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Housing stock: Changes in Australian housing
Australia's housing stock While influenced to a certain extent by overall population growth, demand for housing is more specifically influenced by changes in the number and composition of households occupying dwellings, as well as their financial situation. Between 1991 and 2001, Australia's population increased by 12% while the number of occupied private dwellings increased by 21%. Of the 1.2 million additional dwellings, separate houses represented 66% of the total increase and higher density housing represented 35% (other dwellings dropped by 1%). OCCUPIED PRIVATE DWELLINGS(a)
Source: ABS 1991 and 2001 Censuses of Population and Housing. The greater increase in the number of dwellings compared with population growth is largely due to social and demographic changes leading to smaller households. For example, fewer group households, declining marriage rates, an increasing number of divorces and an ageing population have all contributed to more and smaller households. Between 1991 and 2001 there was a 43% increase in the number of lone person households, a 37% increase in the number of lone-parent households and a 29% increase in the number of couple households without children. In contrast, the number of couple households with children increased by less than 1%. Between 1991 and 2001, while the number of separate houses increased by 18%, the increase in the number of higher density dwellings was twice as high (37%). However, the faster growth in higher density housing did not dramatically change the balance of housing stock in Australia, with the number of separate houses decreasing slightly as a proportion of all dwellings (from 78% in 1991 to 76% in 2001). In 2001, there were 5.3 million separate houses compared with 1.6 million higher density dwellings. Despite the trend toward smaller households and the slight shift towards higher density housing, the average number of bedrooms in Australian dwellings has increased over the past decade (2.97 bedrooms per dwelling in 2001 compared with 2.85 in 1991). The proportion of separate houses with four bedrooms increased from 20% in 1991 to 27% in 2001, while the proportion of higher density dwellings with three bedrooms increased from 18% in 1991 to 25% in 2001. Geographic differences Over the 10 years to 2001, the number of dwellings in Australia grew by 20% in Capital Cities, 45% in Large Population Centres and 6% in Country Areas. In each area, the majority of this growth was met by separate houses. Increases in the number of higher density dwellings were confined to Capital Cities and Large Population Centres. In the 10 years to 2001, the number of higher density dwellings increased by 72% in Large Population Centres and by 36% in Capital Cities. Despite this, in 2001, the proportion of housing that was higher density was still highest in Capital Cities (27% of all dwellings in these areas), compared with 21% of dwellings in Large Population Centres and 9% of dwellings in Country Areas. Between 1991 and 2001, the growth in higher density housing varied between Capital Cities. In Sydney, higher density housing increased at more than three times the rate of separate houses, with a similar pattern observed in Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra. In 2001, Hobart had the highest proportion of separate houses (83%) of all Capital Cities, and was the only capital city where the number of separate houses increased at a faster rate than higher density housing. In Adelaide and Perth the rates of increase were similar across the two housing types. Overall, in 2001, Sydney had the highest proportion of higher density housing across the Capital Cities (36% of all dwellings in this city), followed by Darwin (30%). The lowest proportions of higher density housing were in Hobart (16%) and Brisbane (18%). SELECTED OCCUPIED PRIVATE DWELLINGS: GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION(a) - 2001
(b) Includes Other dwellings. Source: ABS 1991 and 2001 Censuses of Population and Housing.
Characteristics of residents LIFE-CYCLE GROUPS BY HOUSING DENSITY(a)
(b) Dependent children includes children under the age of 15 years and full-time students aged 15-24 years. (c) Includes life-cycle groups not specified. Source: ABS 1991 and 2001 Censuses of Population and Housing. Tenure type varied according to the type of dwelling, as well as the life-cycle stage of households. In 2001, higher density housing was more likely to be rented (60%) than separate houses (18%). Almost half (47%) of separate houses were owned outright, while 33% were being purchased. On the other hand, 24% of higher density dwellings were owned outright and 13% were being purchased. The comparatively high rate of outright home ownership among lone persons aged 65 years or over (75% in 2001) is likely to have contributed to the greater outright ownership rate for higher density dwellings (24%), compared with the proportion being purchased (13%). On the other hand, the high proportion of lone persons aged less than 35 years who pay rent for their dwelling (60%) may be a factor contributing to the high proportion of higher density dwellings that are rented. DWELLINGS BY TENURE TYPE(a) - 2001 (a) Dwellings where the dwelling structure was not stated were excluded prior to the calculation of percentages. Source: ABS 2001 Census of Population and Housing. Housing occupancy In 2001, few separate houses and higher density dwellings in Australia were overcrowded (according to the Canadian National Occupancy Standard), with 3% and 4% respectively requiring one or more extra bedrooms to meet the minimum bedroom requirement. In contrast, a large proportion of dwellings had bedrooms in excess of the minimum set by this standard. In 2001, 75% of separate houses and 53% of higher density housing had rooms in excess of the standard. This includes 43% of separate houses and 12% of higher density housing which had two or more bedrooms above minimum requirement.
HOUSING OCCUPANCY(a)(b) - 2001 (a) Dwellings where the dwelling structure was not stated were excluded prior to the calculation of percentages. (b) Based on the Canadian National Occupancy Standard for housing suitability. Source: ABS 2001 Census of Population and Housing. The degree of overcrowding (i.e. insufficient number of bedrooms) in Australian dwellings declined slightly from 5% in 1991 to 3% in 2001. There has also been a decrease in the proportion of dwellings with the exact number of bedrooms required by the standard. In 2001, 20% of dwellings had just the minimum required number of bedrooms, compared with 25% in 1991. Consistent with smaller household sizes and an increase in the average number of bedrooms in homes, the number of dwellings with bedrooms in excess of the minimum requirement increased over the 10 years to 2001. In 2001, 35% of dwellings had two or more bedrooms above the minimum requirement compared with 27% in 1991. Families with dependent children were the most likely to live in one of the 239,000 dwellings that had insufficient bedrooms, with 45% of these dwellings containing couple families with children and 23% containing one-parent families. On the other hand, couple families without children were the life-cycle group who were most likely to live in dwellings with two or more bedrooms above the minimum requirement (48% of these dwellings in 2001). However, only a small proportion of all dwellings with two or more bedrooms above the minimum requirement contained couple families without children where the male partner was aged less than 35 years (8%). This is consistent with many older couples remaining in the family home after their children have left home. SELECTED LIFE-CYCLE GROUPS: HOUSING OCCUPANCY(a)(b) - 2001
(b) Based on the Canadian National Occupancy Standard for housing suitability. (c) Dependent children includes children under the age of 15 years and full-time students aged 15-24 years. (d) Includes life-cycle groups not specified. (e) Includes not applicable, and unable to determine. Source: ABS 2001 Census of Population and Housing. Endnotes 1 Yates, J. 2002, Housing implications of social, spatial and structural change, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute, Sydney.
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