The Plains vs Paynedale

Paynedale is the younger of the two, with a median age of 40 against 48 in The Plains. In both, the large majority of households own their home, the large majority of homes are detached houses, and most households are couple families.

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

  • The Plains carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 40/100)
  • Paynedale has more separate houses rather than flats (100% vs 86%)

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

First-home buyers

The Plains

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • leaves households under less mortgage stress (14% vs 37%)

Weighs mortgage stress.

Renters

Paynedale

ahead on the one thing that separates them

  • has cheaper rent ($0/wk vs $240/wk)

Weighs rent.

Commuting to the city

The Plains

ahead on 2 of the 3 things we measure here

  • has a shorter drive in (134 min vs 157 min)
  • sits closer to the CBD (198.1 km vs 213.4 km)

Weighs distance, drive time, and walkability.

Downsizers and retirees

The Plains

ahead on 2 of the 4 things we measure here

  • has more residents already 65 and over (12% vs 5%)
  • carries lower crime risk (26/100 vs 40/100)

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

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

The Plains Paynedale
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.

The Plains Paynedale
Walkability 0 / 0
The Plains — Walkability: 0/100 Paynedale — Walkability: 0/100
Safety 74 / 60
The Plains — Safety: 74/100 Paynedale — Safety: 60/100
Low fire risk 53 / 36
The Plains — Low fire risk: 53/100 Paynedale — Low fire risk: 36/100
Low flood risk 100 / 100
The Plains — Low flood risk: 100/100 Paynedale — Low flood risk: 100/100

Demographics

The Plains rents higher ($240/wk vs $0/wk); The Plains has higher household incomes ($142,948 vs $97,500).

The Plains Paynedale
Population 52 60
+15% vs other
Population trend (2016 → 2021) +23.8% +27.7%
Median age 48 40
Median household income $142,948/yr
+32% vs other
 $97,500/yr
Median weekly rent $240/wk
(not reported on the other side)
 —

Age profile

Share of residents in each band, 2021 Census.

The Plains Paynedale
0-4 5.8% / 20.0%
The Plains — 0-4: 5.8% Paynedale — 0-4: 20.0%
5-14 25.0% / 11.7%
The Plains — 5-14: 25.0% Paynedale — 5-14: 11.7%
15-19 7.7% / —
The Plains — 15-19: 7.7% Paynedale — 15-19: not among its largest
20-24 — / —
The Plains — 20-24: not among its largest Paynedale — 20-24: not among its largest
25-34 7.7% / 20.0%
The Plains — 25-34: 7.7% Paynedale — 25-34: 20.0%
35-44 7.7% / 11.7%
The Plains — 35-44: 7.7% Paynedale — 35-44: 11.7%
45-54 17.3% / 11.7%
The Plains — 45-54: 17.3% Paynedale — 45-54: 11.7%
55-64 23.1% / 21.7%
The Plains — 55-64: 23.1% Paynedale — 55-64: 21.7%
65-74 11.5% / 5.0%
The Plains — 65-74: 11.5% Paynedale — 65-74: 5.0%
75-84 — / —
The Plains — 75-84: not among its largest Paynedale — 75-84: not among its largest
85+ — / —
The Plains — 85+: not among its largest Paynedale — 85+: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (25.0%).

Who lives together

Household composition, 2021 Census.

The Plains 70.0% couple families
The Plains — Couple Families: 70.0% The Plains — Lone Person: 30.0%
Paynedale 70.0% couple families
Paynedale — Couple Families: 70.0% Paynedale — Lone Person: 30.0%
Couple Families Lone Person

Who owns and who rents

Occupied private dwellings by tenure, 2021 Census.

The Plains 23.1% renting
The Plains — Owned Outright: 34.6% The Plains — Mortgage: 42.3% The Plains — Renting: 23.1%
Paynedale 0.0% renting
Paynedale — Owned Outright: 47.8% Paynedale — Mortgage: 52.2% Paynedale — Renting: 0.0%
Owned outright Mortgage Renting

What people live in

Occupied private dwellings by structure, 2021 Census.

