Burswood

Development Activity

Schools in Burswood iICSEA: school advantage index. 1000 = national avg, higher = more advantaged

Demographics

The median age of 38 is 2 years below the national figure, and the suburb is on an aging trajectory with the senior share rising 3.3 points while the working-age share fell 1.5 points over the decade. Overseas-born residents make up 49.3% of the population, which is 27.7 percentage points above the national average and reflects strong ongoing migration inflows. English ancestry leads at 806 residents, followed by Chinese at 328 and Irish at 255. Mandarin is the most common non-English language with 73 speakers, ahead of Nepali (32) and Cantonese (28). University qualifications reach 46.7%, running 16.6 points above national. Average household size sits at 2.0, which is 0.5 below national, consistent with the high proportion of couples without children at 49.2% of families.

Tenure splits into roughly equal thirds: 23.9% own outright, 25.6% hold mortgages, and 50.5% rent, making renters the single largest group by a significant margin. The stock is 63.4% apartments, 18.3% separate houses, and 18.2% semi-detached, which is an unusual profile that keeps the $546,000 median house price below nearby suburbs with more detached supply. Two-bedroom dwellings dominate at 42% and three-bedroom at 33.4%, with studios and one-bedrooms at 13.2%. The 18.7% vacancy rate is elevated compared to metro Perth norms, suggesting apartment supply has outrun demand in recent years. Mortgage-to-income at 25.3% and rent-to-income at 21.8% both sit below stress thresholds, making purchase and rental equally accessible relative to local incomes.

Community Profile

Economy & Employment

Healthcare is the largest employer at 14.1% of the local workforce (174 workers), followed closely by Professional and Technical services at 12.7% (156 workers) and Mining at 11.5% (142 workers), a composition that reflects both Burswood's proximity to Perth's CBD and Western Australia's resource economy. Construction accounts for 7.7% and Education 7.1%. By occupation, Professionals lead at 473 workers and Managers at 304, together making up the majority of employed residents. The full-time employment rate is 70.5%, above typical suburban averages, and unemployment sits at 4.8% against a participation rate of 66.6%. Real incomes grew 7.2% over the decade, which is solid growth that has helped improve the affordability ratio from 41.1% in 2011 to 33.1% in 2021.

Transport to Work

Car dependence is high at 74.2% of commuters, similar to state norms, while 13.3% use public transport and 5.2% walk or cycle. Burswood sits close to the Perth CBD and the Swan River foreshore, which partly explains why the walk and cycle share exceeds typical outer-suburban levels. The volunteer rate of 15.7% is moderate, and only 2.4% of residents (62 people) require daily assistance, suggesting a generally healthy and working-age population. No schools are recorded within the suburb boundary in this dataset, so families rely on schools in neighbouring suburbs. Rent-to-income at 21.8% sits below the 30% stress threshold, keeping housing affordable for the 50.5% of residents who rent. The 35.3% annual turnover rate indicates a mobile population that refreshes quickly, which is consistent with the high proportion of overseas arrivals and apartment-style living.

Population Forecast

Annual population growth runs at 1.72%, adding roughly 323 residents per year, and the 10-year population change reached 16.2% across the broader statistical area. Overseas migration is the primary driver at 642 arrivals annually, offset by net internal outflow of 176 people a year, a pattern where established residents move outward while newcomers arrive from overseas. The gentrification score is 34 with a classification of early signs: population has grown 28% since 2011, the apartment ownership rate has accelerated from 4% to 23%, and affordability improved from 41.1% to 33.1% over the same period. Medium forecasts project the population reaching 20,203 by 2031, up from 18,736 in 2025, which is steady rather than rapid expansion. The aging trajectory, with senior share rising 3.3 points, points to a changing household mix over the coming decade.

National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs

How Burswood compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs

Frequently Asked Questions