Mackenzie vs Willawong

The median house price is $1.8M in Mackenzie and $1.8M in Willawong, so Mackenzie is the cheaper entry point, with Willawong houses about 1% dearer.

For units, Mackenzie sits at a median of $920K against $460K in Willawong, which makes Willawong the more affordable unit market and Mackenzie the pricier one.

Over the past year house prices moved +11.8% in Mackenzie and +8.1% in Willawong, so recent momentum favours Mackenzie, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Looking back three years, Mackenzie houses are +34.6% and Willawong houses +62.7%, so Willawong has compounded faster than Mackenzie over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 0.8% in Willawong and 3.6% in Mackenzie, so landlords in Willawong face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Mackenzie is the bigger suburb, with a population of 2,336 against 145, roughly 16 times the size of Willawong; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

In short: Mackenzie for a lower purchase price, Mackenzie for recent price momentum, Willawong for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.