QLD · Cairns Council
White Rock, 4868
Current weather
21.6°CMainly clear
77% humidity · 11.6 km/h wind · 25.4° / 17.5° today · 0.1 mm rain
Updated
Desirability score
- Green suburb
- High desirability
Suburb profile
White Rock offers a slower mid-sized suburb life in Cairns, with open surrounds and a close-knit community feel. Set in the wider countryside, it offers distance from the capital and a strong sense of place. The landscape itself is part of the lifestyle: open paddocks, big skies and room to breathe.
Families and commuters make up much of the community, with plenty of young families in the mix. Life here is grounded in local routine rather than big-city choice, and that is part of the charm. Pocket parks and green corners give residents room to get outside without leaving the neighbourhood.
Homes are relatively affordable, which helps families and first-time residents put down roots. The streetscape feels settled and established, with older homes giving the area a familiar, lived-in look.
On the desirability index, the suburb sits below average overall, mainly because local dining and lifestyle amenities and community and employment lag similar regional towns, despite relative strength in housing affordability and parks and green space. Limited access to some essential local services also trimmed the result.
Population
- Population
- 4,918
- Median age
- 37
- Median household income / week
- $1,396
- Dwelling vacancy
- 6.7%
- Unoccupied private dwellings
- 121 of 1,796
- Median monthly mortgage
- $1,343
- Employment rate
- 52.7%
- Dwelling mix (houses / semi / flats)
- 154 / 233 / 167
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Employment, household income and age diversity (2021 Census)
Data sources & freshness
- 2021 Census — General Community Profile — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 Census release
The 2026 Census runs in August 2026; suburb-level updates are expected from mid-2027.
Housing
- All types (Mar 2026)
- $560
Median weekly rent from Queensland RTA rental bond data. Figures can be unreliable where few bonds were lodged in the quarter.
Contributes to desirability score · Housing (15%) · Future Growth (7%)
Median price, rental yield and vacancy Recent price momentum
Data sources & freshness
- RTA bond statistics — Residential Tenancies Authority (Queensland) · Period: Mar 2026 · Updated on site · Quarterly releases
Crime & safety
- Total offences (Jan 2026 to Jul 2026)
- 271
- Against the person
- 54
- Against property
- 147
- Rate per 1,000 residents
- 55.1
- Person-crime prevalence
- About 1 in 91 residents
- State safety percentile
- 71.6th (lower crime is better)
- Increase (daily rate, partial year)
- +6.6%
Reported offences are running lower than the same point last year.
Reported offences by period
Most common offence types
- Assault153
- Drug Offences124
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)204
- Traffic And Related Offences149
- Unlawful Entry277
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Crime rate and year-on-year trend
Data sources & freshness
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Period: Jan 2025 to Dec 2025 → Jan 2026 to Jul 2026; Jan 2026 to Jul 2026 · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
Schools & preschools
- Schools & preschools
- 2
- Median school ICSEA (2 schools)
- 970
- Trinity Anglican SchoolCombined
- White Rock State SchoolPrimary
Contributes to desirability score · Education (15%)
School and preschool counts, median school ICSEA
Data sources & freshness
- ACARA school locations — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
- School ICSEA scores — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority · Period: 2025 · Updated on site · Annual ACARA release
Amenities
5 nearby amenities within ~1.5 km
- Bus stop
- Sports field
- Swimming pool (3)
Names and addresses from OpenStreetMap. Unnamed venues show as their type (e.g. Cafe).
Contributes to desirability score · Lifestyle (15%)
Food, shopping, recreation and sport (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Parks & reserves
6 parks and public open space in this suburb
- Khalu ParkPark
- Mercurio Street ParkPark
- Parton Close ParkPark
- Reys ParkPark
- Sheehy Road ParkPark
- Tiffany Street ReservePark
Data sources & freshness
- Parks & reserves — State government + ABS LGA boundaries · Period: current · Updated on site
Socio-economic (SEIFA)
- IRSAD decile (2021)
- 2/10
- IRSD decile (2021)
- 2/10
SEIFA indexes from ABS 2021. Decile 10 = most advantaged / least disadvantaged in Australia.
Contributes to desirability score · Community (5%)
Socio-economic advantage (IRSAD decile)
Data sources & freshness
- SEIFA 2021 (IRSAD / IRSD) — Australian Bureau of Statistics · Period: 2021 · Updated on site · 2021 SEIFA release
Hazards
- Bushfire planning zone
- No overlay at centroid
Bushfire overlay checked at suburb centroid via Queensland Bushfire Prone Area mapping.
Contributes to desirability score · Safety (18%)
Bushfire hazard overlays
Data sources & freshness
- Hazard planning overlays — State government hazard layers · Period: current · Updated on site
Green cover
- Parks & woodland (OSM)
- 7
- Parks (OSM)
- 6
OpenStreetMap parks and natural woodland features mapped within the suburb boundary.
Contributes to desirability score · Environment (10%)
Parks and green cover (OpenStreetMap)
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap green cover features — OpenStreetMap contributors · Period: current · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
Desirability Index
- Desirability score
- 41.2/100 — Average
- National rank
- 3276th in Australia
- State rank
- 758th in QLD
- Peer rank
- #237 among Country & regional · Established suburbs
- Cohort rank
- #357 among Country & regional suburbs
- Data confidence
- 66%
Data sources & freshness
- Suburb Guide desirability index — Suburb Guide (derived score) · Period: current · Updated on site · Derived from source metrics
Recent changes
- Bus stopamenitiesbus_stop
- Sports fieldamenitiespitch
- Swimming poolamenitiesswimming_pool
- Swimming poolamenitiesswimming_pool
- Swimming poolamenitiesswimming_pool
- Assaultcrime153
- Drug Offencescrime124
- Other Theft (Excl. Unlawful Entry)crime204
- Traffic And Related Offencescrime149
- Unlawful Entrycrime277
Data sources & freshness
- OpenStreetMap amenities — OpenStreetMap contributors · Updated on site · Weekly refresh
- QPS Online Crime Map — Queensland Police Service · Updated on site · Calendar-year aggregates
More in Cairns Council
Other suburbs in the same local government area.
Comparable suburbs
Similar population and socio-economic profile in other parts of Queensland.