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LEARN MORE ABOUT .idIn Victoria, 27.8% of the dwellings were medium or high density, compared to 21% in Western Australia.
Dwelling Type is an important determinant of Victoria'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 Victoria.
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 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria - Dwellings (Enumerated) | 2021 | 2001 | Change | ||||
| Dwelling type | Number | % | Western Australia % | Number | % | Western Australia % | 2001 to 2021 |
| Separate house | 2,004,789 | 71.5 | 77.1 | 1,488,156 | 77.7 | 77.6 | +516,633 |
| Medium density | 514,839 | 18.4 | 15.9 | 317,803 | 16.6 | 16.1 | +197,036 |
| High density | 265,478 | 9.5 | 4.8 | 72,111 | 3.8 | 3.1 | +193,367 |
| Caravans, cabin, houseboat | 9,083 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 10,881 | 0.6 | 1.8 | -1,798 |
| Other | 7,686 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 10,046 | 0.5 | 0.6 | -2,360 |
| Not stated | 3,789 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 15,197 | 0.8 | 0.8 | -11,408 |
| Total Private Dwellings | 2,805,664 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 1,914,194 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +891,470 |
| Dwelling type | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria | 2021 | 2001 | Change | ||||
| Dwelling type | Number | % | Western Australia % | Number | % | Western Australia % | 2001 to 2021 |
| Occupied private dwellings | 2,507,636 | 89.2 | 89.5 | 1,731,339 | 90.2 | 89.8 | +776,297 |
| Unoccupied private dwellings | 298,029 | 10.6 | 10.3 | 182,868 | 9.5 | 10.0 | +115,161 |
| Non private dwellings | 5,110 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 4,343 | 0.2 | 0.3 | +767 |
| Total dwellings | 2,810,775 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 1,918,550 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +892,225 |
Dominant groups
In 2021, there were 2,004,789 separate houses in the area, 514,839 medium density dwellings, and 265,478 high density dwellings.
Analysis of the types of dwellings in Victoria in 2021 shows that 71.5% of all dwellings were separate houses; 18.4% were medium density dwellings, and 9.5% were in high density dwellings, compared with 77.1%, 15.9%, and 4.8% in the Western Australia respectively.
In 2021, a total of 89.2% of the dwellings in Victoria were occupied on Census night, compared to 89.5% in Western Australia. The proportion of unoccupied dwellings was 10.6%, which is larger compared to that found in Western Australia (10.3%).
Emerging groups
The total number of dwellings in Victoria increased by 892,225 between 2001 and 2021.
The largest changes in the type of dwellings found in Victoria between 2001 and 2021 were:
- Separate house (+516,633 dwellings)
- Medium density (+197,036 dwellings)
- High density (+193,367 dwellings)
- Other (-2,360 dwellings)
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