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AustraliaCommunity profile

Greater Sydney

Dwelling type

In Greater Sydney, 45.8% of the dwellings were medium or high density, compared to 28% in Victoria.

Dwelling Type is an important determinant of Greater Sydney's residential role and function. A greater concentration of higher density dwellings is likely to attract more young adults and smaller households, often renting. Larger, detached or separate dwellings are more likely to attract families and prospective families. The residential built form often reflects market opportunities or planning policy, such as building denser forms of housing around public transport nodes or employment centres.

Dwelling Type statistics should be viewed in conjunction with Household Size, Household Types, Housing Tenure and Age Structure for a more complete picture of the housing market in Greater Sydney.

If you're looking at this data to prepare a housing strategy, learn more here.

Q:

Derived from the Census:

'Dwelling Structure is derived from the ABS address register supplemented with information from Census Field Officers.'

Dwelling structure
Greater Sydney - Dwellings (Enumerated)20212016Change
Dwelling typeNumber%Victoria %Number%Victoria %2016 to 2021
Separate house1,108,78153.471.51,021,14855.072.1+87,633
Medium density390,25118.818.4376,25220.319.4+13,999
High density561,67127.19.5436,79323.57.4+124,878
Caravans, cabin, houseboat2,2330.10.33,3640.20.4-1,131
Other8,6390.40.310,1770.50.4-1,538
Not stated4,7060.20.18,0190.40.4-3,313
Total Private Dwellings2,076,281100.0100.01,855,753100.0100.0+220,528
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information
Dwelling type
Greater Sydney20212016Change
Dwelling typeNumber%Victoria %Number%Victoria %2016 to 2021
Occupied private dwellings1,911,65391.989.21,719,67892.588.8+191,975
Unoccupied private dwellings164,6287.910.6136,0557.311.0+28,573
Non private dwellings3,0060.10.22,8750.20.2+131
Total dwellings2,079,287100.0100.01,858,608100.0100.0+220,679
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information

Dominant groups

In 2021, there were 1,108,781 separate houses in the area, 390,251 medium density dwellings, and 561,671 high density dwellings.

Analysis of the types of dwellings in Greater Sydney in 2021 shows that 53.4% of all dwellings were separate houses; 18.8% were medium density dwellings, and 27.1% were in high density dwellings, compared with 71.5%, 18.4%, and 9.5% in the Victoria respectively.

In 2021, a total of 91.9% of the dwellings in Greater Sydney were occupied on Census night, compared to 89.2% in Victoria. The proportion of unoccupied dwellings was 7.9%, which is smaller compared to that found in Victoria (10.6%).

Emerging groups

The total number of dwellings in Greater Sydney increased by 220,679 between 2016 and 2021.

The largest changes in the type of dwellings found in Greater Sydney between 2016 and 2021 were:

  • High density (+124,878 dwellings)
  • Separate house (+87,633 dwellings)
  • Medium density (+13,999 dwellings)
  • Other (-1,538 dwellings)

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