Invest
More power to Millennials as property ownership proves possible
Nearly half of home-buying Millennials believe the COVID-19 situation has actually made home ownership a more achievable goal.
More power to Millennials as property ownership proves possible
Nearly half of home-buying Millennials believe the COVID-19 situation has actually made home ownership a more achievable goal.
According to a new report from ING, an attitude shift means a third of those who are considering a property purchase will do so within the next 12 to 24 months.
The Future Focus: Homeownership report has found that Millennials have used the lockdown to get on top of property goals – 59 per cent have redirected travel budgets to a home savings account, 37 per cent have taken up a side hustle, while 36 per cent have moved back in with their parents.
ING’s head of home loans, Julie-Anne Bosich, believes that the research suggests Millennials, and Australians more generally, “haven’t given up on the great Australian dream of owning their own home, they’re just rethinking how they go about getting there and re-evaluating where they might want to live”.
In order to save and, ultimately, to buy sooner, ING found that half of Millennial home buyers are now considering living on the city fringes and in more outer suburbs that could be more than 45 kilometres from the city.

A further one in five (22 per cent) is intending to buy a smaller property in a cheaper area and rent it out until they can afford a forever home.
The report revealed that Millennials are notably more likely than Gen Z or Gen X to enter the property market with a partner.
Six in 10 of them (or 60 per cent) expect to take this route, compared with just 41 per cent of Gen Z individuals and 35 per cent of Gen X buyers.
While one in five Millennials intends to do it alone, another 9 per cent of Millennial purchasers are considering buying in with a friend or family member to enable them to get on the ladder more quickly.
Ms Bosich said the report suggests, “Many people, especially Millennials, are being savvy by taking advantage of record-low interest rates, government assistance and a weakened housing market to get on the property ladder.”
With the recent lockdowns likely proving to Millennials that they can cut down on external expenses, ING has revealed that more than half of home-purchasing Millennials will limit personal shopping to achieve their property goals.
A further 42 per cent are planning on reducing their dining-out expenses, while 28 per cent will cut down on recreational drinking.
With gyms another victim of recent restrictions, some Millennials have also decided they won’t be going back – 21 per cent will give up their gym membership in pursuit of stronger savings.
About the author
About the author
Property
New investment platform Arkus allows Australians to invest in property for just $1
In a groundbreaking move to democratise investment in property-backed mortgage funds, GPS Investment Fund Limited has launched Arkus™, a retail investment platform designed to make investing ...Read more
Property
Help to Buy goes live: What 40,000 new buyers mean for banks, builders and the bottom line
Australia’s Help to Buy has opened, lowering the deposit hurdle to 2 per cent and aiming to support up to 40,000 households over four years. That single policy lever will reverberate through mortgage ...Read more
Property
Australia’s mortgage knife‑fight: investors, first‑home buyers and the new rules of lender competition
The mortgage market is staying hot even as rate relief remains elusive, with investors and first‑home buyers chasing scarce stock and lenders fighting for share on price, speed and digital experienceRead more
Property
Breaking Australia’s three‑property ceiling: the finance‑first playbook for scalable portfolios
Most Australian investors don’t stall at three properties because they run out of ambition — they run out of borrowing capacity. The ceiling is a finance constraint disguised as an asset problem. The ...Read more
Property
Gen Z's secret weapon: Why their homebuying spree could flip Australia's housing market
A surprising share of younger Australians are preparing to buy despite affordability headwinds. One in three Gen Z Australians intend to purchase within a few years and 32 per cent say escaping rent ...Read more
Property
Tasmania’s pet-positive pivot: What landlords, BTR operators and insurers need to do now
Tasmania will soon require landlords to allow pets unless they can prove a valid reason to refuse. This is more than a tenancy tweak; it is a structural signal that the balance of power in rental ...Read more
Property
NSW underquoting crackdown: the compliance reset creating both cost and competitive edge
NSW is moving to sharply increase penalties for misleading price guides, including fines linked to agent commissions and maximum penalties up to $110,000. Behind the headlines sits a more ...Read more
Property
ANZ’s mortgage growth, profit slump: why volume without margin won’t pay the dividends
ANZ lifted home-lending volumes, yet profits fell under the weight of regulatory and restructuring costs—an object lesson in the futility of growth that doesn’t convert to margin and productivityRead more
Property
New investment platform Arkus allows Australians to invest in property for just $1
In a groundbreaking move to democratise investment in property-backed mortgage funds, GPS Investment Fund Limited has launched Arkus™, a retail investment platform designed to make investing ...Read more
Property
Help to Buy goes live: What 40,000 new buyers mean for banks, builders and the bottom line
Australia’s Help to Buy has opened, lowering the deposit hurdle to 2 per cent and aiming to support up to 40,000 households over four years. That single policy lever will reverberate through mortgage ...Read more
Property
Australia’s mortgage knife‑fight: investors, first‑home buyers and the new rules of lender competition
The mortgage market is staying hot even as rate relief remains elusive, with investors and first‑home buyers chasing scarce stock and lenders fighting for share on price, speed and digital experienceRead more
Property
Breaking Australia’s three‑property ceiling: the finance‑first playbook for scalable portfolios
Most Australian investors don’t stall at three properties because they run out of ambition — they run out of borrowing capacity. The ceiling is a finance constraint disguised as an asset problem. The ...Read more
Property
Gen Z's secret weapon: Why their homebuying spree could flip Australia's housing market
A surprising share of younger Australians are preparing to buy despite affordability headwinds. One in three Gen Z Australians intend to purchase within a few years and 32 per cent say escaping rent ...Read more
Property
Tasmania’s pet-positive pivot: What landlords, BTR operators and insurers need to do now
Tasmania will soon require landlords to allow pets unless they can prove a valid reason to refuse. This is more than a tenancy tweak; it is a structural signal that the balance of power in rental ...Read more
Property
NSW underquoting crackdown: the compliance reset creating both cost and competitive edge
NSW is moving to sharply increase penalties for misleading price guides, including fines linked to agent commissions and maximum penalties up to $110,000. Behind the headlines sits a more ...Read more
Property
ANZ’s mortgage growth, profit slump: why volume without margin won’t pay the dividends
ANZ lifted home-lending volumes, yet profits fell under the weight of regulatory and restructuring costs—an object lesson in the futility of growth that doesn’t convert to margin and productivityRead more
