A survey by the Commonwealth Bank of more than one million Australians shows the great Aussie dream of home ownership is still alive, but has been forced to evolve because of the pressures of housing affordability and changes in work patterns.

As we all know, the quarter acre block is a threatened species. Balconies have become the new backyard.

Yet, just under half of those surveyed by the Commonwealth Bank - 48 per cent - say their property dream is still alive.

The remaining 52 per cent say their property dream is still alive, but has been "redefined". 

In one of the largest national surveys since the census, the Commonwealth Bank has asked Australians about how they perceive their future. The survey covered topics such as attitudes towards the property market, adapting to a changing workforce, and the future for younger generations.

The bank partnered with demographer and futurist Claire Madden to conduct the survey, and the CommBank Connected Future Report examines the economic and social trends revealed by the data. 

According to Madden, “The remarkable insights emerging from the CommBank ATM data overall is the resilience and tenacity Aussies have in the face of economic uncertainty." 

Madden says the dream of home ownership persists, though current conditions have changed dramatically. 

"While the Australian property dream looks markedly different in 2017, the majority of Australians either fully own or are paying off their home. This has remained constant over the past five decades, so despite uncertainty, the Australian dream has clearly lived through time.” 

The research shows while millennials are delaying conventional life milestones, such as getting married or having a child, the average age of a first homebuyer has remained relatively constant over the last two decades, sitting at around 32 years of age. 

Key findings from the CommBank Connected Future Report include:

• the Australian ‘dream home’ is an architecturally designed  home of high quality
• 74 per cent of those living in cities and 81 per cent of those outside capital cities currently live in a stand alone house
• 48 per cent of new residential approvals over the past year have been for medium or high density housing
• 68 per cent of first-home buyers purchased a house in the last year
• 16 per cent plan to build their architectural dream home after purchasing vacant land
• only 15 per cent purchased an apartment or townhouse
• the state you live in determines how optimistic you are about home ownership
• millenials are now in their prime career-building and family-forming years, and are finding ways to overcome obstacles to home ownership
• though home ownership may take a different form, property ownership remains high on the aspirational list  

Click here to read the full CommBank Connected Future Report.

Read more about the great Australian dream of home ownership:

Great Australian dream still alive: KPMG

Nationwide evidence of shrinking block size

Young Aussies fear being locked out of property market forever