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LEARN MORE ABOUT .idIn 2021, 45% of households in CBD and Harbour Village Area contained only one person, compared with 41.1% in the City of Sydney, with the most dominant household size being 1 person per household.
The size of households in general follows the life-cycle of families. Households are usually small at the stage of relationship formation (early marriage), and then increase in size with the advent of children. They later reduce in size again as these children reach adulthood and leave home. Household size can also be influenced by a lack (or abundance) of affordable housing. Overseas migrants and indigenous persons often have a tradition of living with extended family members which significantly affects household size.
Household size in Australia has generally declined since the 1970s, but the rate of decline has slowed in recent years.
An increasing household size in an area may indicate a lack of affordable housing opportunities for young people, an increase in the birth rate or an increase in family formation in the area. A declining household size may indicate children leaving the area when they leave home, an increase in retirees settling in the area, or an attraction of young singles and couples to the area.
For greater insight, CBD and Harbour Village Area's Household Size data should be viewed in conjunction with Household Summary, Age Structure, Dwelling Type, Household Income and Language Spoken at Home.
Q:
Derived from the three Census questions:
'Name of each person including visitors who spent the night of Tuesday, 10 August 2021 in this dwelling', and 'Where does the person usually live?', and 'Name of each person who usually lives in this dwelling but was away on Tuesday, 10 August 2021.'
| Household size | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CBD and Harbour Village Area - Households (Enumerated) | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||
| Number of persons usually resident | Number | % | City of Sydney % | Number | % | City of Sydney % | 2016 to 2021 |
| 1 person | 1,716 | 44.6 | 41.1 | 1,269 | 41.6 | 37.3 | +447 |
| 2 persons | 1,574 | 40.9 | 38.6 | 1,241 | 40.7 | 38.4 | +333 |
| 3 persons | 337 | 8.8 | 11.6 | 309 | 10.1 | 12.8 | +28 |
| 4 persons | 166 | 4.3 | 6.4 | 182 | 6.0 | 7.8 | -16 |
| 5 persons | 32 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 21 | 0.7 | 2.3 | +11 |
| 6 or more persons | 19 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 26 | 0.9 | 1.4 | -7 |
| Total classifiable households | 3,844 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 3,048 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +796 |
| Household size - Summary | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CBD and Harbour Village Area - Enumerated | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||
| Dwellings | Number | % | City of Sydney % | Number | % | City of Sydney % | 2016 to 2021 |
| Occupied private dwellings | 4,334 | -- | -- | 4,196 | -- | -- | +138 |
| Persons in occupied private dwellings | 7,502 | -- | -- | 7,329 | -- | -- | +173 |
| Average household size (persons per dwelling) | 1.73 | -- | 1.89 | 1.75 | -- | 1.97 | -0.02 |
Dominant groups
Analysis of the number of persons usually resident in a household in CBD and Harbour Village Area compared with the City of Sydney shows that there were a higher proportion of lone person households, and a lower proportion of larger households (those with 4 persons or more). Overall there were 44.6% of lone person households, and 5.6% of larger households, compared with 41.1% and 8.7% respectively for the City of Sydney.
The major differences in the household size for CBD and Harbour Village Area and the City of Sydney were:
- A larger percentage of households with 1 person usually resident (44.6% compared to 41.1%)
- A larger percentage of households with 2 persons usually resident (40.9% compared to 38.6%)
- A smaller percentage of households with 3 persons usually resident (8.8% compared to 11.6%)
- A smaller percentage of households with 4 persons usually resident (4.3% compared to 6.4%)
Emerging groups
The number of households in CBD and Harbour Village Area increased by 796 between 2016 and 2021.
The largest changes in the number of persons usually resident in a household in CBD and Harbour Village Area between 2016 and 2021 were:
- 1 person (+447 households)
- 2 persons (+333 households)
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