by detached homes, with a meaningful share of canal-front properties and streets built around lakes and waterways. Away from the waterfront, you will see a mix of original homes, renovated family houses, and some townhouse and unit pockets along main roads and near local centres. Street feel varies; canal streets can feel very calm and owner-occupied, while busier edges can feel more mixed.
Getting around and commute reality
Most households are car-based, with day-to-day trips typically centred on local schools, shopping centres, sports, and parks. Buses run along the main roads, but for most residents, driving is the default for work commutes and errands. Access to the M1 is straightforward via the surrounding arterials, and Burleigh Heads, Miami, and Robina are typically quick trips outside peak periods.
Schools and education
School zoning in Queensland is address-based, not suburb-based. Eligibility depends on the exact property address and enrolment year, and EdMap should always be checked.
Primary schools your Burleigh Waters address may be zoned for:
Caningeraba State School
Burleigh Heads State School
Varsity College
Secondary schools your Burleigh Waters address may be zoned for:
Miami State High School
Varsity College
Elanora State High School
Palm Beach - Currumbin State High School
Nearby non-state schooling options:
Currumbin Waters also has access to nearby independent and Catholic schools. Enrolment is typically based on application, year-level intake, and school policies rather than state catchment zoning.
Catholic options nearby
St Augustine’s Parish Primary School, Currumbin Waters
Marymount Primary School, Burleigh Waters
Marymount College, Burleigh Waters
Independent options nearby
St Andrew’s Lutheran College, Tallebudgera
Hillcrest Christian College, Reedy Creek
King’s Christian College, Reedy Creek
Somerset College, Mudgeeraba
When researching schools online, you will often see mixed reviews. That is common in larger or centrally located catchments with diverse student populations. Online commentary usually reflects individual experiences rather than the overall day-to-day environment. Visiting the school, understanding catchment rules, and considering your child’s specific needs will give you far more useful insight than review sites alone.
If you are relocating with kids and want help shortlisting schools and aligning catchments with your housing search, I offer a Family Relocation Concierge option; details are on my services page.
Parks, sports and lifestyle amenities
Burleigh Waters has strong local park access, with paths and green space around the lakes and waterways, as well as multiple neighborhood parks. The surrounding suburbs offer easy access to sport and recreation options, while Burleigh Heads and Miami provide a close proximity to the beach lifestyle.
Convenience and day-to-day essentials
Day-to-day convenience is a core strength. Burleigh Waters is close to multiple shopping and service hubs, with supermarkets, medical and allied health, and everyday errands generally handled locally without long drives.
Dining and cafés
Dining is mostly local and practical rather than a destination precinct. For broader café and dining choices, residents typically head to Burleigh Heads, Miami, or Nobby Beach, which keeps Burleigh Waters quieter at night.
Shopping and everyday services
Shopping is centered around nearby major and neighbourhood centers, with most residents using local supermarkets and services day-to-day and traveling short distances for larger retail, healthcare, and specialist needs.
Community profile
Burleigh Waters is a stable, established suburb with a strong family presence and long-term owner-occupier streets in many pockets. Turnover tends to be lower than in high-rise or holiday-letting precincts, although this varies by housing type and proximity to main roads.
Crime and safety, relative to the Gold Coast
Burleigh Waters has a lower crime profile than the major activity-centre suburbs on the Gold Coast. It is primarily residential, and offences tend to be property and opportunity-driven rather than driven by nightlife or heavy visitor foot traffic. Based on 2024 data, Burleigh Waters records lower crimes per capita than both Queensland and Australia overall, with property crime the dominant driver.
Headline figures (2024):
Crime rank – 10/100
A higher score indicates higher overall crime relative to populationTotal offences – 816
Crimes per 1,000 residents – 56.06
Queensland – higher
Australia – higherViolent crimes – 33 total
Violent crime rate – 2.27 per 1,000 residents
Queensland – ~8 per 1,000
Australia – ~11 per 1,000Property crimes – 572 total
Property crime rate – 39.30 per 1,000 residents
Most reported offence groups: Offences in Burleigh Waters are predominantly non-violent and reflect typical suburban patterns, with property-related incidents and opportunistic theft the main drivers rather than concentrated late-night precinct behaviour.
