Willagee, WA
By Lauren McCaleb · Reviewed by Dylan Duncan ·
Willagee is a suburb about fifteen kilometres south-south-west of central Perth, within the City of Melville, and it lends its name to the surrounding state electorate. The suburb is named after Willagee Swamp, recorded as the Noongar name for a wetland in the area that has since been reclaimed. It began in the early nineteen-fifties as a State Housing Commission estate known as Willagee Park, laid out to provide homes for workers in the new industrial district being developed nearby by the Fremantle City Council. Surveying and clearing started in 1950, and some of the first dwellings were prefabricated houses imported from Austria. Long characterised by demountable timber cottages, the suburb is today the subject of a sweeping redevelopment intended to renew its housing.
Around the national middle
Willagee is more socio-economically advantaged than about 48% of the 14,462 Australian suburbs we score, based on the ABS SEIFA index (raw score 984, where about 1000 is the national average).
A socio-economic measure from ABS Census data — not a measure of how good a suburb is to live in or visit. How we calculate this.
Willagee at a glance
- Population (2021)
- 5,447
- Median age
- 37
- Median weekly household income
- $1,660
- SEIFA score
- 984
- Coordinates
- -32.0514, 115.8048
Willagee demographics (2021 Census)
The figures below profile Willagee using the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census; every percentage is a share of a clearly stated Census count, so each one traces back to the source. At a glance, the largest age group is young adults (25–44) at 30%, 35% of homes are rented, and 27% of residents were born overseas.
Age profile
| Age group | People | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Children (0–14) | 1,035 | 19% |
| Youth (15–24) | 637 | 12% |
| Young adults (25–44) | 1,635 | 30% |
| Mid-life (45–64) | 1,235 | 23% |
| Seniors (65+) | 908 | 17% |
Share of the 5,450 people counted by age.
Housing and households
| Tenure | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Owned outright | 410 | 19% |
| Owned with a mortgage | 867 | 41% |
| Rented | 744 | 35% |
| Dwelling type | Dwellings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | 1,688 | 79% |
| Townhouses & semis | 396 | 19% |
| Flats & apartments | 41 | 2% |
Tenure and dwelling shares are of the roughly 2,129 occupied private dwellings in Willagee.
- Median weekly rent
- $283
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,967
- Average household size
- 2.3 people
- Median weekly family income
- $2,393
- Median weekly personal income
- $829
Community and culture
- Born overseas
- 1,381 (27%)
- Speaks a language other than English at home
- 707 (14%)
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
- 205 (4%)
Work and education
- Completed Year 12
- 2,589 (61%)
- Labour-force participation
- 62.3%
- Unemployment rate
- 5.2%
- Employed full-time
- 1,516
- Employed part-time
- 931
Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2021 (General Community Profile, by Suburb and Locality). © Australian Bureau of Statistics, released under CC BY 4.0. How we group bands and derive each share is set out on our methodology page.
Weather and climate in Willagee
Based on 2014–2023 records, the warmest month in Willagee is February (average daytime high around 29.9°C) and the coolest is August (around 17.6°C). The area receives roughly 624 mm of rain across the year.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29.8°C | 18.9°C | 23 mm |
| Feb | 29.9°C | 19°C | 20 mm |
| Mar | 28.2°C | 18.1°C | 40 mm |
| Apr | 24.2°C | 14.9°C | 42 mm |
| May | 20.7°C | 12°C | 78 mm |
| Jun | 18.2°C | 10.5°C | 99 mm |
| Jul | 17.2°C | 10.4°C | 112 mm |
| Aug | 17.6°C | 9.7°C | 97 mm |
| Sep | 19.1°C | 10.7°C | 47 mm |
| Oct | 21.6°C | 12.5°C | 37 mm |
| Nov | 25°C | 14.9°C | 21 mm |
| Dec | 28.1°C | 17.4°C | 8 mm |
Climate normals, 2014–2023 (Open-Meteo, ERA5 reanalysis).
Common questions about Willagee
Where is Willagee?
Willagee is a suburb of Western Australia, Australia.
What is the population of Willagee?
At the 2021 Census, Willagee had a population of about 5,447.
Is Willagee an advantaged area?
Willagee has an ABS SEIFA score of 984, where about 1000 is the national average — higher scores indicate greater relative socio-economic advantage. That gives it a Suburb Score of 48 out of 100 — more socio-economically advantaged than about 48% of Australian suburbs.
What is the weather like in Willagee?
Willagee has average daytime highs of about 23.3°C and overnight lows of about 14.1°C, with roughly 624 mm of rain across the year (based on 2014–2023 climate normals).
Nearby suburbs in Western Australia
More suburb guides in Western Australia
Other hand-written, cited guides — browse all guides.