Catlins Safety Snapshot

Is Catlins safe? About average. Catlins has a safety score of 60/100, meaning less recorded crime harm per resident than about 60% of New Zealand suburbs, with 21.6 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year. It is the #77 safest of 120 ranked suburbs in Otago.

The annual total crime rate in Catlins is 21.6 crimes per thousand residents, making it the #77 safest of 120 ranked suburbs in Otago Region. The overall crime trend in the area has decreased in recent months with criminal activity peaking in February 2026, March 2026, April 2026.

How the safety score works

Offence breakdown · past 12 months

Based on total incidents. Police data to August 2026

• Burglary 20.0%
  Burglary accounts for 20.0 percent of incidents.
• Theft 8.0%
  Theft accounts for 8.0 percent of incidents.
• Assault 2.0%
  Assault accounts for 2.0 percent of incidents.

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View full safety overview for Catlins ›

Catlins Demographics

2023 Census data

Loaded live from the API for this suburb.

Population

1,425

Households

585

Median income

$69,876

Median rent

$255

Age distribution

Share of total population.

Age 0-14

216 (15.2%)

Age 15-64

864 (60.6%)

Age 65+

312 (21.9%)

Birthplace

Share of stated birthplace records.

Born in NZ

1,170 (83.3%)

Born overseas

234 (16.7%)

Ethnicity

Normalised to ethnicity responses (can exceed population).

European

1,233 · 78.4%

Māori

174 · 11.1%

Pacific

96 · 6.1%

Asian

36 · 2.3%

MELAA

9 · 0.6%

Other

24 · 1.5%

Home tenure (as stored)

Normalised to stated total when present.

Owned

1,017 · 99.1%

Not owned

306 · 29.8%

Other

168 · 16.4%

Household composition

Normalised to household composition total.

One family

366 (21.4%)

Two families

3 (0.2%)

Three+ families

0 (0%)

Other composition

1,344 (78.5%)

Demographic data sourced from Stats NZ , licensed under CC BY 4.0

FAQ

• Is Catlins a safe suburb to live in?

  Catlins has a safety score of 60/100, making it the #77 safest of 120 ranked suburbs in Otago Region. 93% of recorded crime is property crime (theft, burglary, fraud or damage).

• What is the crime rate in Catlins?

  The annual crime rate in Catlins is 21.6 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents.

For deeper suburb insights visit CrimeStats.co.nz