Bayswater vs Mount LawleyTwo Perth suburbs compared for a home loan
Bayswater (WA 6053) is approximately 7 km north-east of the Perth CBD, on the Swan River. Mount Lawley (WA 6050) is approximately 3 km north-east of the Perth CBD. At the 2021 Census, Bayswater had 15,288 residents with a median age of 39, and Mount Lawley had 11,328 residents with a median age of 38.
In both suburbs the most common occupied dwelling was separate houses. Flats and apartments made up 4% of occupied dwellings in Bayswater and 28% in Mount Lawley, while 28% of Bayswater households rented compared with 37% in Mount Lawley. These differences matter for finance, because lenders assess apartments, strata buildings and houses on land differently.
Both suburbs are in the same state, so transfer duty is calculated on the same scale and the difference in upfront cost comes from the purchase price. The panel below applies that scale, and an estimate of lenders mortgage insurance, to the prices you enter.
WA 6053 · Inner north-east Perth
Bayswater
Bayswater is a riverside Perth suburb of character and post-war houses on larger lots, with a rebuilt station where three train lines meet.
City of Bayswater. Approximately 7 km north-east of the Perth CBD, on the Swan River.
Read the full Bayswater guideWA 6050 · Inner northern suburbs of Perth
Mount Lawley
Mount Lawley is an inner northern Perth suburb of character homes and flats around Beaufort Street, split between three councils with heritage controls.
City of Stirling, City of Vincent and City of Bayswater. Approximately 3 km north-east of the Perth CBD.
Read the full Mount Lawley guide
What buying in Bayswater and Mount Lawley would mean for the loan
The difference between two suburbs is usually a difference in price, and price drives the deposit, the transfer duty, any lenders mortgage insurance and the repayment. Enter the prices you are seeing and the panel works out each of those for Bayswater and Mount Lawley.
Your prices and deposit
Enter the price you are seeing in each suburb. BorrowWise does not quote prices, so the comparison uses yours.
Enter a price for Bayswater to see the repayment, transfer duty and upfront cash.
Enter a price for Mount Lawley to see the repayment, transfer duty and upfront cash.
Warning: The interest rate used here is an example only. It is not a comparison rate and is not a rate offered by any lender, and it does not include fees and charges. Different rates, terms, fees or loan amounts will give a different result.
Estimates only. Repayments assume a principal and interest loan at a constant rate, which is an assumption and not a current market rate. Transfer duty is indicative for established homes, first home buyer relief depends on eligibility, and upfront cash includes an allowance of $3,000 for conveyancing and inspections. Lenders mortgage insurance is an estimate and is added to the loan. A lender makes its own assessment.
Bayswater and Mount Lawley: Census profile compared
Figures are from the 2021 Census, so rents, repayments and incomes have moved since. They are most useful for comparing one suburb with another and with Australia as a whole.
| Measure | Bayswater | Mount Lawley |
|---|---|---|
| People and households | ||
| Residents | 15,288 | 11,328 |
| Median ageAustralia 38 | 39 | 38 |
| Average household sizeAustralia 2.5 | 2.4 | 2.2 |
| Median household income, weeklyAustralia $1,746 | $2,037 | $2,108 |
| Housing costs at the 2021 Census | ||
| Median rent, weeklyAustralia $375 | $350 | $350 |
| Median mortgage repayment, monthlyAustralia $1,863 | $2,000 | $2,200 |
| Who owns and who rents | ||
| Households rentingAustralia 31% | 28% | 37% |
| Owned with a mortgageAustralia 35% | 42% | 32% |
| Owned outrightAustralia 31% | 28% | 30% |
| Types of home | ||
| Separate housesAustralia 72% | 80% | 53% |
| Townhouses, terraces and semi-detachedAustralia 13% | 16% | 20% |
| Flats and apartmentsAustralia 14% | 4% | 28% |
| Homes with two bedrooms or fewer | 24% | 42% |
| Homes with four bedrooms or more | 28% | 25% |
| Dwellings unoccupied on Census night | 9% | 10% |
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 Census (CC BY 4.0). Tenure shares exclude households that did not state their tenure. Dwelling shares are of occupied private dwellings.
Home loan considerations in Bayswater and Mount Lawley
Lenders treat houses on land, townhouses and apartments differently, and some apply extra conditions to small apartments, high-density buildings or particular postcodes. These are the points each guide raises.
