TENURE TYPE
JUSTIFICATION
Tenure type (whether a dwelling is rented, owned with a mortgage or owned without a mortgage) cross-classified with other characteristics of households, is needed for housing and social welfare policy and planning in the government and private sectors.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Data about whether a dwelling is owned, being purchased or rented have been obtained in all Censuses since 1911.
From 1971 until 1991, the information on type of tenure was derived from the answers to more than one question. A single, direct question was used to determine type of tenure for 1996 and 2001 and more detailed responses were listed, catering for a greater variety of tenancy/financial arrangements than in previous Censuses.
The current standard for tenure type differentiates between owners with and without a mortgage rather than whether a dwelling is owned or being purchased, and this standard was reflected in the response categories used for the 2006 Census question on tenure type.
USER REQUIREMENTS
Data about tenure type are required to:
- monitor housing security, mobility issues and home ownership trends
- develop housing and social welfare policies.
It should be noted that the tenure type question in the Census cannot serve as a measure of housing stock, as it relates only to occupied dwellings.
AVAILABILITY OF NON-CENSUS DATA
Data on tenure type are available from the Survey of Income and Housing 2005-06, results released in:
Because of small sample sizes, surveys cannot produce small area data.
POSSIBLE CHANGES FOR 2011
The ABS is currently investigating the adoption of a revised standard for tenure type to capture changes in these arrangements in the last ten years. Use of the new standard is expected to improve the comparability of data between the Survey of Income and Housing and the Census, and enable the establishment of benchmarks. If adopted, the implications of using the proposed new standard will be evaluated for the 2011 Census.
2006 CENSUS QUESTION
(Household form only)
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