Rural Balance

Demographics & education

In the 2006 Census, 408,713 people were usually resident in Rural Balance: of these 51.9% were male and 48.1% were female. Of the total population 0.7% were Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people.

In the 2006 Census, 21.1% of people usually resident in Rural Balance were children aged 0-14 years, and 26.2% were people aged 55 years and over. The median age was 41 years.

In the 2006 Census, 91.1% of people usually resident in Rural Balance were Australian citizens, 10.4% were born overseas and 0.3% people were overseas visitors.

In the 2006 Census, 60.0% of people aged 15 years and over usually resident in Rural Balance were married, 9.5% were either separated or divorced, 3.8% were widowed and 26.8% were never married.

Cultural & language diversity

In the 2006 Census, 84.0% of people usually resident in Rural Balance, stated they were born in Australia. Other common responses for country of birth were England 3.2%, New Zealand 1.0%, Italy 0.9%, Netherlands 0.7% and Germany 0.6%.

In the 2006 Census, the most common responses for religious affiliation for people usually resident in Rural Balance were Catholic 23.6%, No Religion 22.6%, Anglican 17.6%, Uniting Church 10.1% and Presbyterian and Reformed 4.2%.

In the 2006 Census, the most common responses for language other than English spoken at home by people usually resident in Rural Balance were Italian 1.3%, German 0.4%, Greek 0.3%, Dutch 0.3% and Maltese 0.2%. English was stated as the only language spoken at home by 91.1%.

Employment

During the week prior to the 2006 Census, 209,903 people aged 15 years and over in Rural Balance were in the labour force. Of these 59.8% worked full-time, 29.5% worked part-time, 3.9% were away from work, 3.0% were employed but did not state their hours worked and 3.8% were unemployed. 97,084 people were not in the labour force.

In the 2006 Census, the most common responses for occupation for Rural Balance were Managers 27.6%, Professionals 14.1%, Technicians and Trades Workers 14.0%, Labourers 11.5%, Clerical and Administrative Workers 10.8%, Sales Workers 7.1%, Community and Personal Service Workers 6.9% and Machinery Operators And Drivers 6.3%.

In the 2006 Census, of the employed people aged 15 years and over in Rural Balance, the most common responses for industry of employment included Sheep, Beef Cattle and Grain Farming 10.4%, Dairy Cattle Farming 5.8%, School Education 4.6%, Hospitals 3.4% and Road Freight Transport 2.3%.

In the 2006 Census in Rural Balance, the median weekly personal income for people aged 15 years and over who were usual residents was $441, the median family income was $1,125 and the median household income was $1,020.

Family composition

In the 2006 Census, there were 113,174 families in Rural Balance: of these 41.2% were couple families without children, 49.0% were couple families with children, 9.0% were one parent families and 0.8% were other families.

Dwelling structure

Dwellings include visitor only and other not-classifiable households unless otherwise stated

In the 2006 Census 145,090 occupied private dwellings were counted in Rural Balance.

In the 2006 Census, of the occupied private dwellings in Rural Balance, 96.4% were separate houses, 0.7% were semi-detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses etc, 0.3% were flats, units or apartments and 2.5% were other dwellings.

In the 2006 Census in Rural Balance, 44.4% of occupied private dwellings were owned outright, 35.9% were owned with a mortgage and 13.1% were rented.

In the 2006 Census in Rural Balance, of the occupied private dwellings being rented, 18.6% were rented from a real estate agent, 0.8% were rented from a State or Territory housing authority and 66.5% were rented from other landlord type.

Dwelling characteristics

In the 2006 Census in Rural Balance, the median weekly rent was $100. The median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,083. The average people per household was 2.8 and the average number of people per bedroom was 1.1.

Household composition

In the 2006 Census in Rural Balance, 77.0% of occupied private dwellings were family households, 17.3% were single (or lone) person households and 1.6% were group households.