Census 2021 data reveals how the population of NSW South Coast has changed over a decade

But how does the South Coast of NSW compare?

Regional population data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics was released on Tuesday, July 26.

The data shows that of the four local government areas on the South Coast, all outpaced the national regional growth rate of 11 per cent.

Shoalhaven's growth rate of 16.9 per cent also exceeded the average pace of growth in NSW (16.7 per cent).

Population numbers expanded more slowly in Kiama (15.5 per cent), Eurobodalla (13.6 per cent) and Bega Valley (12.5 per cent).

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Breaking the Australian Bureau of Statistics' data into five-year periods offers additional insights.

In the five years between 2011 and 2016, the population growth rate of the two most southern local government areas was just half the rate across the entire state.

Bega Valley's population expanded by 4.1 per cent and Eurobodalla's by 4.2 percent, as compared with the 8.1 per cent rate across NSW.

Population growth in Shoalhaven and Kiama (7.4 per cent) was slightly below the state's pace.

However, things changed markedly in the following five years, between 2016 and 2021.

The population growth of three of the South Coast local government areas outpaced that of the state (7.9 per cent), the exception being Kiama (7.5 per cent)

Population growth in Eurobodalla more than doubled from 4.2 per cent in the 2011-2016 period, to 9.0 per cent, outpacing Shoalhaven's growth of 8.9 per cent.

Similarly, Bega Valley's growth rate almost doubled to 8.1 per cent, overtaking Kiama.

This above-average population growth may go someway towards explaining the housing shortage affecting the South Coast.

It remains to be seen if the last five years is an aberration, or whether the growth rate of the South Coast will continue to eclipse the state average.