State Electorate · Area profile
Altona (Western Metropolitan)
78 km²
A huge proportion of people born overseas live in Altona (Western Metropolitan), with 45.2% arriving from other countries. This is a notably young community where the typical resident is 35, far below the national figure of 38. The area is largely made up of families with children, which is reflected in the high number of large homes and a growing population that has risen 14% since 2011. It is a well-qualified and higher-earning region with a strong presence of overseas-born residents.
An affluent area whose schools serve an equally well-off community.
A family-heavy area that's short on schools per child.
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Children under 15 make up 23.5% of the population, which is well above the national figure of 18.2%. Seniors are much less common here, with those aged 65 and over accounting for only 10.1%.
People born overseas make up 45.2% of the community, a figure far above the 27.7% national average. This has risen by 7.6 percentage points since 2011, with Indian and Chinese being the most common ancestries after English and Australian.
Language diversity is very high, with 43.3% of people using a language other than English at home. This is far above the national figure of 22.3% and has grown by 7.8 percentage points over the last decade.
While Christianity is the most common faith at 40.1%, those with no religion make up 31.0% of the area. This is well below the national figure of 38.9%, though the number of non-religious residents has risen 11 percentage points since 2011.
The community is highly qualified, with 34.8% of adults holding a bachelor degree or higher, well above the national figure of 26.3%. Year 12 completion is also far above the national average at 69.1%.
Typical weekly household income is $2,123, which is a little above the national figure of $1,746. High earners are common, with 28.5% of households earning $3,000 or more a week, a significant rise since 2011.
Residents generally report better health than most, with only 21.0% having a long-term health condition, which is well below the national figure of 27.7%. Mental health conditions are also much lower than the national average.
A high proportion of people provide unpaid childcare (34.0%), well above the national figure of 26.3%. However, volunteering is much lower than the national average at 9.7% and has fallen since 2011.
Families with children are the norm, with 68.6% of households being couples with children. Consequently, homes are larger than usual, with 2.9 people per home compared to the national figure of 2.5.
Large homes are very common, with 86.9% having three or more bedrooms, far above the national figure of 73.8%. However, only 24.1% of homes are owned outright, which is well below the national average.
Working from home is very common at 31.5%, far above the national figure of 21.0%. Most homes have two vehicles, and very few (4.4%) have no motor vehicle at all.
The area is quite dynamic, with 44.8% of people having moved in the last five years. Recent overseas arrivals also make up a high proportion of the population at 18.0%.
More adults are working or looking for work (67.3%) than in most other areas. Full-time employment is also well above the national figure at 64.1%.
The area is very walkable, with 95.1% of homes within a 10-minute walk of public transport. Almost every home (99.2%) is also within a 15-minute walk of a park.