New Zealand dream
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The New Zealand dream (or, less formally, the Kiwi dream) is centered around the acquisition of a family house[1] on a quarter acre section[2], with at least one motor vehicle [1][2]. The New Zealand dream is similar to the Australian Dream. For many New Zealanders their dreams could also include a pleasure boat, a bach and a holiday at the beach.[3]
Family housing and motor vehicles provide a high standard of living. Being very expensive they are powerful work motivators, with house mortgages often taking decades to repay.
The New Zealand dream of acquiring a family home was supported by government policies from the late nineteenth century through much of the twentieth century.[4] It may still play a role in nation building, through attracting skilled immigrants seeking a better life. Family housing also encourages people to have more children. Skilled migrants and children strengthen the nation and are good for the economy.
The opposite of this New Zealand dream is called smart growth. The smart growth concept has no quarter acre section, no family house and no car. People live in small apartments and use public transport. Smart growth commonly occurs in countries with inadequate land resources (e.g. Singapore).
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[edit] Nation building
[edit] Children
When New Zealand and Australian couples have children they show a very strong preference for family housing (Figure 1) [3]. There are some families that do live in apartments, but this does not normally occur by choice and is typically the result of some sort of family calamity (e.g. becoming a one-parent family). Australian research shows 85 % of people who live in apartments would rather live in a house[4].
American families also prefer family houses, with studies showing that Americans living in multi-family dwellings (apartments etc) have less children, lowering the demand for schools [5]. One hundred typical homes generate an average of 54.7 school-aged children; but multifamily homes generate only about 2/3rds the students, with 36.7 school-aged children per 100 households.[5]. Apartment households have much lower incomes than those living in family houses and are more likely to suffer from poverty related problems such as overcrowding [5].
| US dwelling type | Median household income (1999) [6] |
|---|---|
| Family houses | $50,739 |
| Apartments | $27,543 |
Studies have shown that fertility is highest among couples living in single-family houses and lowest among those residing in apartments [7]. Experts claim that shortages of family housing can cause low birth rates. “Some have suggested that, like laboratory specimens, Italians have responded to their ever-more-crowded-suburbs and cramped apartments by curbing procreation”[8]. Children “aren't wanted in the condominiums (apartments), in public places where they can disturb”[9]. “Houses are bigger in the U.S. and generally more available. That may help explain why Americans have more babies”[10]
Italy is not the only country experiencing family housing shortages. Within advanced countries housing shortages are very common. In figure 2 housing has been plotted against fertility rates for advanced countries. Countries that have an indicator value of zero have a dwelling stock made up almost entirely of small apartments (= smart growth). Dwellings in New Zealand, Australia and the United States are dominated by large family houses.
Using a scatterplot (Figure 2) has the advantage that cultural effects are average out, revealing the underlying effect of housing on fertility rates. The correlation value (R=0.81) indicates that there is a strong positive correlation between family housing and fertility rates. Advanced countries that have mostly apartments are typically producing only 2/3rds of the children of countries that have mostly family housing.
Apartments generally discourage people from having children, but there are exceptions. For example France houses a fifth of its households in subsidised apartment blocks called HLM. Many of the people living in these apartments are from Africa and the Middle-East. Based on visual appearance one would expect that their fertility rate would be very low, but actually these migrant families have high fertility rates. In recent years there has been intense media interest in France's HLM communities, especially the rioting and allegations of French urban apartheid. However it must be remembered that most native French live in privately owned dwellings. Many living in family houses, in quiet communities, with low unemployment. The native French population have housing conditions and fertility rates that are equal to the United Kingdom (see Figure 2).
Having children sustains culture and is good for the economy. New Zealand and the United States are producing enough children, but Australia's fertility rate is still below the level needed for replacement.
| Birthrate | Fertility rate | |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 15.14 | 2.17[6] |
| United States | 14.16 | 2.10[7] |
| Australia | 13.0 | 1.85[8] |
[edit] Skilled migration
At the moment New Zealand has low unemployment [11]. More skilled workers are needed to fill job vacancies. There is a limited supply of highly skilled migrants available and competition between countries [12]. Housing is one of the factors affecting migration."Access to affordable and suitable housing is an indicator of positive settlement in society, and home ownership is an indicator of economic wellbeing and represents an intention of long-term settlement" [13].To attract highly skilled migrants New Zealand must have desirable living conditions, otherwise they will go somewhere else, such as the United States.
The United Kingdom is by far New Zealands most important source country of skilled migrants[14]. British studies show that only 2% of UK citizens want to live in a low rise apartment, and only 1% in a high rise apartment block[15]. The vast majority prefering to live in a house.
[edit] New homes
Over time Kiwi homes are becoming larger and more luxurious. While old homes were mostly box-shaped bungalows, new houses are architecturally more complex, creating houses that are more individualistic and aesthetically pleasing. Popular extras can include a rumpus room (kids playroom), walk-in wardrobes, walk-in kitchen pantries, more bedrooms and extra bathrooms.
New homes have more insulation and those built in the South Island must use double glazing. By 2025 New Zealand intends to increase the share of renewable electricity production from the current 70% to over 90% [16]. All new wood-fires are required to be very efficient and the number of homes using efficient heat pump technology is growing rapidly.“Creating more efficient houses is a triple win for New Zealanders’, our health, our environment and our power bills” (Prime Minister Helen Clark) [17].
The floor area of new dwellings built in New Zealand is extremely variable ranging from as little as 30 m2 for a small apartment to more than 500 m2 for a large house. The average floor area is approximately 200 m2[18], similar to new American[19] and Australian homes [20]. The housing indicator value of new homes (=150) is higher than for the existing stock (see Figure 2 above), which may cause fertility rates to gradually rise over the coming decades.
[edit] Motor vehicles
The production of affordable motor vehicles is amongst the greatest achievements of the 20th century. Cars have revolutionised society, enabling the development of a suburban lifestyle culture, which combines the advantages of city life, with the luxury of ample living space.
Motor vehicles symbolise freedom and prosperity. In New Zealand they are regarded as a right-of-passage, representing the important transition from adolescence to being an independent adult.
International statistics show that New Zealanders have one of the highest rates of motor vehicle ownership in the World (Figure 5). Currently new cars sales are booming[21], with October sales being the highest in 18 years. Toyota is the most popular make, while Holden Commodore (right) is the most popular model.
[edit] References
- ^ "Homeownership has long been part of the Kiwi dream." Clayton Cosgrove, Minister for Building Issues. Hansard: Questions for Oral Answer, Thursday, 15 June 2006.
- ^ "These [planning] standards evolved as the Kiwi dream of quarter acre sections spread across the land creating our homes, suburbs, towns and cities." Lisa Gibellini (2001). The Challenge of Sustainability, paper presented to the 14th Annual Ingenium Conference, 14-17 June 2001, Rotorua.
- ^ Jock Phillips (21 September 2007). "Beach culture - The Kiwi dream". Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved on 2007-11-16.
- ^ Gael Ferguson (1994). Building the New Zealand Dream. Historical Branch, Department of Internal Affairs. Dunmore Press: Wellington. "From the late nineteenth century when New Zealand governments first provided cheap and easily accessible loan finance for houses, government support for The New Zealand Dream - the family house in the suburb - has profoundly influenced the shape of New Zealand society and the New Zealand landscape."
- ^ a b US housing 2004. Retrieved on 2007-11-08.
- ^ Birth, New Zealand 2007. Retrieved on 2007-11-08.
- ^ Birth, United States 2008. Retrieved on 2007-11-08.
- ^ Birth, Australia 2006. Retrieved on 2007-11-08.
