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Newly released 2023 Census data shows that around one-in-16 houses in New Zealand are too small for the number of people living in them

Public Policy / news
Newly released 2023 Census data shows that around one-in-16 houses in New Zealand are too small for the number of people living in them
[updated]
crowded-houserf1.jpg
Source: 123rf.com

For the second Census in a row there's been a measurable increase in the rate of overcrowding in New Zealand houses.

Statistics NZ has released more new information from the 2023 Census. And according to Stats NZ there's more than 100,000 households that fit its definition of overcrowded.

Stats NZ says around one-in-16 households experienced crowded living conditions in 2023, which is up from around one-in-17 in the 2018 census and just one-in-20 in 2013.

Crowding occurs when a dwelling is too small for the number of people living in the household, Stats NZ says. It can be measured in different ways, such as the number of people per room or bedroom. It says its definition is based on the Canadian National Occupancy Standard (CNOS) and provides a derived index of whether a household is crowded or not crowded, based on the number of bedrooms needed for the typology of the household and the number of bedrooms in the dwelling. (A more full explanation is given at bottom of the article, taken from this Stats NZ data info page)

"Stats NZ has measured crowding since the 1980s. We calculate the number of bedrooms needed based on the demographic composition of the household. This informs the household crowding index which provides insight into how we live in our homes – whether we have spare bedrooms or need more bedrooms, Stats NZ said.

Crowding was in fact worse in this country in the 1980s, but then improved through the 1990s. However, recently it has worsened. And the most recent rise in crowding has come despite high levels of construction of new houses around the country.

Stats NZ principal analyst Rosemary Goodyear says crowding is "a complex topic" and isn’t just about large households.

"For example, we know that people in crowded households may struggle to find suitable and affordable housing that meets their needs."

Goodyear said an increase in household crowding "is concerning" as crowding can affect physical health, and is a risk factor for infectious disease.

Around the country, the only region that didn't see an increase in household crowding between the 2018 and 2023 censuses was Auckland - but it already had amongst the most overcrowded conditions anyway.

In 2023, Gisborne had the highest proportion of crowded households in a region at 10.7%, followed by Auckland at 8.8%.

Although Auckland region had the second highest crowding rate, within Auckland there were very high rates of crowding in some local board areas, Stats NZ said.

The highest rates were in South Auckland where around a quarter of households in Māngere-Ōtāhuhu and Ōtara-Papatoetoe experienced crowding.

Stats NZ gives this detailed explanation of household crowding:

Household crowding is determined by comparing the number of bedrooms a household needs, and the number of bedrooms available in the dwelling. The number of bedrooms needed is assessed based on the demographic composition of the household, and is calculated using the following rules:

  • there should be no more than two persons per bedroom
  • children aged less than five years may reasonably share a bedroom, irrespective of their gender (male, female, another)
  • children aged 5 to 17 years may reasonably share a bedroom only with the same gender (male only with another male, female only with female, and people of another gender only with someone else of another gender)
  • single adults 18 years and over and any additional children require a separate bedroom
  • household members 18 years or over should have a separate bedroom, as should parents or couples.

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27 Comments

How many people per bedroom constitutes overcrowding though?  Two couples sharing a two bedroom flat?  Two kids sharing a bedroom?  Someone occupying a sunroom/rumpus room as a bedroom?

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It's all explained above and I am actually surprised there isn't more homes considered overcrowded given they do recommend children above 5 to only share the bedroom with another child of the same gender.

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The article originally just says it calculates overcrowding by comparing household demographic with number of bedrooms.  

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When we bought our house there were 2 daughters in one bedroom. So I built a wall down the middle of it. Perfect! The things you do when you have initiative. No worse than living on a boat. Way better than bunk beds.

Sure, after they reached a certain age that was not appropriate but at that time there were no problems whatsoever. They just had to coordinate when to turn the lights off. Haha.

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How is that better than bunk beds?

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Separation

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"So I built a wall down the middle of it."

So long as they remain a minimum of 6 sqm and have a window - all good.

Current planning rules, that suggest much larger bedrooms, are daft.

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Floor to ceiling window at the ends. No different to before.

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Additional information added. Thanks.

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Pack em in; stack em high. 

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That graph is whack. 18 different data points for 9 locations. 

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Fixed. Thanks.

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Gisborne is very telling. A city of beneficiaries, the more Bene-boyztm you pack into each state house, the more money to spend. 

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Pack the extra mattresses & toothbrushes into the Nissan Elgrand and go for a drive on inspection day.  

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The Nissan Elgrand comment is just spot on.

 

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Stats NZ gives this detailed explanation of household crowding:

We made up a bunch of rules that don't take any account of cultural or personal preferences, even though we suggest they do by using the word "demographic". We based these rules around Eurocentric norms, and decided anyone not meeting them is weird, creepy, and quite possibly abusive.

Fixed it for them.

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& still households are now less crowded than last century.

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So? Better than 100 years ago? Progress, huh? /sarc

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Wow.

So you're saying we should ignore health & safety advice because they are 'Eurocentric norms'?

Might I suggest the Europeans are about 300 years ahead of us in this regard?

I.e. we should learn from their mistakes?

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I may have used an incorrect term there, I'm very tired, it's been a long week. By Eurocentric I mean Western, white, colonial, pick your least offensive term.

What if the bedroom is 25sqm? What if an entire house is open plan save for the bathroom and toilet facilities? What if the whole family is happy sleeping in the same large room?

Should 6 year old twins, a boy and a girl, be separated on their birthday no matter how close or happy they are because they cross an arbitrary age boundary?

I'm not saying cramming four people into a 2.4m x 2.4m room is a wise idea, I'm pointing out the "rules" use for the metric are stupid because the parameters aren't fully defined, and focus only on the demographic, not the physics. Maybe there's more to the rules than have been disclosed, I certainly hope so.

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"Should 6 year old twins, a boy and a girl, be separated on their birthday no matter how close or happy they are because they cross an arbitrary age boundary?"

Who said that?

Was it copied from the wise and insightful, and always correct, social media? Or as we call it nowadays, A.I.?

p.s. Don't post when you're tired.

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One of the unintended consequences of unaffordable housing in NZ.

There are many others. 

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Yup. Sadly rates of incest, familiar rape, and sexual abuse within households will increase.

But hey. Let's pretend the future costs won't be huge and vote for more tax cuts.

edit: my apologies if my comments are confronting. However, and sadly, they are facts.

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Neil and Tim Finn couldn't dream the crowded house days are over - I imagine it will only get worse from here.

 

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One of the consequences of Labour ending the ability for landlords to terminate leases, is that landlords were no longer prepared to take a chance on low income or risky tenants.  This contributed to the massive rise in overcrowding, emergency housing, and the 500% blowout in the public housing waitlist.   Mindless law changes have real world consequences - "being kind" doesnt work in the real world.  Most people would prefer to have a house for 12 months than have no housing at all.

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So despite the highest growth in the country, Auckland was the only region that has declining overcrowding.

What are they doing right.

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Greater supply. They've been at it since 2016. (My posts for the last year explain why.)

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