Waikaka Safety Snapshot

Is Waikaka safe? About average. Waikaka has a safety score of 41/100, meaning less recorded crime harm per resident than about 41% of New Zealand suburbs, with 25.4 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year. It is the #36 safest of 53 ranked suburbs in Southland.

The annual total crime rate in Waikaka is 25.4 crimes per thousand residents, making it the #36 safest of 53 ranked suburbs in Southland Region. The overall crime trend in the area has increased in recent months with criminal activity peaking in January 2026, February 2026, August 2026.

How the safety score works

Offence breakdown · past 12 months

Based on total incidents. Police data to August 2026

• Burglary 27.0%
  Burglary accounts for 27.0 percent of incidents.
• Theft 9.0%
  Theft accounts for 9.0 percent of incidents.
• Sexual Offences 1.0%
  Sexual Offences accounts for 1.0 percent of incidents.
• Robbery, Blackmail, And Extortion 1.0%
  Robbery, Blackmail, And Extortion accounts for 1.0 percent of incidents.

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View full safety overview for Waikaka ›

Waikaka Demographics

2023 Census data

Loaded live from the API for this suburb.

Population

1,533

Households

591

Median income

$90,639

Median rent

$202

Age distribution

Share of total population.

Age 0-14

336 (21.9%)

Age 15-64

978 (63.8%)

Age 65+

249 (16.2%)

Birthplace

Share of stated birthplace records.

Born in NZ

1,335 (87.1%)

Born overseas

198 (12.9%)

Ethnicity

Normalised to ethnicity responses (can exceed population).

European

1,377 · 82.9%

Māori

129 · 7.8%

Pacific

9 · 0.5%

Asian

105 · 6.3%

MELAA

6 · 0.4%

Other

36 · 2.2%

Home tenure (as stored)

Normalised to stated total when present.

Owned

1,167 · 100%

Not owned

420 · 36.6%

Other

54 · 4.7%

Household composition

Normalised to household composition total.

One family

423 (24.1%)

Two families

3 (0.2%)

Three+ families

0 (0%)

Other composition

1,326 (75.7%)

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

FAQ

• Is Waikaka a safe suburb to live in?

  Waikaka has a safety score of 41/100, making it the #36 safest of 53 ranked suburbs in Southland Region. 95% of recorded crime is property crime (theft, burglary, fraud or damage).

• What is the crime rate in Waikaka?

  The annual crime rate in Waikaka is 25.4 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents.

For deeper suburb insights visit CrimeStats.co.nz