The Plains 86.4% houses
The Plains — Houses: 86.4% The Plains — Townhouses: 18.2%
Paynedale 100.0% houses
Paynedale — Houses: 100.0% Paynedale — Townhouses: 0.0%
Houses Townhouses

Qualifications

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

The Plains Paynedale
Bachelor Degree 9.6% / 16.7%
The Plains — Bachelor Degree: 9.6% Paynedale — Bachelor Degree: 16.7%
Certificate III & IV 11.5% / 13.3%
The Plains — Certificate III & IV: 11.5% Paynedale — Certificate III & IV: 13.3%
Advanced Diploma / Diploma — / 11.7%
The Plains — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: not among its largest Paynedale — Advanced Diploma / Diploma: 11.7%

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (16.7%).

Development activity

The Plains Paynedale
New dwellings approved 226
across Capel
 35
across Donnybrook-Balingup
Approvals change year on year +52% +50%

Ranking within WA

The Plains Paynedale
House price —
same for both
Income Higher than 94% of WA Higher than 63% of WA
Schools —
same for both
Walkability Higher than 4% of WA Higher than 17% of WA
Affordability —
same for both
EV adoption Higher than 46% of WA Higher than 42% of WA
NBN connectivity Higher than 59% of WA Higher than 38% of WA

Liveability

The Plains Paynedale
Grade —
same for both
Score —
same for both
Socio-economic band mid-range socio-economic
decile 6/10
 very advantaged area
decile 9/10

Risk profile

Paynedale carries more crime risk (40 vs 26); Paynedale carries more bushfire risk (64 vs 47).

The Plains Paynedale
Bushfire Moderate
47/100
 Moderate
64/100
Crime Low
26/100
 Moderate
40/100
Flood None
0/100
same for both
Coastal erosion None
0/100
same for both
Aircraft noise None
0/100
same for both
Industrial facilities nearby 1
within 5 km
 0
within 5 km

Schools

The Plains Paynedale
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

The Plains Paynedale
Waterways 0 2

Mobility

Paynedale sits further from the CBD (213.4 km vs 198.1 km).

The Plains Paynedale
Walkability score 0/100
same for both
Distance to Perth 198.1 km 213.4 km
+8% vs other
Drive time (normal traffic) 134 min 157 min
Electric vehicle share 0.4%
postcode 6237
 0.4%
postcode 6239
Rooftop solar per 100 dwellings 76
postcode 6237
 75
postcode 6239

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.

The Plains Paynedale
Car (driver) 58.6% / 76.2%
The Plains — Car (driver): 58.6% Paynedale — Car (driver): 76.2%
Worked from Home 17.2% / 23.8%
The Plains — Worked from Home: 17.2% Paynedale — Worked from Home: 23.8%
Walked Only 24.1% / —
The Plains — Walked Only: 24.1% Paynedale — Walked Only: not among its largest

Bars are drawn against the largest share shown (76.2%).

Setting

The Plains Paynedale
Elevation 56 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
 131 m
above sea level, at the suburb centre
Distance to the ocean 16.0 km 23.9 km

NBN connectivity

The Plains Paynedale
Connectivity score 30/100 16/100
Most common technology Fixed wireless Satellite (Sky Muster)
Full-fibre (FTTP) share 0%
31 premises
 0%
24 premises

Climate

The Plains Paynedale
Annual rainfall 851 mm
same for both
Summer max (Jan) 30.9°C
same for both
Winter min (Jul) 6.7°C
same for both

Council rates

The Plains Paynedale
Average residential rate $2,343/yr $2,680/yr
Council Capel Donnybrook-Balingup

Federal electorate

The Plains Paynedale
Division Forrest O'connor
Member Ben Small Rick Wilson
Party Liberal
same for both

First Home Owner Grant

The Plains Paynedale
Grant amount $10,000
same for both
Property price cap $800,000
same for both
Eligibility New
same for both

Tags

The Plains

Family Rural

Paynedale

Family Rural Young Families

More comparisons

Other comparisons with The Plains

The Plains vs Boyanup The Plains vs Capel River The Plains vs Elgin The Plains vs Gwindinup

Other comparisons with Paynedale

Paynedale vs Donnybrook Paynedale vs Argyle Paynedale vs Upper Capel Paynedale vs Capel River Paynedale vs Gwindinup
Full data on The Plains Full data on Paynedale
Unlock full address-level data — $29/month

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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