Women are still trailing behind men when it comes to home ownership in New Zealand, a new report has found.
CoreLogic's 2023 Women and Property report, which was released on Tuesday ahead of International Women's Day, found men owned 0.5 percent more of the housing stock analysed than women. The report found women-only owned dwellings was 22 percent while men-only owned was 22.5 percent. But it also found joint ownership, between men and women, was on the rise at 55.5 percent.
The increase in joint ownership is likely being driven by recent crippling increases in interest rates and the "sheer unaffordability" of housing, CoreLogic chief property economist Kelvin Davidson said.
Davidson said the rise in joint ownership, whether mixed-gendered or same-sex ownership, pointed towards Kiwis finding a way onto the property ladder.
"The analysis follows a stark shift in housing market conditions, from rapid, broad-based growth in values to a reversal, with the Reserve Bank of New Zealand lifting the cash rate by 350 basis points in the 2022 calendar year.
"It's not surprising to see a lift in joint ownership given the sheer unaffordability of property over recent years," he said.
Additionally, CoreLogic report author Eliza Owen said while it looks like the gender property gap is small or closing, it's more likely joint home ownership is becoming more popular.
"It is possible that affordability constraints have pushed more purchasing decisions to be made by two or more home buyers together. Interestingly, when compared with Australia, NZ has a significantly higher portion of mixed-gendered and joint same-sex ownership.
"This rise in mixed-gender ownership is a counter-trend to what was seen over the previous two years, however analysis of more New Zealand properties this year may have contributed to the change in results," Owen said.
She added the 50 basis point gap in the headline figure equates to men still owning 8149 more properties than women.
Gender disparity is more prominent in investment properties with men owning 26.4 percent compared with 21.3 percent for women.
"Most of the discrepancy between male and female ownership of property could be explained by ownership of investments," Owen said.
But she said there were some hot spots where women-owned more of the investment properties analysed.
These were generally in areas that already had high female ownership rates overall, such as Carterton (21.1 percent), Whakatane (21.9 percent), and Kapiti Coast (21.5 percent).
What and where women own property
The top regions for female home ownership were the Whanganui District (26.5 percent), the Kawerau District (26.4 percent), the South Waikato District (25.4 percent), and Invercargill City (25.3 percent).
Aside from Auckland City, which had a relatively high rate of home ownership among women (25.1 percent), these high female ownership areas are typically more rural or provincial and affordable.
"The relatively low price points within these markets may make home ownership more attainable for women," Owen said.
"Areas with relatively low rates of female home ownership were not only more expensive, such as Selwyn (where rates of female ownership were 15.4 percent and the median dwelling value was around $740,000), but some were popular tourist destinations, such as Mackenzie (with a female home ownership rate of 13.8 percent), Southland District (15.1 percent).
"Such areas may have more investment properties, where males were also seen to be more active across the market."
But Owen said interestingly the opposite was true in Australia with women tending to have a higher portion of home ownership in more expensive, blue chip markets around Sydney.
Owen said that could be due to the higher presence of apartments and townhouses in the main cities.
The labour market also plays a part in where men and women own homes, Kelvin Davidson added.
"Certainly, in areas such Buller, Westland, and Grey, the traditional employers such as mining and agriculture would tend to be more male-oriented, helping them to have a higher home ownership rate," he said.
Several factors have historically hindered women from owning homes at the same rate as men, including the gender pay gap.
The gender wage gap was 9.2 percent in 2022 up from 9.1 percent in 2021 but down from 9.5 percent in 2020.
Owen said the pay gap is potentially partly to blame for women falling behind on "asset accumulation, particularly where it may take women longer on average, to accumulate a deposit for a home".
Owen said empowering women through greater financial literacy and education about property investment could help fix the disparity over time.
She added recent changes aimed at shifting the balance between owner-occupiers and investors could also be useful in bringing down the discrepancy.
"In recent years, with low gross rental yields, the introduction of 40 percent deposits, and the removal of interest deductibility on investment properties, the economics of being an investor have become less favourable," Owen said.
"This could also serve to increase the parity in dwellings owned by men and women, by making way for more owner-occupation of dwellings. Home ownership starts to reflect the demographic of people living in a region, rather than the people interested in investing there."
