Turner is favoured by students and young adults with 48.1% of its population in the 20- to 34-year-old age group (compared to the Australian average of 20.5%).

The suburb is an example of garden city design with wide nature strips and generously proportioned roads.

In the postwar period when resources were scarce, disproportionately small houses were built on these large blocks that are now inner city.

This has made Turner blocks well suited for redevelopment, whether it be for units, townhouses, dual occupancies or occasional luxury houses.

These houses were not only small but typically had tiny windows and were poorly positioned on the block for solar access – an important consideration in Canberra's cold climate.

Some streets have footpaths with the house numbers imprinted on the concrete and red fire hydrants can be seen in some areas.

Many of the single houses between Sullivans Creek and Northbourne Avenue have been replaced by two and three storey flats in recent years as a result of being zoned in the Inner North Precinct.

There was a police youth club on Watson Street (relocated to West Belconnen in late 2006 due to costly maintenance issues with the building).

This is due to a number of factors: Turner is located within the federal electorate of Canberra and it is represented by Alicia Payne for the Labor Party.

In the ACT Legislative Assembly, Turner is part of the electorate of Kurrajong, which elects five members on the basis of proportional representation, two Labor, one Green, one Liberal and one Independent.