Mawson Lakes vs NorwoodTwo Adelaide suburbs compared for a home loan
Mawson Lakes (SA 5095) is approximately 12 km north of the Adelaide CBD. Norwood (SA 5067) is approximately 4 km east of the Adelaide CBD. At the 2021 Census, Mawson Lakes had 13,794 residents with a median age of 33, and Norwood had 6,354 residents with a median age of 40.
The most common occupied dwelling was separate houses in Mawson Lakes and townhouses and terraces in Norwood. Flats and apartments made up 15% of occupied dwellings in Mawson Lakes and 15% in Norwood, while 39% of Mawson Lakes households rented compared with 45% in Norwood. 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.
SA 5095 · Adelaide's northern suburbs
Mawson Lakes
Mawson Lakes is a master-planned suburb in Adelaide's north with a rail interchange, university campus, technology park and modern housing.
City of Salisbury. Approximately 12 km north of the Adelaide CBD.
Read the full Mawson Lakes guideSA 5067 · Adelaide's inner east
Norwood
Norwood is an inner-eastern Adelaide suburb centred on The Parade, with historic cottages, many townhouses and units, and a large rental market.
City of Norwood Payneham and St Peters. Approximately 4 km east of the Adelaide CBD.
Read the full Norwood guide
What buying in Mawson Lakes and Norwood 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 Mawson Lakes and Norwood.
Your prices and deposit
Enter the price you are seeing in each suburb. BorrowWise does not quote prices, so the comparison uses yours.
- Loan amount
- $804,220
- Loan to value ratio
- 88.8%
- Transfer duty, South Australia
- $42,780
- Lenders mortgage insurance
- $14,220
- Upfront cash needed
- $145,780
- Loan amount
- $1,980,000
- Loan to value ratio
- 95.2%
- Transfer duty, South Australia
- $108,230
- Lenders mortgage insurance
- Deposit under 5%
- Upfront cash needed
- $211,230
- At these prices, Norwood costs $7,125 more a month than Mawson Lakes and needs $65,450 more cash upfront.
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.
Mawson Lakes and Norwood: 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 | Mawson Lakes | Norwood |
|---|---|---|
| People and households | ||
| Residents | 13,794 | 6,354 |
| Median ageAustralia 38 | 33 | 40 |
| Average household sizeAustralia 2.5 | 2.6 | 2.0 |
| Median household income, weeklyAustralia $1,746 | $1,940 | $1,752 |
| Housing costs at the 2021 Census | ||
| Median rent, weeklyAustralia $375 | $360 | $390 |
| Median mortgage repayment, monthlyAustralia $1,863 | $1,659 | $2,000 |
| Who owns and who rents | ||
| Households rentingAustralia 31% | 39% | 45% |
| Owned with a mortgageAustralia 35% | 42% | 21% |
| Owned outrightAustralia 31% | 17% | 31% |
| Types of home | ||
| Separate housesAustralia 72% | 66% | 35% |
| Townhouses, terraces and semi-detachedAustralia 13% | 18% | 50% |
| Flats and apartmentsAustralia 14% | 15% | 15% |
| Homes with two bedrooms or fewer | 23% | 50% |
| Homes with four bedrooms or more | 29% | 10% |
| Dwellings unoccupied on Census night | 6% | 11% |
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 Mawson Lakes and Norwood
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.
Mawson Lakes
- First home buyers
- Investors
- Upgraders
- Small, student-oriented or converted-office apartments may not meet the minimum floor area or security requirements of some lenders.
- Units above commercial premises can be treated as mixed-use security, with a lower maximum loan-to-value ratio.
- Community and strata corporation levies are counted as a living cost in serviceability assessments and reduce borrowing capacity.
- First home buyers with small deposits are likely to need lenders mortgage insurance or a place in the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme.
- Registered encumbrances and aircraft noise exposure near Parafield Airport are matters a valuer or conveyancer may raise.
Norwood
- Upgraders
- Investors
- Downsizers
- First home buyers
- Auction purchases carry no cooling-off period or finance condition in South Australia, so pre-approval and inspections need to be completed before bidding.
- Valuations of character homes can vary because renovation quality, allotment size and parking differ widely between otherwise similar properties.
- Heritage listing or the Historic Area Overlay can limit demolition and alterations, which valuers and lenders take into account for renovation lending.
- Older strata units may have low sinking fund balances, and levies are counted in serviceability assessments.
- Apartments above commercial premises and very small units may attract lower maximum loan-to-value ratios with some lenders.
Housing stock in Mawson Lakes and Norwood compared
Mawson Lakes
- Modern detached houses
- Homes built since the late 1990s on moderate allotments; 3,362 separate houses were counted at the 2021 Census.
- Terraces and townhouses
- Narrow-lot and rear-lane dwellings, often on community title, located close to the town centre and lakes.
- Apartments
- Town centre buildings, including units above shops and some converted offices, popular with students and investors.
Norwood
- Townhouses, maisonettes and row dwellings
- The largest category, at 1,465 of the occupied dwellings counted at the 2021 Census, spanning historic row cottages and modern infill.
- Character cottages and villas
- Nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century stone and brick houses, many within the Historic Area Overlay.
- Home units and apartments
- Mid-century strata units in small groups and newer apartments on and near The Parade.
Official sale price and rent figures for Mawson Lakes and Norwood
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.
Mawson Lakes
- Median house price, 2025 Q1
- $890,000
- Median weekly rent, 3 bedroom house, 2024 Q4
- $600
- Median weekly rent, 2 bedroom flat/unit, 2024 Q4
- $483
Source: Office of the Valuer-General, Government of South Australia (published by the Department for Housing and Urban Development on Data SA); SA Housing Trust (SA Housing Authority), from Consumer and Business Services rental bond data.
Norwood
- Median house price, 2025 Q1
- $2,080,000
- Median weekly rent, houses (all bedrooms), 2024 Q4
- $668
- Median weekly rent, 2 bedroom flat/unit, 2024 Q4
- $575
Source: Office of the Valuer-General, Government of South Australia (published by the Department for Housing and Urban Development on Data SA); SA Housing Trust (SA Housing Authority), from Consumer and Business Services rental bond data.
Transport, schools and amenities in Mawson Lakes and Norwood
Mawson Lakes
Transport
- Mawson Interchange (train)
- Adelaide Metro buses (bus)
- Main North Road (road)
- Salisbury Highway (road)
- Parafield Airport (airport)
Schools and campuses
- Mawson Lakes School (primary, government)
- Endeavour College (secondary, independent)
- Adelaide University, Mawson Lakes Campus (tertiary, university)
Amenities
- Mawson Lakes town centre, Main Street
- Sir Douglas Mawson Lake
- Adelaide Planetarium
- Adelaide University Mawson Lakes Campus library
Norwood
Transport
- Adelaide Metro buses on The Parade (bus)
- The Parade (road)
- Portrush Road (road)
- Fullarton Road (road)
Schools and campuses
- Norwood Primary School (primary, government)
- St Joseph's Memorial School (primary, catholic)
Amenities
- The Parade
- Norwood Library
- Norwood Town Hall
- Norwood Swimming Centre
- Norwood Oval
School listings show name, level and sector only. Enrolment areas change, so confirm eligibility for a specific address with the school or the South Australia education department.
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