How advisers can help bridge the gap
New Zealand women are outpacing men in homeownership, but they significantly lag behind when it comes to investment properties, according to a new report.
CoreLogic's 2024 Women & Property report, released ahead of International Women's Day, reveals this disparity. While female ownership of occupied properties sits at 22.9%, exceeding the 20.7% for males, the trend reverses for investment properties.
Here, female ownership falls to 21.6%, dropping behind the notably higher 26.3% rate for male-only ownership.
This suggests that despite owning more homes outright, women may be missing out on an opportunity to build wealth faster through property investment in New Zealand.
Why are women less likely to invest in property?
Experts have pointed to several reasons why this gender disparity might occur.
CoreLogic's report author, Kelvin Davidson (pictured above left), said one possible explanation is pay and financial literacy, echoing observations from prior reports.
“The gender wage gap means that, in theory at least, males can build financial wealth a bit faster, allowing for earlier and more investment in rental properties,” he said.
“There is some evidence that financial education and literacy is higher among males too, potentially giving them more awareness of different options.”
Tapere Hewett (pictured above right), mortgage adviser from Hewett Mortgages, said the data didn’t surprise her because from her perspective as a female, women generally make less risky investments than men.
However, she felt women are becoming more empowered to take risks as they become more equipped with tools, information, and support to make informed and calculated decisions.
“Some of the barriers to women investing in real estate could be age and stage of life,” said Hewett, who is up for the Pepper Money Adviser of the Year – Residential award at this year’s New Zealand Mortgage Awards.
“Single females are often less inclined to take risks, but I think most women seem to take a lot more calculated risks which can take a bit more time for decision making. Men, on the other hand, don’t tend to overthink it as much – what are the facts at hand, what is the ROI, what is the worst case, and then into it they go.”
She said this could explain the data about owner-occupied female purchases as they are less risky, providing a safe and secure future.
“The owner-occupied home is probably more of an emotional buy in comparison to investment property too,” she said.
Female-only property purchases trending up
The report also found 22.2% of homes across all dwellings are owned exclusively by one or more females, slightly less than the 22.7% owned by males. The remaining 55.0% of homes have mixed-gender ownership.
The 50-basis point gap between female-only and male-only ownership equates to less than 8,000 properties.
A year earlier, the same figures were 22.0%, 22.5%, and 55.5%. Davidson said while these changes since early 2023 are minor, there’s been a small shift towards single-gender ownership, for both females and males, with the mixed-gender share dropping by 50 basis points.
Previously, 2023’s figure for mixed-gender ownership had been a small rise from 2022.
In terms of the value of property, female-only stock had a median value of $650,532 in the latest results, versus $675,975 for male-owned dwellings.
Hewett said she sees the trend towards female property investment growing in the coming years, which could sway the female buyer-only number higher.
“I think there are a lot more women’s investment groups, networking events available nowadays,” she said.
“A lot more information on social media and actually more women becoming investors will only increase this number and it will soon become the norm. In years to come I suspect we will see a lot more change in this space.”
Why property ownership matters
At the end of 2021, Stats NZ reported that owner-occupied dwellings and real estate accounted for 43% of total household assets, up from 38% in 2018, underlining the significance of property even amidst housing market fluctuations.
Davidson said tracking rates of homeownership across different segments of society is essential, as homeownership not only contributes to security of tenure but also enhances satisfaction with housing.
“Factors like the gender wage gap, estimated at around 9%, have been identified as potential contributors to the delay in women accumulating assets, especially when it comes to building a deposit for home ownership,” he said.
“Understanding these dynamics is crucial for addressing disparities and fostering a more inclusive and equitable housing landscape.”
How advisers can bridge the gap
While the gender gaps are concerning, Hewett said advisers could help improve the gender gap by increasing the number of female advisers in the industry.
“Our industry is heavily male-dominated. Don’t get me wrong, we have amazing male advisers – in fact, both of my mortgage brokers were males,” she said. “However, some females may prefer female advisers who are property investors and who are leading the way in this space.
“I am very lucky as I can walk in both worlds… I have worked within a lot of male-dominated environments being ex-cop, ex-council and now mortgage adviser.
“To be fair though, whether you are a female or male, if I am wanting to invest in property, I would want an adviser who walks the talk; an adviser who is a property investor, female or male boss and who can deliver the goods. That is what we provide at Hewett Mortgages.”
To download a copy of the CoreLogic 2024 Women & Property report, click here.
