Elgin Safety Snapshot

Is Elgin safe? It has more recorded crime than most NZ suburbs. Elgin has a safety score of 19/100, meaning less recorded crime harm per resident than about 19% of New Zealand suburbs, with 35.3 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year. It is the #16 safest of 26 ranked suburbs in Gisborne.

The annual total crime rate in Elgin is 35.3 crimes per thousand residents, making it the #16 safest of 26 ranked suburbs in Gisborne Region. The overall crime trend in the area has decreased in recent months with criminal activity peaking in December 2025, May 2026, August 2026.

How the safety score works

Offence breakdown · past 12 months

Based on total incidents. Police data to August 2026

• Theft 42.0%
  Theft accounts for 42.0 percent of incidents.
• Burglary 28.0%
  Burglary accounts for 28.0 percent of incidents.
• Assault 21.0%
  Assault accounts for 21.0 percent of incidents.
• Robbery, Blackmail, And Extortion 4.0%
  Robbery, Blackmail, And Extortion accounts for 4.0 percent of incidents.
• Sexual Offences 2.0%
  Sexual Offences accounts for 2.0 percent of incidents.

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View full safety overview for Elgin ›

Elgin Demographics

2023 Census data

Loaded live from the API for this suburb.

Population

2,748

Households

855

Median income

$65,848

Median rent

$284

Age distribution

Share of total population.

Age 0-14

663 (24.1%)

Age 15-64

1,707 (62.1%)

Age 65+

381 (13.9%)

Birthplace

Share of stated birthplace records.

Born in NZ

2,433 (90.3%)

Born overseas

261 (9.7%)

Ethnicity

Normalised to ethnicity responses (can exceed population).

European

1,170 · 34.5%

Māori

1,860 · 54.8%

Pacific

246 · 7.2%

Asian

81 · 2.4%

MELAA

27 · 0.8%

Other

12 · 0.4%

Home tenure (as stored)

Normalised to stated total when present.

Owned

1,821 · 100%

Not owned

1,197 · 66%

Other

267 · 14.7%

Household composition

Normalised to household composition total.

One family

489 (19.3%)

Two families

63 (2.5%)

Three+ families

3 (0.1%)

Other composition

1,977 (78.1%)

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

FAQ

• Is Elgin a safe suburb to live in?

  Elgin has a safety score of 19/100, making it the #16 safest of 26 ranked suburbs in Gisborne Region. 72% of recorded crime is property crime (theft, burglary, fraud or damage).

• What is the crime rate in Elgin?

  The annual crime rate in Elgin is 35.3 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents.

For deeper suburb insights visit CrimeStats.co.nz

Nearby Suburbs

• Te Hapara South (Gisborne)
• Makaraka-Awapuni (Gisborne)
• Te Hapara North (Gisborne)
• Centennial Crescent (Gisborne)
• Riverdale (Gisborne)
• Te Hapara East (Gisborne)
• Mangapapa South (Gisborne)
• Lytton (Gisborne)
• Mangapapa North (Gisborne)
• Gisborne Central (Gisborne)