Alford vs Wallaroo Plain

In both, most households own their home and the large majority of homes are detached houses. In Alford, about half of households are people living alone. In Wallaroo Plain, the large majority of households are couple families. On these figures, Alford tends to suit families with children and older residents, while Wallaroo Plain suits couples.

Which one suits you?

There is no overall winner — the suburb that suits a family with school-age kids is routinely the wrong one for someone commuting into the city. So each of these answers its own question, against a checklist you can see, using the same figures in the tables below.

Families with school-age kids

They split

one each way, out of the 6 things we measure here

  • Alford carries lower crime risk (53/100 vs 94/100)
  • Wallaroo Plain is already more of a family suburb (100% vs 52%)

Weighs schools, house stock, crime, parks, childcare, and who already lives there.

First-home buyers

Alford

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (10% vs 44%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Wallaroo Plain

ahead on 3 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a bigger rental market to choose from (27% vs 13%)
  • has cheaper rent ($110/wk vs $200/wk)
  • leaves renters under less rental stress (10% vs 16%)

Weighs rent, rental stress, and how much is for rent.

Commuting to the city

Wallaroo Plain

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • sits closer to the CBD (164.4 km vs 170.5 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

Alford

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • has more residents already 65 and over (20% vs 8%)
  • carries lower crime risk (53/100 vs 94/100)

Weighs who already lives there, GPs, walkability, and crime.

Investors

Too close to call

Nothing among the 1 things we measure here separates them by enough to be worth acting on.

Weighs population growth.

Where they sit

Alford and Wallaroo Plain drawn to the same scale. Both outlines are shown together, so the map answers whether they share a border and how their areas compare.

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Hides rows where both suburbs match

Bars start at zero. Scores, risks and rankings are drawn against their full 0–100 range; other rows are drawn in proportion to the larger of the two.

Side by side, out of 100

Risks are inverted — shown as safety and low exposure — so a longer bar always means better.

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Walkability 0 / 0
Alford — Walkability: 0/100 Wallaroo Plain — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 47 / 6
Alford — Safety: 47/100 Wallaroo Plain — Safety: 6/100
Low fire risk 90 / 82
Alford — Low fire risk: 90/100 Wallaroo Plain — Low fire risk: 82/100

Demographics

Alford has more residents (159 vs 51); Alford rents higher ($200/wk vs $110/wk).

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Population 159
+68% vs other
 51
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +0.6% +2.0%
Median age 47 45
Median household income $66,872/yr
+13% vs other
 $58,500/yr
Median weekly rent $200/wk
+45% vs other
 $110/wk

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

Alford Wallaroo Plain
0-4 5.0% / —
Alford — 0-4: 5.0% Wallaroo Plain — 0-4: not among its largest
5-14 13.2% / 9.8%
Alford — 5-14: 13.2% Wallaroo Plain — 5-14: 9.8%
15-19 6.3% / 7.8%
Alford — 15-19: 6.3% Wallaroo Plain — 15-19: 7.8%
20-24 — / 15.7%
Alford — 20-24: not among its largest Wallaroo Plain — 20-24: 15.7%
25-34 11.3% / 7.8%
Alford — 25-34: 11.3% Wallaroo Plain — 25-34: 7.8%
35-44 8.8% / 9.8%
Alford — 35-44: 8.8% Wallaroo Plain — 35-44: 9.8%
45-54 20.8% / 33.3%
Alford — 45-54: 20.8% Wallaroo Plain — 45-54: 33.3%
55-64 15.7% / 19.6%
Alford — 55-64: 15.7% Wallaroo Plain — 55-64: 19.6%
65-74 11.9% / 7.8%
Alford — 65-74: 11.9% Wallaroo Plain — 65-74: 7.8%
75-84 8.2% / —
Alford — 75-84: 8.2% Wallaroo Plain — 75-84: not among its largest
85+ — / —
Alford — 85+: not among its largest Wallaroo Plain — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (33.3%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

Alford 35.4% couple families
Alford — Couple Families: 35.4% Alford — Lone Person: 47.9% Alford — One Parent Families: 16.7%
Wallaroo Plain 100.0% couple families
Wallaroo Plain — Couple Families: 100.0% Wallaroo Plain — Lone Person: 0.0% Wallaroo Plain — One Parent Families: 0.0%
Couple Families Lone Person One Parent Families

