Australia's homeownership rate remains stable despite rising costs

Australia’s homeownership rate has remained stable despite higher costs, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Survey of Income and Housing (SIH).

SIH measures levels of housing occupancy and costs every second financial year.

The ABS survey found that homeownership figures in 2019-20 remained consistent with figures recorded in 2017-18 at 66%, while rental figures remained relatively stable, with 31% of Australian households renting their home in 2019-20, compared to 32% in 2017-18, Savings.com.au reported.

Findings also showed that housing costs, adjusted for inflation, have lifted over the past two decades for major tenure and landlord types by:

• 50% for homeowners without a mortgage
• 40% for homeowners with a mortgage
• 27% for state or territory housing tenants
• 50% for private renters

Meanwhile, rising costs didn’t deter young first-home buyers from stepping onto the property ladder. The proportion of first-home buyers under the age of 35 saw a six-percentage-point rise from 2017-18, and grew from 55% to 61% in 2019-20. Of the 420,000 first-home buyers surveyed, only 17% of dwellings purchased were brand new, Savings.com.au reported.