While a lender’s recent survey focussed on young homebuyers in WA, I don’t think the Millennials and Gen Z’s in that state will be all that different to the rest of Australia.
Bankwest’s Home Truths survey found that younger respondents were increasingly willing to make sacrifices to their idea of a dream home to overcome cost-of-living pressures and enter the property market.
The Millennials (27-42) and Gen Z’s (18-26) were prepared to sacrifice property features, and even type, to afford a house. In fact, 78 per cent said they would do so.
There were differences though between WA and the rest of Australia, and also the younger generations within WA compared to their more senior house hunting counterparts.
43 per cent of WA’s Gen Z homeowners said they were prepared to buy a smaller property than their true preference, up from 28% in the previous survey, and 39% of WA Millennials, when asked, would sacrifice size.
WA’s Gen Zs had also significantly shifted in their view of the importance of a safe location, with a drop from 47% previously to just under a third. However, 50% of Millennials named it an important feature.
Interestingly, less of the state’s Gen Z’s were inclined to move from city to country (16%, down from 20%), suggesting the COVID-inspired ‘tree change’ trend may be fading.
Overall, WA buyers intending to purchase a house in the next five years were most willing to make sacrifices to the location to find a cheaper suburb and reduce the size of the property.
East coast buyers were more willing to sacrifice luxury features, such as a pool or a deck.
