More than 80 per cent believe home ownership is no longer attainable for the average Kiwi, a survey reveals.

More than 80 per cent of people believe the dream of homeownership is no longer attainable for the average Kiwi, a new survey reveals.
The current housing market boom had caused house prices to surge, breaking price growth records on the way.
Trade Me Propertys latest asking price figures put the national average asking price up by 18 per cent annually to an all-time high of $826,200, while the Real Estate Institute reported the national median had increased by 28.7 per cent to $820,000 in the year to June.
There had been widespread debate about skyrocketing prices, but a new report, Kiwi Families in 2021, showed 78.9 per cent of respondents to a survey, commissioned by OneChoice, were worried.
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It also showed that 83.4 per cent of respondents believed the dream of homeownership was out of reach for an average New Zealander.
Of those looking to buy, 79.1 per cent felt locked out of the property market, while 71.5 per cent were losing hope that they would ever be able to buy their own home.
Massey University professor Graham Squires said housing affordability had become an increasingly debated area.
Recent analysis from the university showed the rise in house prices, combined with a drop in wages in many regions, had led to a decline in home affordability of 6.8 per cent nationwide over recent months.
More than 80 per cent of first home buyers do not mind if their first property is not their dream home as long as they own a property.
The income gap between renting and owning had grown, and homeownership was increasingly out of reach for low-income households, Squires said.
This stretches to the point that many young people see themselves as a generation of renters rather than owners. The ideals of homeownership are in reality unattainable for the majority of young people without support.
Adding to the pressure was the widespread belief that homeownership would increase social well-being, he said.
But the Kiwi Families report showed that, despite this, people still wanted to get on the property ladder, with 69.9 per cent of them motivated by a desire to stop paying rent.
Almost 94 per cent of respondents said rents were overpriced in New Zealand, and just 6.1 per cent said rental prices were reasonable.
Another survey finding was that 83.1 per cent of first-home buyers did not mind if their first property was not their dream home as long as they owned a property.
But 70.5 per cent said value was their number one consideration when looking at a property, while other important factors were living in a safe neighbourhood, low maintenance costs and access to local amenities.
To buy a property, 58.7 per cent of first home buyers were cutting back on living expenses, 33.7 per cent were pooling resources with family or friends to buy a home together, 32 per cent were applying for grants and 24 per cent were taking on second jobs.