The rate of first home buyers in Australia has taken a steep dip as more renters choose prime locations over mortgages.
While buying a house is top priority for some young Aussies, plenty are delaying home ownership because of dire unaffordability – and are renting by the beach while they're doing it.
Lauren Swan hails from Wagga Wagga in country NSW and wanted to live near the beach when she moved to Sydney.
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The Bondi local is happy living in the pricey eastern suburbs and is enjoying the beachside dream, even if that fantasy has an expiry date.
"Living in Bondi allows me to have such a gorgeous easy lifestyle and I pinch myself every day," Swan told 9news.com.au.
"Most mornings start with a coastal sunrise walk with my dog, a coffee and then a dip in the ocean.
"Everyone around here is super active and 6am on a Friday seems like a party."
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Paying rent, like many Australians in capital cities, has meant saving for a home is tough.
She and her two housemates pay $1410 per week for the privilege and Swan knows there's no chance she'd afford a home in the suburb she loves so much.
"There is absolutely no way I'd be able to afford buying in this area – I'd be looking at millions," she said.
"Location matters more to me right now as I'm in my mid-20s and wanting to enjoy every bit of life right now.
"Home ownership is something I'll look at when I'm ready to settle down and get serious about starting a family."
Victoria woman Brooklyn Sacchetta is in the same mortgage-free boat.
She grew up and still lives in coastal Ocean Grove, around 96km from Melbourne, and rents a sharehouse with her partner and friends.
"This is really the only viable way I'd be able to stay this close to the beach," Sacchetta explained.
"This is home. All of my happy memories are here. I would find it really difficult to not live near the beach. It's where I feel most myself and most grounded."
Sacchetta said she pays rent "through the roof" and would love to buy in Ocean Grove, but this fantasy might not be within reach.
"[Where] the market is at the moment, we would have to move out of town. This is definitely something we discuss a lot and not sure that it's worth sacrificing," she said.
"Our rent increases by about $50 per year."
There's a slow but steady trend of young Australians eschewing mortgages.
Home ownership among people aged their early 30s has dropped from 60 per cent in the 1980s to just over 40 per cent, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Macquarie Business School's Professor Elizabeth Sheedy found young adults are showing a strong preference for travelling and freedom from debt over owning a home.
"We found many are ambivalent towards home ownership and have other goals that are much more of a focus: developing careers, travelling and enjoying their freedom," Sheedy said.
And the ABS found the number of first home buyers dropped nationally by 3.2 per cent in September 2024.
Leanne Pilkington, president of the Real Estate Institute of Australia, said last year the figures were "troubling".
"The fall in first-home buyer loans points to the ongoing struggles faced by young Australians attempting to enter the property market," she said in a statement.
"The decline reflects the strain on affordability, exacerbated by rising property prices and higher interest rates, which are pushing home ownership further out of reach."
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