Karrinyup suburb profile: What are its unique selling points and is it a good place to live?

LIVING IN: Karrinyup

Population: 9886

Distance from Perth CBD: 13km north-west

Median House Price: $1.34 million

Median Unit Price: $950,000

Crime: 888 offences (2024)

Karrinyup is perhaps best known for its enormous shopping centre. But it also has the only golf course in WA to have hosted an Australian Open.

The suburb has become famous as the home of Karrinyup Shopping Centre, which has recently been renovated and hosts an array of retail outlets, restaurants and a plethora of amenities.

It has had a number of incarnations since construction in 1973, and in 2018 an $800 million redevelopment got under way. The centre is now 114,000sqm and has a 10-screen Hoyts cinema complex, a Goodlife Health Club and more than 20 restaurants.

Maria Gonzalez is a consultant at Realty Lane, which has an office in the centre.

“The redevelopment has put Karrinyup on the map, lifting the prestige and reputation of this beautiful suburb,” she said.

But escaping the buzz around the centre is easy, with a third of the suburb’s 6.6sqkm land area given over to nature reserves or bushland, and it has two golf courses, Hamersley Public Golf Course on Marmion Ave, and Lake Karrinyup Country Club, off North Beach Road.

Lake Karrinyup is popular for functions and has a high-end restaurant overlooking the 18-hole course, which has hosted the Australian Open golf tournament four times, with the first in 1952.

Only 3km west of Karrinyup is the coastal strip that’s home to Trigg and Scarborough beaches. Between the lively Scarborough and laid-back Trigg, residents are spoilt for choice.

Grabbing lunch at Canteen or dinner and drinks at the Island Market in Trigg is a common choice for Karrinyup locals seeking a beachside dining experience, Mrs Gonzalez said.

The name Karrinyup was derived from Careniup, a Noongar name for a nearby swamp, which means “the place where bush kangaroos graze”.

In 1844 an early settler recorded the swamp to the east of Karrinyup as Careniup Swamp. In 1929, the foundation committee developing the Lake Karrinyup Country Club golf course decided to change the spelling.

The area was subdivided by Charles Stoneman in 1904 and roads were built. The suburb did not really begin to grow at a rapid pace until 1984, when construction of Mitchell Freeway boosted its development, and that of nearby Stirling.

Karrinyup is bounded by North Beach Road to the north, Marmion Avenue to the west, Newborough Street to the south and Huntriss Road to the east.

The Karrinyup bus station, also at Karrinyup Shopping Centre, provides a service to Stirling train station. From here it is a 14-minute train ride to the city.

The suburb has three State primary schools — Karrinyup, Deanmore and Newborough — and a private high school, St Mary’s Anglican Girls’ School. St Mary’s was built in 1921 in West Perth and relocated to Karrinyup in 1961.

It is common for residents to send their kids to the highly regarded Carine High School, Newman College or Hale School.

Mrs Gonzalez describes the houses in Karrinyup as “relatively modern”, but says a prolonged period of development resulted in a range of styles from various eras.

Many of the homes within the suburb are two storeys and, according to the 2021 census, 51.1 per cent of homes have four or more bedrooms.

Houses make up 87 per cent of the suburb and apartments just1.6 per cent. Just over 76 per cent of houses are occupied by families. Couple families without children make up 34 per cent and couple families with children 53 per cent.

Houses in Karrinyup last an average of 16 days on the market before selling and units 19 days, according to Real Estate Institute of WA data.