Median price trend for houses
Based on 12 sales in the preceding 12 months
$4,120,000
Up 4.4% over 12 months
- 4 bed
- $3.5m
- 5+ bed
- $4.8m
Aerial view
Imagery © Esri
The quick read on
Forrest
ACT 2603 · Unincorporated ACT
What homes cost, how rents have moved, and a feel for the people who call it home.
- Median house
- $4,120,000
- Median unit
- $698,000
- Population
- 1,827
- Postcode
- 2603
latest suburb median
latest suburb median
ABS 2021
Forrest, Australian Capital Territory
Property market insights for Forrest (ACT)
Median sale price and rental income of properties in Forrest (ACT) ACT
Median rent trend for houses
Based on 8 rental listings in the preceding 12 months
$1,500 per week
Down 3.2% over 12 months
Market data updated October 2026.
The median house price in Forrest (ACT), ACT is currently $4,120,000, based on the latest 12 months of sales. Forrest (ACT) has a 12-month growth rate of 4.4% for houses and -11.6% for units.
Four-bedroom houses have a median sale price of $3,500,000, Larger houses have a median sale price of $4,800,000 in Forrest (ACT).
If you're looking to lease, the median rent for houses in Forrest (ACT) is $1,500 per week. The median house rent has decreased 3.2% over the last 12 months.
The median price of apartments and units for sale in Forrest (ACT) is $698,000, which has decreased 11.6% since the same time last year. One-bedroom apartments and units have a median sale price of $540,000, Two-bedroom apartments and units have a median sale price of $750,000, Three-bedroom apartments and units have a median sale price of $1,390,000 in Forrest (ACT). The median rent for units and apartments in Forrest (ACT) is $668 per week and has increased 6.9% over the last 12 months.
Crime and safety
Is Forrest safe?
The overall rate for Forrest is 12,796 offences per 100,000 residents — 159% above the Australian Capital Territory benchmark.
That is the clearest suburb-wide answer. Open the detailed profile to see how the pattern changes across offence types and different parts of Forrest.
Overall crime rate
12,796
offences per 100,000 residents
159% aboveAustralian Capital Territory
ForrestAustralian Capital Territory: 4,936
Suburb-wide estimate from Microburbs' public crime model; it is not an address-level measure.
The people behind the postcode
Who lives in Forrest?
Forrest ACT 2603 is in Australian Capital Territory, within Australian Capital Territory.
1,827 people call Forrest home, with an average of 2.2 people per household and a median household income of $3,363 a week.
Public ABS 2021 Census figures. The bars compare the local share with the capital-region benchmark.
- Population
- 1,827
- Median age
- 47 years
- Median mortgage
- $2,520 / month
- 2021 household rent
- $570 / week
Above the benchmarkBelow the benchmarkIn lineAustralian Capital Territory benchmark
Age profile
Share of residents in each age band.
Under 1511.3%Below
15–3425.5%Below
35–5425.7%Below
55–7427.9%Above
75 and over10.1%Above
Homes
Share of occupied private dwellings.
Separate houses36.1%Below
Townhouses16.8%In line
Apartments46.1%Above
Ownership
Share of homes with a stated ownership or rental status.
Owned outright38.6%Above
Paying a mortgage30.0%Below
Renting31.3%In line
Cars at home
Vehicles available to occupied households.
No car4.1%Below
One car40.6%Above
Two cars37.6%Below
Three or more17.0%In line
Getting to work
Selected ways residents worked or travelled on Census day.
Worked from home17.9%Above
Drove to work48.0%Below
Train, tram or bus3.1%Below
Walked or cycled16.0%Above
What stands out in Forrest
17.9% of workers in Forrest worked from home on Census day — noticeably more common than across Australian Capital Territory.
3.0% of Forrest residents were born in England.
41.7% of people in Forrest described themselves as having no religion in the 2021 Census.
A closer look at the Census
Questions people ask about Forrest
Open any question for a plain-English reading of the public 2021 Census for Forrest ACT 2603.