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

Alford 13.3% renting
Alford — Owned Outright: 66.7% Alford — Mortgage: 20.0% Alford — Renting: 13.3%
Wallaroo Plain 26.7% renting
Wallaroo Plain — Owned Outright: 40.0% Wallaroo Plain — Mortgage: 33.3% Wallaroo Plain — Renting: 26.7%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

Alford 100.0% houses
Alford — Houses: 100.0%
Wallaroo Plain 100.0% houses
Wallaroo Plain — Houses: 100.0%
Houses

Qualifications

Highest non-school qualification, residents 15+, 2021 Census.

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Certificate III & IV 19.5% / 25.5%
Alford — Certificate III & IV: 19.5% Wallaroo Plain — Certificate III & IV: 25.5%
Bachelor Degree 5.0% / 15.7%
Alford — Bachelor Degree: 5.0% Wallaroo Plain — Bachelor Degree: 15.7%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma 6.3% / 5.9%
Alford — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 6.3% Wallaroo Plain — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 5.9%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.5%).

Property market

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Median house price $320,000 —
Median unit price —
same for both
Median land price —
same for both

Zoning mix

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Rural and farming 100% 98%
Environmental 0% 2%
Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the suburb around it. Zones as at 2026-09.

Development activity

Alford Wallaroo Plain
New dwellings approved 29
across Barunga West
 232
across Copper Coast
Approvals change year on year +233% +142%

Ranking within SA

Alford Wallaroo Plain
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 35% of SA Higher than 24% of SA
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 50% of SA Higher than 20% of SA
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption — Higher than 13% of SA
NBN connectivity Higher than 48% of SA Higher than 39% of SA

Liveability

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band below-average income
decile 3/10
 advantaged area
decile 8/10

Risk profile

Wallaroo Plain carries more crime risk (94 vs 53).

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Bushfire Low
10/100
 Low
18/100
Crime Moderate
53/100
 High
94/100
Flood —
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 0
within 5 km
same for both

Schools

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Inside the suburb 0
same for both
Rated above peers 0
same for both
Rated at peers 0
same for both
Rated below peers 0
same for both

Amenities in the suburb

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Cafes & restaurants 1 0

Mobility

Alford sits further from the CBD (170.5 km vs 164.4 km).

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Adelaide 170.5 km
+4% vs other
 164.4 km
Drive time (normal traffic) 120 min 122 min
Electric vehicle share 0.0%
postcode 5555
 0.1%
postcode 5556
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 75
postcode 5555
 69
postcode 5556

How people get to work

Method of travel on census day 2021 — which fell during COVID restrictions, so working from home is inflated and every travel mode understated.

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Car (driver) 88.9% / 80.8%
Alford — Car (driver): 88.9% Wallaroo Plain — Car (driver): 80.8%
Worked from Home 11.1% / 19.2%
Alford — Worked from Home: 11.1% Wallaroo Plain — Worked from Home: 19.2%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (88.9%).

Setting

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Elevation 67 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 42 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 10.3 km 5.5 km

NBN connectivity

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Connectivity score 29/100 27/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless
same for both
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
83 premises
 0%
40 premises

Council rates

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Average residential rate $1,540/yr $1,817/yr
Council Barunga West Copper Coast

Federal electorate

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Division Grey
same for both
Member Tom Venning
same for both
Party Liberal
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

Alford Wallaroo Plain
Grant amount $15,000
same for both
Property price cap —
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

Alford

Quiet Rural

Wallaroo Plain

Professionals Rural Students

More comparisons

Other comparisons with Alford

Alford vs Port Broughton Alford vs Bute Alford vs Tickera Alford vs Willamulka Alford vs Ward Hill

Other comparisons with Wallaroo Plain

Wallaroo Plain vs Wallaroo Wallaroo Plain vs Kadina Wallaroo Plain vs North Beach Wallaroo Plain vs Tickera Wallaroo Plain vs Willamulka
Full data on Alford Full data on Wallaroo Plain
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Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.

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