A new report reveals Australians are forgoing marriage in favour of a mortgage.
Aussie Home Loans has examined tens of thousands of mortgage settlements between 2010 and 2024 and found that Australian homebuyers are increasingly saying “I do” to home ownership, with the number of home loans approved to unmarried couples having jumped by 80 per cent since 2015.
According to the research, de facto mortgages made up just 15 per cent of all mortgages by the mortgage broker in 2015, but today this figure sits at 27 per cent as Australian couples shun traditional milestones in order to achieve their financial goals.
And in SA, the deposit headstart to would-be buyers by forgoing expensive nuptials are significant.
Many couples are deferring getting married in favour of buying a home. Pic: iStock.
Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show the average wedding cost in South Australia in 2024 was $40,000 – 24.52 per cent of the 20 per cent deposit needed for a $815,500 home, Adelaide’s average house price.
It would make up a whopping 49 per cent of the cash needed for a 10 per cent deposit.
Aussie Home Loans mortgage broker, Tracey Hammond, said more and more, Aussie’s clients were choosing to invest in bricks and mortar first.
“It’s a tough reality for a lot of first home buyers, but it comes down to prioritising their long-term financial security over society pressures,” she said.
Aussie Home Loans’ Tracey Hammond. Pic: Supplied
“Everyone’s love story is different.
“For some, the dream is a big wedding; for others, it’s picking up the keys to their first home together.”
Ray White SA’s chief auctioneer John Morris said he had been seeing more and more de facto couples buying under the hammer as a way of getting into the market.
“There are a lot of engaged couples buying, whereas in the past people would wait, get married and then buy the house,” he said.
“The amount of contracts I do in different names is huge. I often say ‘oh, you haven’t changed your name yet,’ and they say ‘oh, we haven’t got married yet’.
“It’s a huge financial hurdle to get into the market, so people are doing these things in the order that makes best sense to them.
Ray White SA chief auctioneer John Morris conducting an auction. Pic: supplied.
“A $40,000 wedding – $40,000’s what you’d be paying roughly in stamp duty and government charges, so a lot of young people have seen that by forgoing the wedding, for now at least, they can really make, what is not an insignificant amount, work for them and use it to get a foot on the property ladder.”
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