1345.4 - SA Stats, Jul 2008  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 29/07/2008   
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NEW DWELLING APPROVALS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA


INTRODUCTION

Building approvals data allows for the identification and analysis of growth areas in South Australia which is important for appropriate planning and infrastructure development. This article provides an analysis of new dwelling approvals in South Australia between 1998-99 and 2006-07. Using data from the Building Approvals Collection (cat. no. 8731.0) and the 2006 Census of Population and Housing, the article identifies Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) which have experienced the largest growth and presents an analysis of the two fastest growing SLAs, Salisbury (C) Bal and Mount Barker (DC) - Central.

For the purpose of this article, dwellings are categorised into three groups: Separate houses, referred to in this article as Houses; Semi-detached, row or terrace houses, and townhouses, referred to as Attached Dwellings; and Flats, units or apartments, referred to as Flats. Historical data has been aggregated into SLAs based on the 2007 Australian Standard Geographical Classification boundaries.


NEW DWELLING APPROVALS

The number of dwelling approvals in South Australia has remained reasonably consistent over the last six years. Since 2001-02, the annual number of dwellings approved in South Australia has remained above 10,500, reaching a high of 11,746 in 2003-04. In 2006-07, there were 10,746 dwellings approved. As shown in the graph below, there was a marked drop in the total number of dwellings approved in 2000-01, coinciding with the introduction of the GST.

Dwellings approved in South Australia, 1998-99 to 2006-07
Graph: Dwellings approved in South Australia, 1998-99 to 2006-07



TYPE OF DWELLING APPROVED

South Australia has experienced a gradual change in the type of dwelling being approved over the last nine years. In 1998-99, 86.7% of all residential dwellings approved in South Australia were Houses. By 2006-07, 80% of dwellings approved in South Australia were Houses. In 1998-99, 8.9% of new dwelling approvals were for Attached Dwellings and by 2006-07 this proportion had increased to 15.5%.

Type of dwelling approved, 1998-99 to 2006-07
Graph: Type of dwelling approved, 1998-99 to 2006-07



FASTEST GROWING SLAS

For the purposes of this article, the fastest growing SLAs in South Australia have been identified by calculating the total number of dwellings approved between July 2001 and June 2006 as a proportion of total dwelling stock from the 2006 Census of Population and Housing.

From 2001 to 2006, the fastest growing Statistical Local Area (SLA) in South Australia was Salisbury (C) Bal with 72.8% of the 2006 dwelling stock being approved within the five years prior to the Census count. Salisbury (C) Bal, which includes the suburb of Mawson Lakes, experienced significantly faster growth than any other SLA in South Australia. The second fastest growing SLA was Mount Barker (DC) - Central, with 1,498 dwelling approvals between 2001 and 2006, representing 20.8% of the total dwelling stock of that SLA in 2006.

Fastest growing SLAs in South Australia 2001 to 2006

SLAs
Dwelling Approvals(a)
Dwelling Stock(b)
% New

Salisbury (C) Bal
2 737.0
3 759.0
72.8
Mount Barker (DC) - Central
1 498.0
7 207.0
20.8
Light (RegC)
963.0
4 655.0
20.7
Adelaide (C)
1 766.0
8 720.0
20.3
Victor Harbor (C)
1 399.0
7 264.0
19.3
Alexandrina (DC) - Coastal
1 498.0
7 782.0
19.2
Port Adel. Enfield (C) - East
2 650.0
13 803.0
19.2
Playford (C) - West
608.0
3 219.0
18.9
Playford (C) - Hills
213.0
1 143.0
18.6
Onkaparinga (C) - South Coast
2 122.0
11 696.0
18.1
Total South Australia
55 436.0
671 916.0
8.3

(a) Residential building approvals July 2001 to June 2006
(b) As at 2006 Census. Includes 'Separate house', 'Semi-detached, row or terrace house, townhouse etc' and 'Flat, unit, apartment'.
Source: Building Approvals, Australia (cat. no. 8731.0), data available on request. Census of Population and Housing 2001 and 2006, data available on request.



Dwelling approvals in Salisbury (C) Bal

Salisbury (C) Bal, which includes the suburb of Mawson Lakes, was the fastest growing SLA in South Australia from July 2001 to June 2006. During this period, Salisbury (C) Bal accounted for 5% of all residential approvals in SA. Mawson Lakes is an example of how a new suburb can be formed as a result of new residential land releases by the State Government.

Most of the dwellings approved in this SLA were Houses. In 2006-07, 595 Houses were approved for construction which was 83.6% of all dwellings approved in that SLA that year. There has been a recent increase in the number of Attached Dwellings and Flats approved in Salisbury (C) Bal, but these still only constituted 16.4% of total dwelling approvals in 2006-07.

