Australia’s first ‘Downsizer Index’ has been released identifying the areas where older Australians are most likely to sell their homes and move into smaller dwellings.
The index has been put together by Downsizer.com Economist in Residence Michael Blythe (former Chief Economist at the Commonwealth Bank) and is based on the key fundamental drivers of downsizing - demographics, dwelling suitability, health indicators, financial indicators and mobility.
The index covers Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart and wider Tasmania.
“Each of the downsizing fundamentals in a capital city region are given a score and then combined into an overall Downsizer Index. The Index measures how far above or below the capital city average each region is, giving an idea of the likelihood of downsizing activity,” says Mr Blythe.
“This kind of data is valuable for households, governments and developers to identify where the downsizing focus should be as we battle with the current nation-wide housing crisis and the longer-run pressures from the ageing population,” he says.
“Older Australians are finding that their incomes fall at the same time as their costs rise and dwelling suitability declines. More than 80% of Australians aged between 65 and 74 live in separate dwellings rather than flats or apartments and 75% of them have more than 3 bedrooms”, says Mr Blythe.
“It’s clear more needs to be done to help downsizers move out of their larger homes and into more appropriate dwellings. In turn, downsizers can free up equity and can boost their incomes, assisted by government incentives to place some of the funds into superannuation. Downsizing also frees up housing stock for younger families.”
“One of the biggest barriers to downsizing is access to cash to fund the move because for many older Australians their equity is tied up in their house. They are asset rich but cash poor.”
Downsizer.com aims to help make this transition easier for homeowners by allowing them to use a deposit bond instead of cash with the pre-approval process often completed in a matter of hours.
Sydney’s Top 5 Downsizing Hot Spots
|
Geographical Area |
Downsizer Index Score |
|
Outer West and Blue Mountains |
4.98 |
|
Sutherland Shire |
3.52 |
|
Northern Beaches |
2.95 |
|
Outer South-West |
2.28 |
|
Baulkham Hills and Hawkesbury |
1.74 |
Melbourne’s Top 5 Downsizing Hot Spots
|
Geographical Area |
Downsizer Index Score |
|
Outer East |
4.44 |
|
Inner South |
3.65 |
|
Inner East |
1.41 |
|
North-West |
0.78 |
|
South-East |
0.73 |
Brisbane’s Top 5 Downsizing Hot Spots
|
Geographical Area |
Downsizer Index Score |
|
Brisbane’s East |
7.2 |
|
Logan-Beaudesert |
2.66 |
|
Ipswich |
1.17 |
|
Brisbane’s North |
0.23 |
|
Moreton Bay-South |
0.16 |
Adelaide’s Top 5 Downsizing Hot Spots
|
Geographical Area |
Downsizer Index Score |
|
South |
3.98 |
|
West |
0.65 |
|
North |
-1.51 |
|
Central and Hills |
-2.9 |
Perth’s Top 5 Downsizing Hot Spots
|
Geographical Area |
Downsizer Index Score |
|
South-West |
11.1 |
|
Inner |
9.47 |
|
North-East |
8.65 |
|
North-West |
6.32 |
|
South-East |
4.81 |
Tasmania’s Top 5 Downsizing Hot Spots
|
Geographical Area |
Downsizer Index Score |
|
South-Eastern Tasmania |
9.42 |
|
West and North-Western Tasmania |
6.04 |
|
Launceston and North-Eastern Tasmania |
1.6 |
|
Hobart |
-2.01 |
About Downsizer.com
Downsizer.com is an award-winning startup venture helping the finance, property and insurance industries to deliver innovative digital solutions to the downsizer generation, so they can make that all-important home transition with ease and confidence and enjoy life’s next phase with an improved lifestyle and better finances. Downsizer.com is the market-facing brand of Block Builder Pty Ltd.
