2017-04-11 P&E Agenda Attachment 1 to Item 1 Housing Needs Assessment

2011 and 2016. However, rather than chart the data, four indicators were developed to assist with
comparison.

The methodology is briefly summarised below:

       Median household income – Median household income from the 2011 Census (ABS
        2013a) is adjusted each quarter based on the wage price index for Queensland for total
        hourly rates of pay (excluding bonuses) for all sectors and all industries (ABS 2016 Table
        2B A2600949X);
       Median weekly mortgage repayments for attached and detached dwellings – Median
        mortgage repayments have been calculated based on the median sale price of attached
        and detached dwellings in the areas from Queensland Treasury data (Queensland
        Government 2016e) and average variable bank mortgage rates for owner occupiers as
        published by the Reserve Bank of Australia (2016) assuming a 20% deposit and 25 year
        loan period. Weekly repayments assume a month has four weeks. To reduce variability
        between data periods, an average of the mortgage repayment over the most recent four
        periods was used;
       Median rents for attached and detached dwellings – Median rents are based on new
        bonds lodged with the Residential Tenancies Authority (2016) each quarter and are for
        two bedroom attached dwellings and three bedroom detached dwellings only. To reduce
        variability between data periods, an average of the median rent over the most recent four
        periods was used;
       Affordability indicators – The four affordability indicators are the proportions of income a
        household earning the median household income would need to spend on renting or
        purchasing a median priced dwelling (either a unit or a house).

The results of the analysis estimate that in the Noosa Shire, a household earning a median
income is estimated to spend around:

       35% of their income to rent a 2-bedroom unit;
       41% of their income to rent a 3-bedroom house;
       37% of their income to purchase a unit; and
       49% of their income to purchase a house.

These were all higher percentages than for the other comparison areas (Figure 45). Between 5-10
additional percentage points of income are needed in the Noosa Shire to afford a dwelling
compared to the next most unaffordable Local Government Area (which for most indicators was
the Gold Coast).




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