NGM Group's research highlights the life milestones that matter most to Australians, and the decisions, pressures and trade-offs shaping the journey to achieving them today.
- Seven in ten Australians see home ownership as part of financial success.
- Housing and financial security goals were the most sought-after aspirations, followed by lifestyle and retirement goals.
- Nearly two in three Australians are willing to wait for what they want as long as they get it eventually.
- Nearly six in ten Australians have made or expect to make significant sacrifices to reach their goals.
Many Australians are still determined to achieve life’s biggest milestones, despite the current economic environment requiring more trade-offs to get there, according to new research from NGM Group, the customer-owned bank behind Greater Bank and Newcastle Permanent.
The national YouGov survey, the first in NGM Group’s new Defining Moments research series, found that Australians are still eager to achieve major life milestones, despite the path to reaching them becoming more uncertain than it once was.
Housing and financial security emerged as the nation’s most sought-after goals, with more than half (54%) hoping to achieve these milestones in their lifetime, followed by lifestyle and retirement goals (41%), with the other top goals including career progression and business aspirations and family and relationship goals.
And while getting on the property ladder has become more challenging in recent years, the findings revealed that Australians continue to reach for it, as seven in ten (73%) said that they view home ownership as part of financial success.
With better housing affordability and availability outside capital cities, regional Australians were 10 per cent more likely than their metropolitan counterparts to have already achieved home ownership.
“We know the appeal of regional living has been on the rise, with diversifying economies, regional innovation and great lifestyle benefits delivering real opportunities outside of capital cities,” said NGM Group’s Chief Customer and Digital Innovation Officer James Cudmore.
“Our regions are providing Australians with opportunities to achieve their goals sooner.”
After five years of travelling around Australia, Perth couple Chris and Bec were looking to break into the property market on their own terms.
"We had seen some beautiful places all around Australia that we thought we could try and think outside the box with a different style of home ownership, especially because we lived in a mini bus," Chris said.
"We found a slightly remote place on the Mid North Coast of NSW for much cheaper than anything in our hometown or the major cities, and just recently we built a tiny home on it where we live and run our travel business Salt and Charcoal."
For Chris and Bec, the tiny home offered more than an affordable path to home ownership; it provided stability and a stepping stone for the future.
"We realised we didn't need a large house to live a beautiful lifestyle. Once we got clear on what makes us happy, we built our home ownership journey around that," Chris said.
"Having a place to come back to, relax and recharge feels incredible, and it doesn't feel like a compromise because it's in the lifestyle location we always wanted.
"For us, the tiny home has been a way into the property market on our own terms, but it also gives us the flexibility to keep exploring opportunities in the future - we’d love to build more tiny homes around Australia to give other people access to incredible locations."
Beyond home ownership, lifestyle aspirations remain a major focus across the nation, as 41 per cent said they hope to achieve lifestyle or retirement-related goals in their lifetime. This demonstrates that many Australians are focused not only on financial security but also on how they want to live.
People living outside capital cities were also more optimistic about achieving lifestyle and retirement goals, with 79 per cent confident in achieving goals such as travel within the next decade Meanwhile 52 per cent believing they could achieve retirement readiness within the same timeframe, compared with 37 per cent of metropolitan residents.
Career progression continues to rank highly in perceived achievability, with nearly nine in ten (87%) who want to progress their careers feeling it’s achievable, and more than four in five (84%) expecting to achieve it in less than ten years. Confidence was slightly higher regionally as 91 per cent of regional residents felt career progression was achievable, compared to their metropolitan counterparts (86%).
For Australians hoping to achieve family and relationship goals, 82 per cent said getting married feels achievable and more than 78 per cent said having children feels within reach, reinforcing that family continues to be an important aspiration for many. Regional Australians were particularly optimistic with nine in ten believing they could achieve this goal within the next decade.
Financial circumstances are the most powerful driver of milestone decisions, with more than four in five (85%) saying their financial situation has some or strong influence over their decisions, which may explain why housing and financial security goals ranked so highly among residents as they seek stability.
Younger Australians are also more likely to be influenced by external factors than older generations. Around half of Gen Z (54%) and Millennials (48%) said family expectations influence their milestone decisions. Gen Z and Millennials were also around twice as likely as older generations to be influenced by what people around them are doing (54% and 42%) and by media, culture and society (48% and 41%).
“While Gen Z naturally has more milestones still ahead of them, what stands out is how determined they are to achieve them, which challenges the idea that younger generations are no longer interested in the traditional Australian dream,” said James.
“Despite the affordability challenges and economic uncertainty they’ve experienced, our findings suggest that aspirations such as home ownership, family, and financial security still really appeal to young people.”
“At their core, these goals are all about safety – a roof over your head, family there when you need a hand, a safety net for the future. Our world is changing a lot, and I think these goals are a very real reflection of these changes.”
Currently, Australians are far more likely to fund their goals by saving regularly from their income or by tightening their budgets than increasing their income, with nearly six in 10 saving from their regular income (56%) and almost half cutting back expenses or making lifestyle trade-offs (47%). Earning additional income (27%) and investment returns (25%) are the next most common but sit a clear step below.
And while the path to achieving their goals may have become longer and more complex, Australians remain determined to reach them, as nearly two in three (62%) said they are willing to delay reaching important milestones, as long as they achieve them eventually.
Six in ten (59%) Australians said they have already or will have to make significant sacrifices to reach their milestones. More than one in two (52%) have reduced their lifestyle spending, while three in ten (30%) are working longer hours or multiple jobs, and more than one in five (22%) have changed jobs or career paths.
“Most Australians have clear aspirations for their future. While the journey may look different depending on where you live, dreams of owning a home, building financial security and creating the life you want still ring true for all Australians, from our major cities through to regional communities,” said James.
“These are life goals that remain firmly in focus, and our data showed that Australians are continuing to plan, save and make decisions with those ambitions in mind. Rather than putting them on hold or abandoning them altogether, people are finding practical ways to stay on track and make meaningful progress towards what matters most to them.”
NGM Group commissioned the Defining Moments series to understand how Australians define their major life milestones today, the financial pathways and trade-offs required to achieve these goals, and the roles that personal ambition and social comparison play in shaping milestone decisions.