Rockingham vs Thornlie
Property investment comparison - Rockingham, WA 6168 vs Thornlie, WA 6108
Head-to-head across core investment metrics: Rockingham wins 1, Thornlie wins 3. The better choice depends on whether you're optimising for cash flow, growth, affordability, or liquidity, the table below highlights the winner on each metric.
| Metric | Rockingham | Thornlie |
|---|---|---|
| Median house price | $855K | $865K |
| Median unit price | - | $555K |
| Gross rental yield (houses) | 3.80% | 4.34% |
| Gross rental yield (units) | - | 5.45% |
| 1-year house growth | +16.3% | +22.2%estimate |
| 3-year house growth | +74.1% | - |
| Vacancy rate | 1.1% | 0.5% |
| Population | 15,312 | 23,665 |
Rockingham vs Thornlie: what the numbers say
The median house price is $855K in Rockingham and $865K in Thornlie, so Rockingham is the cheaper entry point, with Thornlie houses about 1% dearer.
On cash flow, Thornlie leads: houses there return a gross rental yield of 4.34%, compared with 3.80% in Rockingham, a gap of 0.54 percentage points.
Over the past year house prices moved +16.3% in Rockingham and +22.2% in Thornlie (an estimate), so recent momentum favours Thornlie, although both suburbs recorded growth.
Rental vacancy is 0.5% in Thornlie and 1.1% in Rockingham, so landlords in Thornlie face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.
Thornlie is the bigger suburb, with a population of 23,665 against 15,312, larger than Rockingham; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.
In short: Thornlie for rental income, Rockingham for a lower purchase price, Thornlie for recent price momentum, Thornlie for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.
Keep exploring
- National investment guide - top suburbs across every metric
- Take the suburb finder quiz - 5 questions to match your goals
- How our investment score works
- Property investment glossary - every term defined
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