Top reported offence categories in 2024:
Theft – 403 offences
Drug dealing and trafficking – 84 offences
Burglary and break and enter – 69 offences
Likelihood of being affected:
Chance of being a victim of violent crime – 1 in 441
Queensland – 1 in 123
Australia – 1 in 89Chance of being a victim of property crime – 1 in 25
Queensland – 1 in 22
Australia – 1 in 26
Trend direction:
Total crime in Burleigh Waters increased by 12.71% from 2023 to 2024
Long-term trends show moderate fluctuations consistent with residential population and opportunity-driven offences, rather than sustained spikes.
Bottom line: Burleigh Waters is a predominantly residential suburb with a comparatively lower overall crime profile than the Gold Coast’s major centres, with practical focus best placed on typical property security, especially around cars, garages, and opportunistic theft.
Socioeconomic context, SEIFA
SEIFA provides area-level context rather than insight into individual households. A lower score indicates greater relative disadvantage, and a higher score indicates less disadvantage.
For Burleigh Waters (SA2 Burleigh Waters), the Index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage (IRSD) score is 1048, placing it around decile 8 out of 10 nationally (a higher decile indicates less disadvantage).
The score is affected by a stable housing base and a higher percentage of owner-occupied family households. There are some differences when the housing mix moves closer to higher-density edges.
Plain English takeaway: Burleigh Waters trends more advantaged overall, but lived experience still varies by pocket, street, and housing type, especially between canal-front, quiet internal streets, and busier boundary roads.
Price and rental context
Burleigh Waters is house-dominant with a meaningful canal-front market, plus smaller townhouse and unit pockets. That mix can make suburb-wide medians less straightforward than a uniform estate suburb, because premium waterfront sales can pull figures up while non-waterfront streets behave differently.
Median house price – $1,713,400
Median unit price – $902,500
Median 4 bedroom house rent – $1,350 per week
Median unit rent – $825 per week
Medians sourced from realestate.com.au for 12 months to December 2025.
Plain English takeaway: In Burleigh Waters, medians are useful for general context but should not be relied on suburb-wide without considering whether the property is waterfront, which pocket it sits in, and whether the housing type is comparable.
Flood, bushfire and natural hazards: considerations
Burleigh Waters includes canals, lakes, and low-lying pockets, so flood overlays can apply to some properties, particularly ground-level dwellings near waterways. Risk is not suburb-wide, and it is property-specific, so overlays and an insurance quote should be checked early. Bushfire overlay risk is generally more limited and tends to apply where properties sit near mapped vegetation; it is also property-specific.
Quick take: pros and trade-offs
Pros:
Established family suburb, canal and lake lifestyle options, strong day-to-day convenience, close to Burleigh and Miami lifestyle hubs, generally quieter than beachside and CBD precincts.
Trade-offs:
Day-to-day life is primarily car-based, with variations in traffic and lifestyle between waterfront and non-waterfront streets, as well as some busier boundary roads. Additionally, there are flood overlays and insurance variability in low-lying areas adjacent to canals or lakes.
Helpful links
These tools are address-specific, so always check the exact property before relying on suburb-wide assumptions.
School catchments, EdMap
Queensland Police crime map RedSuburb crime statistics Median sale and rental pricing realestate.com.au ABS SEIFA index of Relative Socio-economic Disadvantage at SA2 level City of Gold Coast flood planning map
FloodCheck Queensland
City of Gold Coast bushfire overlay mapping
Helpful note
Burleigh Waters is a suburb where property type and pocket selection matter, canal-front and quiet internal streets can feel very different from boundary-road pockets, so shortlist by street, not just suburb name.
If you want, I am happy to sanity-check a specific street, school catchment, or property against how you want to live day to day - Lets Talk