Is Forrest family-friendly?Age, family structure and household size describe the community families would be joining.
11.3% of Forrest's residents were children under 15 in the 2021 Census. That is well below the Australian Capital Territory average.
536 family households lived in Forrest; 35.3% were couple families and 7.6% were one-parent families.
23.5% of local families included children under 15. That is well below the Australian Capital Territory average.
These are suburb-wide household figures, not school or childcare ratings.
What is the age profile of Forrest?The balance between younger adults, families and older residents changes how a suburb feels day to day.
Forrest had 1,827 residents at the 2021 Census.
25.4% of residents were aged 25 to 44.
38.0% were 55 or older. That is well above the Australian Capital Territory average.
Age shares use the suburb’s total Census population.
What kind of homes are in Forrest?The dwelling mix shows whether the suburb is mostly detached homes, townhouses or apartments.
Separate houses made up 36.1% of occupied private dwellings in Forrest.
Townhouses and other attached homes represented 16.8% of occupied private dwellings.
Flats and apartments accounted for 46.1% of occupied private dwellings.
All three shares use occupied private dwellings as the denominator.
Do people own or rent in Forrest?Tenure shows how many households own outright, have a mortgage or rent.
38.6% of households with a stated tenure owned their home outright. That is well above the Australian Capital Territory average.
30.0% were buying their home with a mortgage.
31.3% rented their home. That is almost exactly typical for Australian Capital Territory.
Tenure shares include households that stated one of these three arrangements.
How large are households in Forrest?Household-size data shows the mix behind the suburb-wide average.
The average household in Forrest had 2.2 people.
One-person households made up 29.4% of occupied homes. That is somewhat above the Australian Capital Territory average.
Two-person households represented 42.9%, while 15.3% had four or more usual residents.
Household size counts usual residents in occupied homes.
How do people get to work in Forrest?Census-day travel shows the balance between home, road, public transport and active travel.
17.9% of workers worked from home on Census day. That is well above the Australian Capital Territory average.
48.0% drove a car as their only travel method. That is well below the Australian Capital Territory average.
3.1% used only a train, tram or bus, while 16.0% walked or cycled.
Travel figures are a 2021 Census-day snapshot.
How many cars do households have in Forrest?Vehicle availability helps describe the routines local households can support.
4.1% of occupied households had no motor vehicle available. That is close to the Australian Capital Territory average.
One-car households formed 40.6% of the total.
54.6% of households had two or more vehicles.
Vehicle counts refer to occupied households, not individual residents.
Who's moving to Forrest, and who stays?Address history shows how settled or recently mobile residents were at the Census date.
44.8% were at the same address five years earlier, while 55.2% reported a different address.
25.2% of residents were born outside Australia. That is somewhat below the Australian Capital Territory average.
Mobility figures cover residents who answered the relevant Census question.
What languages are spoken in Forrest?Language at home gives a direct view of the community’s everyday linguistic mix.
77.8% of residents used only English at home.
19.4% used a language other than English at home.
2.5% spoke Mandarin at home, 0.9% spoke Cantonese and 1.1% spoke Hindi.
Home language is separate from English proficiency.
Where were Forrest residents born?Birthplace adds another layer to the local story, separate from ancestry and language.
25.2% of Forrest's population was born outside Australia, while roughly 74.8% was born in Australia.
1.6% of residents were born in China.
2.1% were born in India, while Australian citizenship across the whole suburb stood at 91.7%.
Birthplace, citizenship and ancestry describe different parts of identity.
What ancestries shape Forrest?Ancestry responses show how residents describe family and cultural background.
English ancestry accounted for 34.2% of ancestry responses in Forrest.
Australian ancestry made up 29.2% of responses.
Chinese ancestry represented 4.7% of responses.
People may nominate more than one ancestry, so these are shares of responses.
What work do people do in Forrest?Occupation describes a person’s role; industry describes the sector employing them.
42.5% of employed residents worked in professional occupations. That is well above the Australian Capital Territory average.
Managers accounted for 26.5% of employed residents, while clerical and administrative workers made up 12.4%.
