Households
The Austrian Labour Force Survey (micro census) showed 3 650 000 private households for 2011. Institutional households (e.g. care homes, prisons, boarding schools etc.) were excluded. Based on the population in private households (8 316 000), the average size of household was 2.28 persons. “Size of household” in this case means the number of persons living in a dwelling, including temporarily absent persons.
The distribution of the population in private households by size of household clearly shows the trend towards small households. The 1 324 500 persons living on their own make up 15.9% of the population. Altogether 25.2% of the population in private households live together with one other person; 20.6% live in three-person households. Four-person households account for 22.5% of the total population. 9.8% live in five-person households. The relatively low number of households (76 700) with six or more members makes up 6.0% of the population in private households (499 000 people). 62.2% of all private households are “family households”. These are almost exclusively one-family households. Only 67 500 households (1.8%) are home to two or more nuclear families – mostly in parent-child relationships.
Many people imagine the term “household” to mean a married couple with one or more children. However, this type of household is in competition with numerous other forms of living together. The type “couple with children” made up less than one-third of all households in 2011 – this definition included married and cohabiting couples. Of the 3 650 000 private households, 1 071 000 (29.3%) belong to this type; the proportion in 1985 was considerably higher (37.9%).
In comparison with other forms of living together, this type is the most common form of multi-person household, followed by couples (now) living without children in the household (23.9%) and lone-parent families (mothers: 6.1%; fathers: 1.0%). Consider that child refers to a son or daughter (regardless of age) who has usual residence in the household of at least one of the parents, and who has no partner or own child in the household.
Single-person households dominate the “non-family households” (36.3% of all private households). By contrast, non-family multi-person households (e.g. flat shares) play a very minor role (1.5% of all private households).
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