Property Obsessed? Australians Spend More Time on Property than Speaking to Parents

The nation’s property market can often be a favourite pastime or topic of conversation for many of us; we may even be pondering what’s going on in the weakening sector.

But as we research or wonder where we might next invest in light of the current climate, new research shows we’re not half as obsessed as our friends in the UAE or the United States.

Australians spend an average of 2.5 hours a week focused on property, according to HSBC, this time is more than twice the average time spent at the gym (1.08 hours) or speaking to our parents (0.88 hours).

Related: Paradox or Paranoia: What the Bloody Hell Is Going On in Residential Property?

“This demonstrates that the cooling housing market is doing little to dent the property fixation of some people,” HSBC Australia head of mortgages Alice Del Vecchio said.

“Softening property prices and low interest rates were encouraging factors for many Australians looking to enter the property market.”

But its the UAE and the USA that take the lead as the most property obsessed countries in the world, according to the online survey, spending an average of 6.6 and 4.95 hours focused on property each week.

Globally, people spend an average of 3.5 hours a week “window shopping” for homes, or trawling online listings – even when not in the market for a new house, according to HSBC.

Related: The Five Affordable Markets Where Housing Values Are Tipped To Rise

The study, which took in the views of 12,000 people, found that rumours of a house being haunted would put 21 per cent of Aussies off purchasing a property, while difficult neighbours is the biggest deal breaker on the process to securing the right home, at 46 per cent.