Kempsey property market: the official numbers
The official read on Kempsey, NSW: who lives there, what they pay in rent and repayments, and where the jobs are. Every figure below is ABS Census 2021 data, linked at the bottom so you can check it yourself.
The straight answer
Median rent in Kempsey was $285 a week at the 2021 Census — 24% below the national median. The typical rent ($1,235/mo) sat right up against the typical repayment ($1,300/mo). Cashflow territory.
The key numbers
The typical repayment ran at about 28% of the median household income. Point-in-time medians, August 2021. Repayments have risen a long way since the 2022–24 rate rises, so use these to compare places, not to price anything today.
The rent-or-buy gap
At the census, the typical monthly rent worked out to $1,235 against a typical mortgage repayment of $1,300:
What this gap does and doesn't tell you
The mortgage figure reflects loans and rates as at August 2021, before the 2022–24 rate rises — today's repayment on a new loan would be higher. The rent figure is what tenants were actually paying, not today's asking rents. The useful signal is the shape: where rent and repayments sit close together, buying has historically competed well with renting here; where repayments tower over rent, the market prices in growth. Run your own numbers with the mortgage vs invest tool or what can I afford?
Who owns, who rents
Renters are 29.5% of Kempsey households. If you're buying to let, that's the depth of your market — about the national norm.
Who lives here
What the age mix means for housing
A heavy 25–44 band usually means family housing demand (and pressure on 3–4 bedroom stock); a heavy 65+ band signals downsizer and retiree demand (units, single-level living, proximity to health care). Kempsey's median age of 42 sits above the national median of 38.
What the local economy runs on
health care & social assistance employs 21.5% of Kempsey's 5,082 workers (Census 2021). Local housing demand rises and falls with it.
Buying costs in NSW, exactly
Current sale prices live behind licensed feeds we won't republish. The costs of buying don't — they're public and exact:
- Stamp duty in New South Wales — exact duty and first-home-buyer concessions.
- What can I afford? — borrowing power, price range and all-in upfront cash.
- The official NSW price trend — ABS state-level values since 2011, interactive.
Questions people ask
What is the median rent in Kempsey?
At the 2021 Census the median rent in Kempsey was $285 a week — 24% below the national median ($375/wk). Rents have moved since 2021; check current listings for today's asking rents.
How many people live in Kempsey?
15,654 people at the 2021 Census, with a median age of 42 (national median: 38). Kempsey is one of New South Wales's significant urban areas as defined by the ABS.
What do people in Kempsey do for work?
The biggest employing industry is health care & social assistance, followed by retail trade (ABS Census 2021). The industry mix shapes how resilient local housing demand is.
Who this market suits
Your call
On the census shape, Kempsey suits the cashflow buyer: the typical rent ($1,235/mo) sat right up against the typical repayment ($1,300/mo). It's a weaker fit for anyone banking on scarcity to do the work. Size is the catch — at 15,654 people, exits are slow here. Count on months, not weeks, if you ever need to sell.
Everything above is August 2021 — before you act, pull current asking rents, vacancy and listing volumes for Kempsey. Then run your own numbers: what can I afford? for borrowing power and upfront cash, and the New South Wales stamp duty calculator for the tax bill.
Other NSW markets
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General information only — not financial or property advice. All figures are ABS Census 2021 ( official QuickStats for Kempsey, CC-BY 4.0), which predates the 2022–24 rate rises; conditions have moved since. Last reviewed 10 July 2026.