8 in 10 young Aussies suffered financial difficulties in 2025

Just 30% think they will afford a comfortable place to live in the next 12 months.

Over 8 in 10 young Australians said that they experienced financial difficulties to some extent in the past year, according to a study by Roy Morgan.

In an interview of 527 Australians aged 18-24, 85% said that they experienced financial difficulties in the last 12 months, with close to a third or 28% reporting that they experience this often or very often, according to The 2025 Australian Youth Barometer by Roy Morgan on behalf of the Centre for Youth Policy and Education Practice (CYPEP) of Monash University.

The majority or 79% of respondents think that they are financially worse off than their parents.

Just one third or 30% think that they are likely or extremely likely to be able to afford a comfortable place to live in the next 12 months. Nearly half (49%) felt government housing support was insufficient

Prospective first-time homeowners in Australia increasingly need to take on more debt to participate in home ownership, according to S&P Global credit analyst Erin Kitson in a report published in November 2025.