Bayswater
- Upgraders
- First home buyers
- Investors
- Downsizers
- Valuers assess an older house on a subdividable lot as it stands, not on a projected development outcome, which matters for buyers paying for potential.
- Building a rear dwelling usually requires a construction loan drawn in progress payments against a fixed-price contract and an as-if-complete valuation.
- Western Australian contracts carry no mandatory cooling-off period, so finance and inspection conditions need to be written into the offer before it is signed.
- Off-the-plan apartments in the town centre are valued at completion, and some lenders limit exposure to a single building or apply minimum floor areas.
- Property within the mapped Swan River floodplain or a bush fire prone area may face additional building requirements and higher insurance premiums.
Mount Lawley
- Upgraders
- First home buyers
- Investors
- Downsizers
- Character retention and heritage controls limit demolition and alteration, which valuers take into account when assessing redevelopment potential.
- Planning rules differ between the Cities of Stirling, Vincent and Bayswater, so the applicable council should be confirmed before relying on any control.
- Renovations and extensions are usually funded through a construction loan with progress payments, which requires approvals and a fixed-price contract.
- Small one-bedroom flats may fall below the minimum internal floor area that some lenders and mortgage insurers accept.
- Western Australian contracts have no mandatory cooling-off period, so finance and inspection conditions need to be included in the offer.
- Individual character houses vary widely, so a valuation below the contract price is a possibility for buyers with small deposits.
Housing stock in Bayswater and Mount Lawley compared
Bayswater
- Character houses near the town centre
- Older houses in the streets first subdivided after the railway arrived, some within the Bayswater Character Protection Area or on the Heritage List.
- Post-war houses on larger lots
- Separate houses numbered 4,892 of the 6,111 occupied dwellings at the 2021 Census, many on lots coded R25 where subdivision depends on lot size.
- Survey-strata villas and townhouses
- Infill dwellings built behind or in place of original houses accounted for 980 occupied homes at the 2021 Census.
- Town centre and station precinct apartments
- A small but growing apartment stock, guided by the Bayswater Town Centre and Meltham Station Precinct structure plans.
Mount Lawley
- Character houses
- Federation and Colonial style brick and tile houses on large lots, most within the City of Stirling Heritage Protection Area.
- Older flats and apartments
- Flats and apartments made up 1,291 of the occupied dwellings counted at the 2021 Census, many of them small units in older blocks.
- Townhouses, villas and terraces
- Group dwellings dispersed through the suburb, particularly around Beaufort Street, accounted for 922 occupied homes at the 2021 Census.
Official sale price and rent figures for Bayswater and Mount Lawley
Only figures published free of charge by a government agency are shown. Where none is published the space is left empty rather than filled with an estimate. Each guide charts the full series.
Bayswater
No government agency publishes a free median sale price or rent series for Bayswater, so none is shown. A broker can supply recent comparable sales for a specific property as part of a free assessment.
Mount Lawley
No government agency publishes a free median sale price or rent series for Mount Lawley, so none is shown. A broker can supply recent comparable sales for a specific property as part of a free assessment.
Transport, schools and amenities in Bayswater and Mount Lawley
Bayswater
Transport
- Bayswater Station (train)
- Meltham Station (train)
- Bayswater Station bus interchange (bus)
- Tonkin Highway (road)
- Garratt Road Bridge (road)
Schools and campuses
- Bayswater Primary School (primary, government)
- Hillcrest Primary School (primary, government)
- St Columba's School (primary, catholic)
- Durham Road School (special, government)
- John Forrest Secondary College (Morley) (secondary, government)
- Chisholm Catholic College (Bedford) (secondary, catholic)
Amenities
- Bayswater Riverside Gardens
- Eric Singleton Bird Sanctuary
- Baigup Wetlands
- Gobba Lake
- Bayswater Library
Mount Lawley
Transport
- Mount Lawley Station (train)
- Beaufort Street (road)
- Walcott Street (road)
Schools and campuses
- Mount Lawley Senior High School (secondary, government)
- Mount Lawley Primary School (primary, government)
- Perth College (combined, independent)
- St Paul's Primary School (primary, catholic)
- North Metropolitan TAFE, Mount Lawley campus (tertiary, tafe)
Amenities
- Mount Lawley Hospital
- Beaufort Street town centre
- Astor Theatre
- Hamer Park
- Mount Lawley Bowling Club
School listings show name, level and sector only. Enrolment areas change, so confirm eligibility for a specific address with the school or the Western Australia education department.
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Request a free assessment: Bayswater or Mount Lawley
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