The ABS said the increase in household wealth for the quarter was 2.6 per cent, or $379 billion.

That meant in the past year household wealth has increased by $568 billion.

“Residential land and dwellings drove the increase, contributing 2.1 per centage points to overall quarterly growth,” ABS head if finance statistics Dr Mish Tan said.

“Household wealth has grown alongside increasing house prices this year.

“Population growth has supported demand fo housing while supply of new and established dwellings to the market remained constrained.”

Superannuation assets contributed 0.3 per cent to the growth and were supported by a strong performance in overseas markets, elevated contributions and a strong labour market.

However, deposit accounts shrank by $6 billion as the cost of living increased.

This was driven by an $18 billion decrease in transferable deposits, partly offset by a $12 billion increase in non-transferable deposit accounts such as savings and fixed-term deposits. The largest driver of the fall in household deposits was from unincorporated businesses.

“This was the first fall in deposit balances since the Global Financial Crisis and indicates that the household sector was tapping into cash reserves amid rising cost pressures,” Dr Tan said.

“This was consistent with a falling household saving ratio which is at its lowest level since June quarter 2008. Higher interest rates and income tax payable, paired with high consumer inflation, has reduced households’ savings buffers.”