Tile to metal re-roofs in Perth's northern suburbs

We cover nine suburbs between Warwick and Woodvale. Almost all of them sit in the City of Joondalup, which makes the building permit simple to find: one council for nearly every address. Most of the houses went up between the late 1960s and the early 1990s, so plenty of these tiled roofs are now 30 to 60 years old, and some in Sorrento are older.⁴

Roof age alone doesn't mean a roof needs replacing. It does mean the timber, battens and tie-downs underneath are as old as the house, and that is what a roofer needs to look at before quoting.¹

Dates are when building started in each suburb, from each suburb's history.⁴ Your own house may be newer. The rates notice or the original plans will say.

Craigie

Craigie got its name in 1970. It is one of the four "Whitfords" suburbs that came from the State Government rezoning a large area of coastal land for development in 1969.⁴ A roof from the early 1970s is now over 50 years old. That is old enough that the roofer should check the tie-downs and battens, not only the tiles.

Duncraig

Duncraig sits 16 km north of the CBD between Marmion Avenue and the Mitchell Freeway. Most of the land stayed undeveloped until the 1960s, and the name was approved in 1969.⁴ So a first-generation Duncraig roof is now well over 50 years old. If you have solar panels, ask each roofer who takes them off and puts them back, and whether that is in the price, before you compare quotes.³

Greenwood

Greenwood started in 1969 as a land estate marketed as "Greenwood Forest". The Mitchell Freeway between Greenwood and Duncraig came later, in 1985 and 1986.⁴ First-wave Greenwood roofs are about 57 years old (2026 minus 1969). Ask each roofer whether straightening the frame is in the price or extra if needed.¹

Hillarys

Hillarys is named after Bert Hillary, who built a boatshed on the beach in 1930. It is part of the Whitfords precinct, 21 km north-north-west of the CBD.⁴ Being on the coast changes one thing about a re-roof: the steel. Lysaght says standard COLORBOND® steel suits sites 201 to 400 metres from breaking surf, and points to COLORBOND® Ultra steel from 100 to 200 metres.² Most of the suburb is further back than that, but if you live near the beach, measure it.

Kingsley

Kingsley's name was approved in 1974. Part of the suburb was a large winery from 1929 until 1986, and that land was then subdivided into house lots.⁴ So Kingsley has two ages of roof side by side: 1970s houses and late-1980s houses. A quote for one is not a guide to the other, even on the same street.

Padbury

Padbury was named in 1971 after the settler Walter Padbury, and had 8,626 residents in 2021. Parts of it go by other names: Whitfords near Whitfords Avenue, Hepburn Heights in the south-east and Pinnaroo Heights in the east.⁴ Tell us which part you are in. It helps the roofer plan the visit, and it is all the same suburb and the same council.

Sorrento

Sorrento has the oldest housing on this list. Fishermen built boatsheds and shacks here in the 1930s, houses followed from the early 1950s, and until 1981 it was part of Marmion. Hillarys Boat Harbour, at its north-west corner, was built in the late 1980s.⁴ Two things to raise on the visit: the age of the frame under a 60 or 70-year-old roof, and, for streets near the beach, which grade of steel suits your distance from breaking surf.²

Warwick

Warwick was developed in the late 1960s. The Warwick Grove shopping centre was built in 1974, and the eastern third of the suburb is bushland, the Warwick Open Space.⁴ A late-1960s roof is close to 60 years old. Building and Energy WA notes that roof supports sag over time, so ask the roofer to check the frame and put any straightening in the written quote.¹

Woodvale

Woodvale was rural until the late 1970s. Houses went up from 1979, and the last estate, Woodvale Waters, was released by 1995.⁴ That makes these the youngest roofs on the list, about 31 to 47 years old. One local quirk: most of Woodvale is in the City of Joondalup, but a small part between Yellagonga Regional Park and Wanneroo Road is in the City of Wanneroo.⁴ The permit goes to whichever council your address is in.

Not on the list?

Pick "Another northern suburb" in the form and tell us where. If we can't match you with a roofer who covers it, we will tell you, and we won't pass your details on.

Sources

1. Building and Energy (WA Government), Changing your roof cover? Things you need to know (factsheet). Checked 10 Nov 2026.
2. Lysaght (BlueScope), When to choose COLORBOND® Ultra steel. Checked 10 Nov 2026.
3. WA Government, Having electrical work done. Checked 10 Nov 2026.
4. Wikipedia suburb articles: Craigie, Duncraig, Greenwood, Hillarys, Kingsley, Padbury, Sorrento, Warwick, Woodvale. Checked 10 Nov 2026.