Apartment dwellers Nathan Buckley and wife Tanya are looking to upsize more than just their living arrangements.
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They also want to add to their family. The young couple will soon be part of an emerging trend of apartment owners preparing to leave the multi-unit development market for larger homes.
A new report by economic analysts BIS Shrapnel shows the shift towards apartment living could slow during the next decade as the large demographic of 20-to-34-year-olds move on to their next stage in life.
The report, based on analysis of census data from the past 20 years, indicates the movement of the market towards multi-unit dwellings will stabilise as those who had driven the apartment occupancy during the past 10 years look to upsize their accommodation.
BIS senior project manager Angie Zigomanis said while the country was still experiencing a trend towards apartment living, shifting demographics would lead to a greater demand for detached houses.
He said the 20-to-34-year-old age group had been the most rapidly growing segment of the community and this would translate into an acceleration of population of those in their late 30s and early 40s.
Census data from 2011 revealed that 80 per cent of those in the older demographic lived in detached houses, compared to 63 per cent of those in the younger category.
While the stabilisation in the market for multi-unit apartments would not be apparent quickly, Mr Zigomanis said governments should expect to see a rise in demand for detached dwellings in about five years, particularly in greenfield sites.
Mr Buckley, who married Ms Heydon in January, said they had decided to sell their two-bedroom apartment so they could upsize to a bigger home and start a family.
The couple purchased an off-the-plan apartment at Aspect Residences in Queanbeyan about three years ago. While they were happy to call the apartment home for about two years they recently decided to buy a detached house at the new NSW township of Googong.
Mr Buckley said the couple was planning to move to Ms Heydon's father's home in Bredbo while their home was completed.
''It seems like a great opportunity, it's the type of community we want to live in,'' he said. ''It gives us a couple of years to start a family.''
The Emerging Trends in Residential Market Demand report also found no major evidence of an increase in the rate of downsizing by retirees aged more than 65.
