Informed Decisions has just released their 2024 Living In Australia report.
It summarises a survey of over 5,000 participants, focusing on four critical themes to improve national living standards: affordable decent housing, feeling safe, economics and cost of living, and environment and climate change.
The introduction highlights the importance of understanding and measuring national health beyond GDP, with a focus on local area vitality.
It will come as no surprise that affordable decent housing is identified as is the third most important attribute of liveability across Australia, and the number one biggest inhibitor to advancing quality of life.
There is a significant gap between the value placed on housing and the actual experience of it.
Younger people and renters are more affected by the lack of affordable housing, with two-thirds of 18 to 34-year-olds and just over two-thirds of renters considering it in their top 5 values.
Experiences of affordable decent housing vary across regions, with metropolitan areas showing better access to housing the further one travels from the CBD.
Feeling safe is the most valued attribute for a good place to live, with women placing a higher importance on safety than men. However, experiences of feeling safe are relatively equal across genders. Geographically, inner-city and smaller regional areas report feeling safer, while larger regional towns and cities express greater concerns about safety.
Economics and the cost of living are pressing local area issues. It is interesting that younger Australians report poorer financial circumstances but are also the most optimistic about personal financial circumstances improving. The report suggests there is a growing shift in the younger cohort mindset from spending money to earning money.
Environment and climate change are significant concerns for all respondents. Belief in climate change is widespread, with nine in ten Australians believing it is occurring.
There is a difference in belief regarding the cause of climate change, with just under half believing it is caused entirely or mostly by human activities, and 30% feeling it is caused equally by human activities and natural causes.
The majority of Australians believe their local area is already feeling the impacts of climate change or will do so in their lifetime.
The climate-related event Australians are most expecting to be affected by is extreme heat, with inner-city residents being particularly concerned.
The report in its entirety makes for some interesting reading. If you’d like to find out more you can download it for free here.
