West Ulverstone
An older, owner-heavy coastal profile defines West Ulverstone: median age is 48, 8 years above national, and 42.2% of homes are owned outright. Compared with nearby Ulverstone and Penguin, its profile is shaped more by detached housing than by apartments, with 89.9% separate houses and only 8.1% semi-detached homes. Household income sits at the 15.2 percentile, so affordability is tied to modest debt loads, a $240 weekly rent, and long-held homes rather than high wages.
Population
4,515
Median Age
48.0
Household IncomeiMedian weekly household income (ABS Census)
$1,059/wk
DAs (12 months)iDevelopment Applications lodged in the past year
0
Buyers looking for a house rather than a unit get a very clear stock profile: 89.9% separate houses, higher than the 8.1% semi-detached share, and 57.6% of dwellings have 3 bedrooms. Carrying costs are moderate because median mortgage payments are $1,213 a month and mortgage costs take 26.5% of income, only a little higher than rent-to-income at 22.7%. The 42.2% outright ownership share also points to a settled market where turnover is 20.1%.
For Buyers
Buyers looking for a house rather than a unit get a very clear stock profile: 89.9% separate houses, higher than the 8.1% semi-detached share, and 57.6% of dwellings have 3 bedrooms. Carrying costs are moderate because median mortgage payments are $1,213 a month and mortgage costs take 26.5% of income, only a little higher than rent-to-income at 22.7%. The 42.2% outright ownership share also points to a settled market where turnover is 20.1%.
For Investors
For investors, West Ulverstone looks more income-stable than development-led. Renters are 25.9% of households, lower than both outright owners at 42.2% and mortgaged households at 30.9%, so the tenant pool is present but not dominant. The median rent is $240 a week and vacancy is 6.3%, which makes pricing discipline important because empty weeks can matter. With 0 approvals in the past 12 months, supply pressure from new local projects appears limited.
Demographics
West Ulverstone skews older and more locally rooted: median age is 48, 8 years above national, while 79.9% of residents stayed at the same address. University attainment is 18.9%, 11.2 percentage points below national, and the overseas-born share is 9.6%, 12.0 points below national. English ancestry is the largest listed group at 1,993 people, ahead of Scottish at 435 and Irish at 395; No religion at 2,205 also ranks above Christianity at 1,828, so services lean toward established households.
Age Distribution
Bedrooms
Dwelling Structure
89.9%
Houses
8.1%
Townhouse
0.0%
Apartment
Tenure
The housing base is strongly detached and owner-occupied, with 89.9% separate houses compared with 8.1% semi-detached homes. Outright ownership at 42.2% is higher than mortgaged ownership at 30.9% and renting at 25.9%, which helps explain the settled feel and the 79.9% same-address share. Three-bedroom homes dominate at 57.6%, while 4-plus bedrooms make up 21.0%; that mix suits downsizers and smaller families more than high-density apartment buyers.
Mortgage / mo
$1,213
Rent / wkiABS Census 2021 median across all dwelling types. Current market rents are typically higher.
$240
Census 2021
HH Size
2.3
Personal Income / wk
$541
Vacancy Ratei% of dwellings unoccupied on Census night (ABS 2021)
6.3%
Unoccupied
118
Rent / IncomeiMedian rent as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
22.7%
Mortgage / IncomeiMedian mortgage as % of household income. Over 30% = housing stress
26.5%
Community Profile
Ancestry
Household Composition
32.0%
Couples with children
47.9%
Couples, no children
19.2%
Single parent
1,232
Total families
Economy & Employment
The job base is practical and service-heavy, with Healthcare at 21.2% of workers, Education 11.9%, Construction 11.7%, Manufacturing 7.4%, and Retail 6.5%. Occupations are spread across Labourers 260, Trades 255, Community/Personal 254, Professionals 242, and Managers 178, so no single white-collar group dominates. Unemployment is 5.9% and participation is 47.8%, held down because 1,759 residents are not in the labour force. SEIFA is consistently low: IEO decile 1, IER decile 2, IRSD decile 1, and IRSAD decile 1, with resources slightly stronger than education and occupation scores.