Health care and social assistance employed 13.3% of workers, and education and training employed 7.9%.
Occupation and industry figures describe employed residents of the suburb.
How active is the workforce in Forrest?Participation, employment pattern and unemployment describe the resident labour force.
The labour-force participation rate was 68.1%, compared with 69.6% across Australian Capital Territory.
47.2% of residents aged 15 and over worked full time, while 16.0% worked part time.
Unemployment was 2.8%, compared with 3.8% across Australian Capital Territory.
Labour-force figures come from the 2021 Census.
What does the health profile of Forrest show?Selected long-term health conditions help describe community service needs.
60.4% reported no selected long-term health condition.
7.9% reported a long-term mental health condition, including depression or anxiety.
8.5% reported asthma, 8.5% arthritis and 2.8% diabetes excluding gestational diabetes.
These are self-reported suburb-wide Census figures, not address-level health risks.
How educated is Forrest?Qualifications describe the study pathways represented among local residents.
38.3% of people in the qualifications table held a bachelor degree. That is somewhat above the Australian Capital Territory average.
Postgraduate degrees accounted for 30.2% of qualification responses.
Diploma-level qualifications represented 9.5%, while certificate-level qualifications represented 7.2%.
Qualification categories are reported separately and are not school ratings.
What do incomes and housing costs look like in Forrest?Census income and household payments give historical context for local living costs.
Median household income was $3,363 per week in the 2021 Census.
The median monthly mortgage repayment reported by local households was $2,520.
Occupied renting households reported a median rent of $570 per week.
These household figures are from 2021; current sale and asking-rent medians appear in the market section.
How does Forrest compare with Australian Capital Territory?A few clear differences place the suburb in its wider metropolitan context.
Working from home was 17.9% in Forrest, compared with 10.9% across Australian Capital Territory.
Outright ownership was 38.6% locally and 27.3% across Australian Capital Territory. That is well above the Australian Capital Territory average.
Renting accounted for 31.3% in Forrest, against 31.5% across Australian Capital Territory.
Capital-region comparisons use the same Census definitions and year.
Three useful questions
A buyer’s quick guide to Forrest (ACT)
Is Forrest (ACT) expensive?
The median house price is $4,120,000, while units and apartments sit at $698,000. Bedroom count, land and condition still create a wide range around those suburb medians.
Is Forrest (ACT) good for families?
The Census counted 536 local families, and 11.3% of residents were under 15. That describes the community; school quality, travel times and the right fit for a particular family need separate research.
What can I get for $1.5m in Forrest (ACT)?
4-bedroom houses have a median around $3,500,000, the closest bedroom benchmark we hold to a $1.5m budget. Individual homes can differ substantially with block size, renovation and location.
Medians describe recorded market activity across the suburb; they are historical context, not a valuation or forecast for an individual home.
Explore the area
Streets and suburbs around Forrest (ACT)
31 streets in Forrest (ACT)
Street-by-street reports are not published yet. The streets below are the ones this suburb covers.
- Arthur
- Barkly Cr
- Baudin St
- Bougainville St
- Canberra Ave
- Dampier Cr
- Davey Cr
- Dominion Cct
- Ducane St
- Empire Cct
- Fitzroy St
- Franklin St
- Furneaux St
- Hobart Ave
- Manuka
- Melbourne Ave
- Moresby St
- Mugga
Show all 31 streetsShow fewer streets
- Nares Cr
- National Cct
- New South Wales Cr
- Ord St
- Rous Cr
- Somers Cr
- Sorell St
- State
- Sydney Ave
- Talbot St
- Tasmania
- Tennyson Cr
- Wilmot Cr
12 suburbs surrounding Forrest (ACT)
Compare nearby suburb prices, rents and five-year market trends.
Keep exploring
Is Forrest (ACT) right for your search?
Use the finders to compare places and properties, or open the full report when you need the street, risk, schools and growth research.
Read the thinking
Figures update as new market and census data arrives. This suburb overview is general information, not a valuation or financial advice.