Analysis: Census data will show if incomes have kept pace since 2016

That is evident in the Australian Bureau of Statistics' 2021 census, where the national identity has become younger and more culturally diverse.

Less people are following a religion, and Millennials are touted to overtake Baby Boomers as the biggest generational cohort.

Of the near 6 million families recorded in the census, nearly half of their parents were born overseas, with India now coming in third for permanent migration to Australia.

But peel away those layers and what remains true for households from any background is that living "down under" is getting more expensive.

Census excerpts released on Tuesday showed the number of people owning a home with a mortgage had doubled over the last 25 years.

There are also 1 million more people in private dwellings, despite no real change in the rate of home ownership since 1996, which is likely a reflection of the acceleration of house prices over this period.

While the rate of ownership should not cause alarm, the doubling of people needing to access debt to acquire a home should prompt an ire of concern at a time where the average monthly mortgage repayment could jump by $400.

Annual inflation is tipped to peak at 7 per cent by the end of year and could prompt the Reserve Bank to hike interest rates faster and sharper.

And this will have profound impacts for many households and families, regardless of background.

The 2021 census was conducted before the cost-of-living crisis became a cornerstone issue at the May federal election.

But additional housing costs will be on top of higher energy prices, petrol now costing the average household nearly $300 a month and food staples such lettuce ballooning beyond $10.

Latest fuel data from CommSec showed average petrol prices in Canberra over the last week were sitting at $2.20 a litre, the highest of any capital city in Australia.

That will eat into the hip pocket for many Canberrans already feeling that their incomes have not kept pace.

Eyes will also be on census data relating to income, earnings and expenditure.

These figures should provide a snapshot about whether household incomes have grown since the last time the data was collected in 2016.

It will also show which areas of the country have disproportionately lower incomes than others.

The federal government will need to use census data to respond to this issue, with Labor at the election promising a raft of policies to try and push down cost-of-living pressures within the economy.

Labor's shared equity housing policy may assist in combatting falling home ownership rates, but will not be enough to ease cost pressures placed on families across the country.

Both Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Finance Minister Katy Gallagher, when drafting up the October budget, will need to consider what census results show.

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Spending in Labor's first budget is likely to be based on promises it brought to the election to secure a win.

But the biggest collation of information on the makeup of Australian society, particularly the economic and financial temperature of households, could fuel a rethink and challenge Labor's key promise of easing cost pressures and pushing up wages.