After the controversy that marred the 2016 Census collection process, the results are in.

As reported by domain.com.au, the building boom in the apartment market was reflected in the data; with those calling a unit or apartment home increasing by nearly three per cent, and the number of people living in houses declining by around the same amount between the 2011 and 2016 Census periods. The data states that 20 per cent of the greater Brisbane population now call an apartment home.  Not surprisingly the data showed that flat or apartment living in the Brisbane inner city region was the most popular, with over 48,800 residents or 50.4% of those surveyed occupying this type of dwelling. 

Since 2011, the Brisbane local government area has observed a drop in the households that have a mortgage from 36.8 per cent down to 35.7 per cent. The stress of these mortgages on household income in the Brisbane local government area has shown a good result; as in 2011, 8.7 per cent of residents contributed more than 30 per cent of their household income towards mortgage repayments, compared to the 2016 figure that shows this dropped to 5.8 per cent. More specifically, the figure for Brisbane inner city residents is only 4.3% of residents for the most recent Census period.

The article states this is due to the drop in the medium monthly mortgage repayments which fell from $2,100 to $2000 over the course of five years (greater Brisbane). This repayment drop can be linked to the interest rate cuts from 4.5 per cent to 1.5 per cent between Census periods.  

With regards to the rental market, the data shows that 33 per cent were tenants in 2011, compared to 34.5 per cent in 2016. The Brisbane inner city region data shows that renting is higher than the Brisbane greater region figure, with nearly 50 per cent of households renting.

With regards to population, 34.1 per cent of the Brisbane inner city is made up of 20-34 year olds.

Summary of Brisbane Inner City 2016 results