Who Will Replace the Baby Boomers? Rethinking Migration to Fill Australia’s Skills Gap
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
Release Date: 08/12/2025
How high do we want property prices to keep rising? Who wins and who loses?
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
Today we ask a question almost no one in property likes to touch - not “will housing prices keep rising?” but “how expensive do we actually want housing to be?” For decades we’ve celebrated rising house prices in Australia. If your home was worth more this year than last, life felt a bit easier. Politicians were happy, banks were happy, homeowners were happy. But after 50 years of almost uninterrupted price growth, we need to ask a harder question: Is it actually good for us if housing just keeps getting more expensive? The answer, of course, depends on...
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The Scorecard: Which Big Demographic Calls Actually Came True?
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
At the end of last year, Simon Kuestenmacher published a detailed set of demographic predictions about Australia’s future – covering everything from migration and ageing, to housing affordability, consumer behaviour and where population growth would show up. And instead of quietly moving on, he’s come back twelve months later to mark his own homework. Today, we discuss the accuracy of his forecasts related to migration, fertility rates, political trends, and the property market. We also explore how societal changes, such as aging populations and consumer behavior,...
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The Hidden Trends Reshaping Australia
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
In today’s show we delve into a fresh set of data from the HILDA survey - one of Australia’s longest-running studies tracking how real households are living, working, earning, spending, and socialising. Our aim is to help you make sense of what’s coming next — so you can make smarter decisions for your business, your investments. You’ll hear how Australians are becoming wealthier yet facing challenges such as rising living costs and increasing loneliness. We discuss the implications of retirement wealth, the challenges faced by non-homeowners, and the...
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How Australia is Changing: Richer, Older, Lonelier
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
In today’s show we delve into the latest findings from the Hilda report, exploring the significant demographic shifts in Australia. We discuss how Australians are becoming richer yet feeling poorer due to rising costs, the impact of these economic realities on family planning, and the implications of an aging workforce and increasing lonliness. It’s clear these trends aren’t random. They’re reshaping our economy, our housing markets, our workforce, and even our social fabric in ways many people haven’t yet recognised. Our conversation highlights the...
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Six Years Later: What Covid Did to Our Population, Jobs, and Future
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
In March 2020, we all wondered how COVID would change us. Would it be just a temporary shock, or would it reshape society forever? Well, six years on, the data is in – and it turns out the pandemic didn’t rewrite Australia’s destiny, but it did press fast-forward on changes that were already underway. In this episode of Demographics Decoded, I explore with Simon Kuestenmacher the lasting impacts of COVID-19 on Australia's demographics. We unpack how Covid accelerated demographic shifts, from fewer babies and more deaths, to the rise of the millennials and the...
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How to Get Older Without Getting Old - Rules for Ageing Well
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
What does it actually mean to age well? We all know people who seem to get older but never old – they’re curious, kind, and somehow more alive with each passing decade. And then there are others who retreat, complain, and shrink their world. Today we’re decoding what it really takes to age well – mentally, physically, socially, and financially. We’ll look at some wisdom from Roger Rosenblatt’s witty book Rules for Ageing, and add Simon’s demographic lens to see what the data says about how we can actually put this into practice. Our...
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8 Boomer Habits That Drive Younger Aussies Mad – And What It Says About Our Future
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
Today we’re having a bit of fun – but there’s a serious insight behind it too We’re going to be talking about “8 things Boomers refuse to stop doing that drive younger generations absolutely crazy.” Now you’ve probably seen those memes and TikToks poking fun at Boomer habits – from insisting on paying with cash to overusing ellipses in text messages. But these quirks reveal something deeper about how different generations see the world – shaped by the times they grew up in. So whether you’re a proud Boomer, a frustrated Millennial, or a Gen Z...
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Is the Albanese Government About to Rob the Elderly in the Name of ‘Fairness’
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
Imagine being told that after a lifetime of working hard, paying taxes, saving diligently, and raising a family, you’ve somehow become part of Australia’s problem. That your success – owning a home, saving in superannuation, or simply living longer – is now evidence of “intergenerational unfairness.” That’s the message emerging from the Albanese government’s latest policy buzzword – the so-called “intergenerational lens.” But is this really about fairness… or about finding new ways to tax those who’ve worked, saved, and contributed for decades?...
