The Urban Developer
AdvertiseEventsWebinars
Urbanity
Awards
Sign In
Membership
Latest
Menu
Location
Sector
Category
Content
Type
Newsletters
URBAN LEADER AWARDS ARE BACK! START YOUR NOMINATIONS
URBAN LEADER AWARDS ARE BACK! START YOUR NOMINATIONS
LEARN MOREDETAILS
TheUrbanDeveloper
Follow
About
About Us
Membership
Awards
Events
Webinars
Listings
Resources
Terms & Conditions
Commenting Policy
Privacy Policy
Republishing Guidelines
Editorial Charter
Complaints Handling Policy
Contact
General Enquiries
Advertise
Contribution Enquiry
Project Submission
Membership Enquiry
Newsletter
Stay up to date and with the latest news, projects, deals and features.
Subscribe
PlanningTue 13 Mar 18

First Home Buyers Hit Five-Year High

TUD+ MEMBER CONTENT
137f085f-33ee-4f42-b915-41698c23af90
SHARE
print
Print

The number of Australian home loan approvals for owner-occupiers fell in January as first home buyers took up the slack.

First home buyers accounted for 18 per cent of home mortgage loans in January, the highest monthly share in over five years.

Housing figures released on Tuesday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that approvals fell a seasonally adjusted 1.1 per cent from December.

Economists surveyed ahead of the announcement had expected a 0.2 per cent fall over the month.

Related reading: Home Ownership Falling Among the Young and Poor

The value of new home loan approvals for owner-occupiers was up 0.5 per cent – the fourth reported increase in the past five months – while the value of investor loans was up 1.1 per cent.

The value of lending to investors has actually declined 12.1 per cent from a year ago, but remains high despite APRA’s interventions on interest-only investors.

The percentage of first home buyers as a percentage of total owner-occupied housing finance commitments rose to 18.0 per cent in January 2018 from 17.9 per cent in December 2017.

The HIA said that this is the highest monthly share in five years.

“First Home Buyer participation has been rekindled by the welcome intervention of the NSW and Victoria governments in mid-2017,” HIA senior economist Shane Garrett said.

“In both states, grants to first home buyers have been increased and the concessions around stamp duty are more favourable.”

Related reading: Restrictive Planning Drives Up Australia's Housing Prices

Approvals for the construction of new homes had jumped 17.1 per cent in January, easily beating market forecasts of a five per cent increase.

APRA released data today showing that of all new loans, the proportion of riskier, interest-only mortgages held by the four major banks fell to a new low of 15.53 per cent, down from 38.43 per cent in March 2017.

ResidentialAustraliaSector
ADVERTISEMENT
TOP STORIES
Scape PBSA Kingsford EDM
Exclusive

It Takes More Than a Room: PBSA Evolves to Meet Student Demands

Clare Burnett
7 Min
Exclusive

Soheil Abedian: What’s Driven the Man Who’s Transformed a City

Phil Bartsch
7 Min
Exclusive

Robots Not a Miracle Cure for Housing Productivity Crisis

Vanessa Croll
6 Min
Exclusive

Where 600 Wealthy Families Are Putting Their Millions

Taryn Paris
6 Min
Brique Projects EDM
Exclusive

Brique Thrives in Cauldron of SE Queensland Development

Clare Burnett
7 Min
View All >
Salvos Coliving EDM
Residential

Investa, Salvos Reveal Co-Living Plan for Sydney CBD

Clare Burnett
Infrastructure

Invest Gold Coast Launches Hunt for $500m Arena Partner

Renee McKeown AND Taryn Paris
Scape PBSA Kingsford EDM
Exclusive

It Takes More Than a Room: PBSA Evolves to Meet Student Demands

Clare Burnett
Developers and universities have been warned they must smarten up to succeed as PBSA takes off…
LATEST
Salvos Coliving EDM
Residential

Investa, Salvos Reveal Co-Living Plan for Sydney CBD

Clare Burnett
2 Min
Infrastructure

Invest Gold Coast Launches Hunt for $500m Arena Partner

Renee McKeown AND Taryn Paris
3 Min
Scape PBSA Kingsford EDM
Exclusive

It Takes More Than a Room: PBSA Evolves to Meet Student Demands

Clare Burnett
7 Min
Industrial

ISPT Files Plans for Dandenong Mega-Logistics Project

2 Min
View All >
ADVERTISEMENT
Article originally posted at: https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/first-home-buyers-hit-five-year-high