Unemployment
5.9%
Labour Force
1,829
Unemployed
107
Source: ABS Census 2021
Socio-Economic Indexes (SEIFA)iABS index ranking suburbs from 1 (most disadvantaged) to 10 (most advantaged)
Full-time
51.2%
Part-time
41.5%
Participation
47.8%
Employed
1,722
Full-time and part-time are shares of the employed. Source: ABS Census 2021
Occupations
Top Industries
University
18.9%
Postgraduate
4.2%
Born Overseas
9.6%
Dwellings
1,764
Transport to Work
Daily life is car-oriented: 83.9% of commuters drive, far higher than public transport at 0.9% and walking or cycling at 2.5%. Working from home is 7.1%, so most routines still depend on road access to services in the wider Ulverstone area. Low density at 248.6 people per sq km and an 18.16 sq km footprint support a house-and-yard lifestyle, but IRSAD decile 1 signals lower socio-economic advantage than higher-ranked Tasmanian suburbs.
Drive
83.9%
Public Transport
0.9%
Walk / Cycle
2.5%
Work from Home
7.1%
Population Forecast
+0.48%/yr
(+22 people/yr)
EstablishedGrowth is slow and aging-led rather than expansion-led. The forecast trend is 0.48% a year, with the migration driver labelled Balanced, and the 10-year population-change signal is 4.2%. The shift trajectory is Aging: senior share is up 6.9 points, higher than the 4.4-point fall in young share and the 3.7-point fall in working share. Rent growth of 40.4% has run well ahead of real income growth of 5.5%, so affordability moved from 41.0 to 44.4 and is classed as Worsening. The separate gentrification score is 0, Not gentrifying.
Historical + Forecast
Hamilton-Perry + Holt smoothing on ERP 2001-2025
Age Cohort Forecast
Primary Driver
Balanced
Net Overseas / yr
+9
Net Internal / yr
+47
Gentrification Signal
Not gentrifying
National Ranking iPercentile rank among ~15,000 AU suburbs. 90% = higher than 90% of suburbs
How West Ulverstone compares to ~15,000 Australian suburbs
Frequently Asked Questions
Is West Ulverstone a good suburb to live in?
It can suit buyers who value detached homes, lower density and a settled population. The median age is 48, 89.9% of dwellings are separate houses, and 79.9% of residents stayed at the same address, so the profile is more established than high-turnover markets.
What is the median house price in West Ulverstone?
A current suburb-level median house price is not available. Use recent settled sales rather than a single headline figure; carrying-cost clues show $1,213 median monthly mortgages and 26.5% mortgage-to-income costs, higher than the 22.7% rent-to-income figure.
What schools are in West Ulverstone?
There are 0 schools recorded within West Ulverstone itself. Households should compare nearby options outside the suburb boundary and the daily trip, especially because 83.9% of workers drive while public transport commuting is only 0.9%.
Is West Ulverstone safe?
A suburb-level crime rate is not available, so safety should be checked through current police updates and on-site inspections. Stability is a useful context point: 79.9% of residents stayed at the same address, compared with turnover of 20.1%.
Is West Ulverstone good for property investment?
It may suit patient income investors more than rapid-growth speculators. Rent is $240 a week, renters make up 25.9% of households, vacancy is 6.3%, and the annual growth trend is 0.48%, so pricing needs discipline.
How is West Ulverstone's population changing?
West Ulverstone's population is changing slowly rather than rapidly. The suburb has 4,515 residents today, while forecast growth runs at 0.48% a year and the 10-year change signal is 4.2%. The trajectory is Aging, with senior share up 6.9 points.
How to read these comparisons
Phrases like "above the national average" reference the unweighted median across Australian suburbs with more than 1,000 residents, not population-weighted national figures. Suburb-level medians are more useful for ranking suburbs against each other; ABS census headlines are population-weighted (so dominated by Sydney and Melbourne) and can read very differently.
Current baseline (refreshed 2026-05-10): median age 40, university-educated 30.1%, born overseas 21.6%, average household size 2.5 people.
Data sources: ABS 2021 Census (demographics, income, tenure), state education open registers (school locations), state Crime Statistics agencies (offences), council DA portals (development applications). Population forecasts use a Hamilton-Perry cohort model calibrated to ABS ERP.
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