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The Retirement Wealth Divide: Winners and Losers in Old Age
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
In this episode of Demographics Decoded, Simon Kuestenmacher and Michael Yardney discuss the changing landscape of retirement in Australia, focusing on the widening wealth gap between homeowners and renters. For generations, Australians assumed they’d retire in their own home. It was the cornerstone of our national dream. But new evidence from the HILDA survey shows that the dream is slipping away — and with it, the safety net for a secure retirement. Today, two in three retirees who rent privately are living in poverty. And the wealth gap between homeowners and...
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The Everyday Things About to Disappear From Our Lives in the Next Few Decades
Demographics Decoded - Unveiling the trends shaping your future
Picture this: you take your kids to a museum in 2045, and instead of dinosaurs and ancient artefacts, they’re staring at remote controls, plastic packaging, and wheelchairs. They ask, ‘Did you really use these every day?’ In this episode Simon Kuestenmacher and Michael Yardney explore the technologies, jobs, and habits that will vanish from our lives - sooner than you might think. We delve into the implications of these changes on daily life, the economy, and the environment, providing insights into what the future may hold for generations to come. ...
info_outlineIn this episode of Demographics Decoded, Simon Kuestenmacher and I discuss the significant impact of the baby boomer generation leaving the workforce and retiring.
We examine the resulting skills gap, the challenges businesses encounter during leadership transitions, and the implications for various industries.
The conversation also explores the role of AI and automation, the importance of strategic migration, and the necessity of effective business succession planning.
Ultimately, we emphasise the opportunity for younger generations to step into roles and businesses left behind by retiring baby boomers, while also calling for a rethinking of Australia's approach to workforce and migration.
If you're a business owner, policymaker, or just wondering what kind of Australia we’re building for the next generation, you’ll want to stick around and listen to today’s show.
Takeaways
· The retirement of baby boomers is creating a significant skills gap.
· Businesses need to adapt to a younger workforce with different expectations.
· Certain industries, like healthcare and education, are particularly affected by retirements.
· AI and automation will not fill the labor gap left by retiring workers.
· Migration needs to be strategic to address specific workforce shortages.
· Baby boomers are often reluctant to sell their businesses, complicating transitions.
· Younger generations have opportunities to acquire businesses from retiring owners.
· Preparing for business succession is crucial for long-term success.
· The aging population will require more aged care services in the future.
· Australia's demographic shifts present both challenges and opportunities for the economy.
Chapters
00:00 The Aging Workforce and Its Implications
03:02 The Skills Gap and Leadership Challenges
05:44 Industry-Specific Impacts of Retiring Baby Boomers
08:07 Migration and Its Role in Filling Workforce Gaps
11:05 The Future of Business Ownership and Succession
13:30 Opportunities for Young Entrepreneurs
16:11 Preparing for Business Succession
18:48 Conclusion: Rethinking Australia's Demographic Strategy
About Simon Kuestenmacher
Simon Kuestenmacher is co-founder and Director – The Demographics Group
Simon is a prolific media commentator on demographic and data matters and a columnist for The New Daily and The Australian newspapers.
He ranks as one of the world’s Top 10 influencers in data visualisation. If you can’t get enough of the kind of data that explains how the world works, make sure to follow Simon on Linked In or X (formerly Twitter) or any of his other social channels.
Click here for a media enquiry or if you would like to book Simon Kuestenmacher for a speaking engagement. His presentations and quirky observations are enjoyed by audiences from the financial services, property, government, education, technology, retail and professional services industries, among others.
About Michael Yardney
Michael Yardney- founder Metropole Property Strategists has been voted one of Australia’s 50 most influential Thought Leaders.
While he is best known as a property expert, Michael is also Australia’s leading expert in the psychology of success and wealth creation.
Michael is a #1 best selling author of 9 books and frequently challenges traditional finance advice with innovative ideas on property investment, personal finance and wealth creation.
Follow Michael on Linked In or Instagram
Are you interested in property investment - let the team at Metropole build you a Strategic Property Plan to help give you clarity, direction and wealth-producing results.
https://investor.metropole.com.au/strategic-property-plan/