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Indicator: HS-25 Condition of dwellings

Data

Condition and maintenance of dwellings
Australia – 1999

	Proportion of all occupied dwellings (%)
Need for repairs
Both external and internal	31.3
External only	13.3
Internal only	12.2
Total in need of repairs	56.8
Need for repairs
Desirable but low need	41.1
Moderate need	19.2
Essential need	5.9
Essential and urgent need	2.0
Total in need of repairs (a)	56.8
With major structural problems	19.0

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 1999, Australian Housing Survey. Cited in: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2002, Australian Social Trends 2002, Australian Bureau of Statistics, p. 199

Condition of dwellings (%)Capital cities vs balance of State/Territory – 1999

	Capital city	Balance of State/Territory	Total
Percentage estimated number of households (%)
Need for repair to outside of dwelling
No need	54.5	57	55.4
Desirable but low need	28.5	26.1	27.6
Moderate need	12.5	12	12.3
Essential need	3.6	3.4	3.5
Essential and urgent need	0.9	1.5	1.1
Need for repair to inside of dwelling
No need	55.8	57.7	56.5
Desirable but low need	27.7	26.9	27.4
Moderate need	11.9	10.6	11.4
Essential need	3.3	3.4	3.3
Essential and urgent need	1.3	1.4	1.3

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2005, Data from Australian Housing Survey 1999, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra.

Housing condition Indigenous vs Non-Indigenous households Australia – 1999

	Indigenous households		Non-Indigenous households
	Number (’000)	%	Number (’000)	%
Need for repairs to dwelling
No need	49.0	33.7	3 066.9	43.5
Low need	41.1	28.2	2 300.4	32.6
Medium need	27.7	19.0	1 179.8	16.7
High need	27.8	19.1	510.0	7.2
Total	145.5	100.0	7 057.0	100.0

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 1999, Australian Housing Survey 1999, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Results, Australian Bureau of Statistics, p. 14

Condition of permanent dwellings managed by Indigenous Housing Organisations (IHOs) 1999 and 2001

	Proportion of IHO managed permanent dwellings requiring						Number of IHO managed permanent dwellings (a)
	Minor or no repair		Major repair		Replacement
	1999	2001	1999	2001	1999	2001	1999	2001
Communities with a population of less than 50	78.2	76.5	16.3	14.2	3.9	8.8	2306	2521
Communities with a population of 50 or more	64.6	66.9	24.8	22.2	10.7	10.9	12361	12707
All communities	66.7	68.5	23.4	20.9	9.6	10.5	14667	15228

(a) - includes ‘Condition of permanent dwellings’ not stated.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2002, Housing and Infrastructure in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities, Australian Bureau of Statistics, viewed 30 Nov 2005, http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/
b06660592430724fca2568b5007b8619/075a7d64c769ee67ca2568ce00037c69!OpenDocument, p. 45

What the data mean

In 1999, over half (57%) of all occupied dwellings in Australia were in need of repairs. However, the repairs needed in less than a tenth (8%) of all dwellings were considered to be essential or urgent. Nearly a fifth (19%) of all occupied dwellings had major structural problems.

There was no difference between the condition of dwellings in capital cities and those in the rest of the State/Territory, although the dwellings that did not need repairs (inside of outside) were lower in capital cities compared to those in the rest of State/territory.

Nearly two-thirds of all Indigenous dwellings were in need of repairs with a fifth having a high need for repairs. By contrast, a little over half of non-Indigenous dwellings were in need of repairs with less than a tenth having a high need.

The condition of Indigenous housing has slightly improved between 1999 and 2001 as shown by the lower proportion of dwellings requiring major repairs (20.9% in 2001 compared to 23.4% in 1999). However, the proportion of dwellings requiring replacement had increased slightly from 9.6% in 1999 to 10.5% in 2001.

Issues for which this is an indicator and why

Human Settlements — Liveability of human settlements - Housing quality 

The liveability of a settlement will be determined by the quality of the housing available to its residents. The condition of dwellings, measured as percentage of houses requiring repairs, is an indicator of housing quality.

Further Information

• Australian Housing Survey - Housing Characteristics, Costs and Conditions