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AustraliaCommunity profile

Greater Melbourne

Dwelling type

In Greater Melbourne, 34.4% of the dwellings were medium or high density, compared to 28% in Victoria.

Dwelling Type is an important determinant of Greater Melbourne'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 Melbourne.

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 Melbourne - Dwellings (Enumerated)20212016Change
Dwelling typeNumber%Victoria %Number%Victoria %2016 to 2021
Separate house1,339,40865.171.51,211,73266.172.1+127,676
Medium density444,30721.618.4420,23022.919.4+24,077
High density263,39312.89.5184,73310.17.4+78,660
Caravans, cabin, houseboat2,5020.10.33,5710.20.4-1,069
Other5,5730.30.36,3620.30.4-789
Not stated2,2890.10.15,4100.30.4-3,121
Total Private Dwellings2,057,472100.0100.01,832,038100.0100.0+225,434
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 Melbourne20212016Change
Dwelling typeNumber%Victoria %Number%Victoria %2016 to 2021
Occupied private dwellings1,858,79990.289.21,664,54090.788.8+194,259
Unoccupied private dwellings198,6859.610.6167,5009.111.0+31,185
Non private dwellings2,8280.10.22,3170.10.2+511
Total dwellings2,060,312100.0100.01,834,357100.0100.0+225,955
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 1,339,408 separate houses in the area, 444,307 medium density dwellings, and 263,393 high density dwellings.

Analysis of the types of dwellings in Greater Melbourne in 2021 shows that 65.1% of all dwellings were separate houses; 21.6% were medium density dwellings, and 12.8% were in high density dwellings, compared with 71.5%, 18.4%, and 9.5% in the Victoria respectively.

In 2021, a total of 90.2% of the dwellings in Greater Melbourne were occupied on Census night, compared to 89.2% in Victoria. The proportion of unoccupied dwellings was 9.6%, which is smaller compared to that found in Victoria (10.6%).

Emerging groups

The total number of dwellings in Greater Melbourne increased by 225,955 between 2016 and 2021.

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

  • Separate house (+127,676 dwellings)
  • High density (+78,660 dwellings)
  • Medium density (+24,077 dwellings)
  • Caravans, cabin, houseboat (-1,069 dwellings)

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