Only One Income-Earner In Half N.Z. Households

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30499, 22 July 1964, Page 6

Only One Income-Earner In Half N.Z. Households

Of the 633,707 permanent private dwellings or households in New Zealand, 53.7 per cent, a little more than half, contained only one incomeearner, states the Government Statistician. There was one additional income-earner, probably either a working wife, son, or daughter living at home, in 25.1 per cent of households: 7.7 per cent had two additional income-earners; 2.3 per cent had three: and .7 per cent had four or more. The remaining 10.5 per cent contained no income-earner at all.

Hotels, boarding-houses, hospitals and camps are not included as permanent private dwellings. An income-earner is defined as one who earned £lOO or more a year, excluding social security beneficiaries, universal superannuitants and war pensioners.

In 48.5 per cent of the 58,904 households where the head of the household was an employer, he was also the sole income-earner; in 33.8 per cent of such households there was one additional incomeearner; in 12.2 per cent there were two; and in 5.3 per cent there were three or more. In 66.9 per cent of the 57,118 households where the

head of the household was working on his own account, he was also the sole incomeearner; in 23.7 per cent of such households there was one additional income-earner; in 6.7 per cent there were two; nad in 2.2 per cent there were three or more.

In 59.4 per cent of the 385,579 households where the head of the household was on wages or salary, he was also the sole ’ income-earner; in 28.1 per cent of such households there was one additional income-earner; in 8.7 per cent there were two; and in 3.4 per cent there were three or more. Heads of the remaining 132,106 households were either unemployed, retired, dependent on private or public support, assisting relatives unpaid, or unspecified cases. Highest proportions of refrigerators and washing machines were found in those households where there was more than one income-earner. Of the 340,026 households where there was only one income-earner, 80.6 per cent had an unshared refrigerator; for the 159,201 households with two income-earners, the percentage rose to 85.3; for

the 48,783 households with three income-earners, the percentage was 87.8; for the 14,783 households with four income-earners, the percentage was 87.8. With washing machines the situation was similar.

The percentage of homes owned was also affected by the number of income-earners in the household. A high percentage (54.2) of dwellings where there were no incomeearners were owned outright without mortgage; most such homes would be owned by age beneficiaries or retired people who had paid for their homes over some earlier period of their lives.

Of dwellings where there was one income-earner, 24.4 per cent were owned without mortgage; for those with two income-earners the percentage rose to 27.3; for those with three income-earners it was 28.9; for those with four income-earners it was 27.0; for those with five or more it was 25.1. By comparison, 28.7 per cent of all New Zealand dwellings were owned without mortgage.