The most significant longer-term change in the composition of household income, has been the proportion of income received from “property”. This includes rent, interest and dividends. Whereas this accounted for nearly a third of total gross disposable income in 1996, it had fallen to 22.4% in 2015. Interest and rent paid by households has likewise declined from 12.1% to 7.8% in 2005, brought about mostly by lower interest rates. In 2015 this ratio increased again to 9.7%. Social benefits received accounted for 20.6% of gross income in 2015, up from 15.1% in 1995.
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