’’Occupied dwellings”

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32665, 22 July 1971, Page 14

’’Occupied dwellings”

New Zealand’s population of 2,860,475 on March 23 ! this year was housed in 810,517 occupied dwellings, . according to the summary of the census released i recently by the Government Statistician. For many < purposes, the number of occupied dwellings is just ' as significant as the total population. It is usually , taken to represent the number of “households” in , the country, and forms the starting-point for ; businessmen’s market surveys as well as sociolo- 1 gists’ treatises. The average size of the New Zealand household is now 3.53 persons, compared with 3.70 five years ago—and with 5.17 in 1886. By 1921 the average had fallen to 4.55, and the 1924 Yearbook, commenting on the decline since 1886, noted that “ this movement may “manifestly be associated with the marked fall in “the birth-rate and the consequent smaller size of “families”. The birth-rate has fallen slightly since 1921, but other things have contributed to the decline in the average size of the household: urban drift, the virtual disappearance of domestic servants, children marrying and leaving home at a younger age, and a higher proportion of elderly people in institutions and pensioners’ cottages. The size of the average household Is of importance to builders and to businessmen dealing with householders—but not of so much importance as the number of households. There are now nearly a million cars in New Zealand—l.l cars for every household. Allowing that some “business” cars are not available to householders, how many more cars can the motor trade expect to sell to households? Town planners, too, would like to know the answer to that question. Manufacturers of television sets usually reckon that their national market potential is one set to every household: on that reckoning the New Zealand television market is “86 per cent “ saturated ” (or 93 per cent saturated, if the number of television sets in use is assumed to be the number manufactured in New Zealand rather than the number licensed).

The size of the population and the number of occupied dwellings are the first national statistics to emerge from this year’s census. The Department of Statistics will be busy in the next few months checking before publication such information as the ages and marital status of the population, where people were bom and what education they received, the kinds of houses they live in, and whether they have running water and refrigerators in their houses. The previous census provided information for 12 volumes, each one a mine of information on some facet of life in New Zealand.

Research workers and policy-makers are waiting for the 12 volumes reporting the 1971 census—perhaps to draw up plans for the next five years production, or to reinforce their policy recommendations. This information may often seen pointless to the man in the street, who grudgingly gave up some hours of his spare time to filling in his census forms three months ago. It should be some consolation to him to reflect that the census provides the best possible indication of what goods and services still need to be provided to improve the quality of life for the common man.