Otamatea is located on the northwestern edge of the Whanganui urban area, straddling State Highway 3 for approximately 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) north of Virginia Lake.
Demographics
Otamatea covers 2.70 km2 (1.04 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 1,810 as of June 2024,[2] with a population density of 670 people per km2.
Before the 2023 census, the suburb had a smaller boundary, covering 2.23 km2 (0.86 sq mi).[1] Using that boundary, Otamatea had a population of 1,731 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 168 people (10.7%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 414 people (31.4%) since the 2006 census. There were 687 households, comprising 837 males and 897 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.93 males per female. The median age was 55.6 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 225 people (13.0%) aged under 15 years, 192 (11.1%) aged 15 to 29, 678 (39.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 639 (36.9%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 89.3% European/Pākehā, 7.1% Māori, 0.9% Pacific peoples, 7.1% Asian, and 1.7% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 18.7, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 38.0% had no religion, 50.3% were Christian, 2.1% were Hindu, 1.4% were Muslim, 0.5% were Buddhist and 1.0% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 315 (20.9%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 276 (18.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $29,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 285 people (18.9%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 567 (37.6%) people were employed full-time, 210 (13.9%) were part-time, and 36 (2.4%) were unemployed.[4]
