Suburb / Locality · Area profile
Cairnlea
4 km²
Far more people are born overseas in Cairnlea than in the rest of Victoria, with 51.4% of the population arriving from other countries. This is a young and growing community where the typical resident is just 36. It is largely a residential area for families, with many households consisting of four or more people living in large, detached homes. The neighbourhood is very walkable, with almost every home located within a short stroll of parks, schools, and health services.
Cairnlea has many young families but fewer schools per child than most areas.
Families are well catered for: 40 schools serve Cairnlea.
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The area is notably younger than most, with a typical age of 36 and a higher proportion of children under 15 (19.2%) compared to the state. Conversely, seniors aged 65 and over make up only 10.3% of the population, which is well below the national figure.
Cairnlea is highly multicultural, with 51.4% of residents born overseas, far above the national figure of 27.7%. The most common ancestries are Vietnamese (30.0%) and Chinese (12.4%).
Language diversity is very high, as 69.2% of people use a language other than English at home—far above the 22.3% national average. This is reflected in the 15.1% of residents who speak little or no English, a figure far above the national average.
A small proportion of the community identifies as having no religion (21.6%), which is far below the figures for Victoria and Australia. The most common affiliations are Christianity (40.1%) and Buddhism (19.5%).
Residents are more likely to have finished Year 12 than those in most other areas. While 23% hold a bachelor degree or higher, this is well below the state average of 29.2%.
Typical household incomes are a little above the state and national figures at $2,062 per week. However, personal incomes are lower than the national figure, with 47.2% of people earning under $650 a week.
Long-term health and mental health conditions are much less common here than in most other areas. However, 6% of people need help with daily activities, which is about the same as the national figure.
Volunteering is among the lowest at this level, with only 7.3% of people volunteering, well below the national average of 14.1%. About 27% of people provide unpaid childcare, which is typical for the state.
There are 16 First Nations people in the area. Their typical household income is $2,624, which is far above the figures for Victoria and Australia.
Homes here are much larger than usual, with a typical size of 3.4 people. Only 10.6% of people live alone, which is far below the national figure of 25.6%.
The area consists mostly of separate houses (88.3%), with a huge 94.1% of homes having three or more bedrooms. Renting is far less common here than across the state, at only 15%.
Most people drive to work, though 19% work from home. The area has a high number of public transport stops and routes, and 93.8% of homes are within a 10-minute walk of a stop.
The community is relatively stable, as the proportion of people who moved in the last five years (23.4%) is far below the national average of 40.7%.
The unemployment rate is 6.6%, which is a little above the national figure. Common industries for local workers include retail trade, health care, and manufacturing.
Cairnlea is very walkable, with 96% of homes having a 15-minute-city walkshed. This is far above the state average, with easy access to groceries, health services, and schools.