Mortgage repayments (monthly) ranges (MRERD)

Latest release
Census of Population and Housing: Census dictionary
Reference period
2021

Definition

This variable records the mortgage repayments being paid by a household in ranges. It is applicable to occupied private dwellings on Census Night. A private dwelling is defined in Dwelling structure (STRD) and can include caravans in caravan parks, occupied tents, and houseboats.

For practical purposes this information is recoded to a specific number of ranges for standard Census products (such as QuickStats and Community Profiles).

The Census also collects this information in single dollar values (MRED).

Scope

Occupied private dwellings that are owned with a mortgage (including being purchased under a shared equity scheme)

Categories

CodeCategory
01Nil repayments
02$1-$149
03$150-$299
04$300-$449
05$450-$599
06$600-$799
07$800-$999
08$1,000-$1,199
09$1,200-$1,399
10$1,400-$1,599
11$1,600-$1,799
12$1,800-$1,999
13$2,000-$2,199
14$2,200-$2,399
15$2,400-$2,599
16$2,600-$2,799
17$2,800-$2,999
18$3,000-$3,499
19$3,500-$3,999
20$4,000-$4,999
21$5,000 and over
&&Not stated
@@Not applicable

Number of categories:  23

Not applicable (@@) category comprises:

  • Occupied private dwellings with Tenure type (TEND) of owned outright, rented, being occupied rent free, being occupied under a life tenure scheme, other and not stated
  • Unoccupied private dwellings
  • Non-private dwellings
  • Migratory, off-shore and shipping SA1s

Question(s) from the Census form

Is this dwelling: (please open this section to view response categories)

How much does your household pay for this dwelling?

How this variable is created

Data for this variable is derived from the Tenure type and Housing costs questions on the Census form. Household repayments data is automatically captured from numeric text responses.

History and changes

The question relating to Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values was first asked for the 1976 Census, though in some previous years this variable has been referred to as ‘Housing loan repayments (monthly)’. Since 2011, Nil repayments is recorded as $0 in Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values and as a separate category called ‘Nil repayments’ in Mortgage repayments (monthly) ranges. Prior to 2011 a response of nil was coded as ‘Not Stated’.

No changes have been made for 2021.

Data use considerations

The data in these variables is important for the analysis of home ownership and for providing benchmark data for evaluating housing needs, housing finance and housing demand.

Processing Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values is subject to some recognition error for responses provided on paper Census forms, particularly when responses incorrectly include cents and the decimal point is missing or unclear. Some high or low values when combined with income may form unlikely combinations. While the data is subject to data assurance checks to ensure an acceptable level of quality, numeric responses are accepted as reported by the respondents on the form.

This variable is derived from Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values (MRED). The non-response rate for Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values (MRED) was 6.0% in 2021. This is an increase from 4.2% in 2016.

Related variables and glossary terms

  • Mortgage repayments (monthly) dollar values (MRED)
  • Dwelling structure (STRD)
  • Household composition (HHCD)
  • Tenure type (TEND)
  • Mortgage affordability indicator (MAID)
  • Rent affordability indicator (RAID)
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