Dwelling approvals in Salisbury (C) Bal
Graph: Dwelling approvals in Salisbury (C) Bal


According to the Census of Population and Housing, there were 10,622 usual residents in Salisbury (C) Bal in 2006, up from 5,516 in 2001. As shown in the table below, Salisbury (C) Bal is characterised as an area dominated by young couples with children and a mortgage. Just under 80% of all occupied private dwellings in Salisbury (C) Bal were family households compared to 69% for South Australia. Due to the higher proportion of family households, the average number of persons in each household in Salisbury (C) Bal is 2.8 persons, higher than the South Australian average of 2.4 persons. In 2006, the median age of persons residing in Salisbury (C) Bal was 30 years, considerably lower than the South Australian average of 39 years.

The proportion of occupied private dwellings in Salisbury (C) Bal being purchased was 56.8%, well above the state average of 34.8%. Correspondingly, the proportion of occupied private dwellings that were fully owned (18%) or rented (22.8%) were below the South Australian figures (34.7% and 26.2% respectively). Although households in Salisbury (C) Bal had a higher median household income than the South Australian median, they also had a higher median housing loan repayment.

Selected Characteristics of Salisbury (C) Bal and South Australia, 2006

Salisbury (C) Bal
South Australia

Usual residents
10 622.0
1 514 336.0
Median Age
30.0
39.0
Average household size (persons)
2.8
2.4
Median household income ($/weekly)
1 139.0
887.0
Median housing loan repayment ($/monthly)
1 300.0
1 018.0
Proportion of Occupied Private Dwellings which are:
Family Households (%)
79.5
69.0
Fully owned (%)
18.0
34.7
Being purchased (%)
56.8
34.8
Rented (%)
22.8
26.2

Source: Census of Population and Housing, 2006



Dwelling approvals in Mount Barker (DC) - Central

Mount Barker (DC) - Central was the second fastest growing SLA in SA between 2001 and 2006. Dwelling approvals in Mount Barker (DC) - Central were predominantly for Houses, with only a small proportion of Attached Dwellings and no Flats approved during the analysis period. The number of House approvals reached a high for the period in 2003-04, with 375 approvals, and has since slowed.

Dwelling approvals in Mount Barker (DC) - Central
Graph: Dwelling approvals in Mount Barker (DC) - Central


According to the Census of Population and Housing, the number of usual residents in Mount Barker (DC) - Central grew from 15,081 in 2001 to 18,157 in 2006. The median age of residents in Mount Barker (DC) - Central in 2006 was 35, compared to the state average of 39 years.

Similarly to Salisbury (C) Bal, Mount Barker (DC) - Central has a high proportion of family households with a mortgage. In 2006, 74.5% of occupied private dwellings in Mount Barker (DC) - Central were family households compared to 69% for South Australia. Similarly, the proportion of households with a mortgage in Mount Barker (DC) - Central (44%) was higher than that for South Australia (34.8%). The average number of persons in each household was 2.6 persons in Mount Barker (DC) - Central compared to 2.4 persons in South Australia.

While there are some similarities between the demographic characteristics of Salisbury (C) Bal and Mount Barker (DC) - Central, there is a significant difference in the proportion of older persons who live in these SLAs. In Mount Barker (DC) - Central, 21.7% of the population were aged over 55 in 2006 compared with just 12.8% for Salisbury (C) Bal. Perhaps due to the older age profile, a higher proportion of households in Mount Barker (DC) - Central are fully owned (27.3%) compared to Salisbury (C) Bal (18%).

Selected Characteristics of Mount Barker (DC) - Central and South Australia, 2006

Mount Barker (DC) - Central
South Australia

Usual residents
18 157.0
1 514 336.0
Median Age
35.0
39.0
Average household size (persons)
2.6
2.4
Median household income ($/weekly)
1 001.0
887.0
Median housing loan repayment ($/monthly)
1 137.0
1 018.0
Proportion of Occupied Private Dwellings which are:
Family Households (%)
74.5
69.0
Fully owned (%)
27.3
34.7
Being purchased (%)
44.0
34.8
Rented (%)
25.2
26.2

Source: Census of Population and Housing, 2006



SUMMARY

The number of dwelling approvals in South Australia has remained reasonably consistent since 2001-02. Attached dwellings are becoming more predominant on the urban landscape while the proportion of Houses being approved is declining. The SLA of Salisbury (C) Bal presents a particularly interesting example of strong and concentrated growth, significantly exceeding the growth of other South Australian SLAs during the analysis period.


REFERENCES

Building Approvals, Australia, cat. no. 8731.0

Data available on request, Building Approvals, Australia

Census of Population and Housing, 2001

Census of Population and Housing, 2006