Home Owner Finance Takes Largest Fall Since 2010

Finance for owner-occupiers took its largest fall in nine years, down 21.6 per cent, according to quarterly research from the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

While finance for property investors, a sector that has notably recorded large declines since restricted credit conditions kicked in, recorded a 20.7 per cent drop, the REIA Market Facts March quarter report found.

REIA president Adrian Kelly says this is the largest fall for investor finance since March 2004.

Latest ABS housing finance figures show the value of housing finance commitments for April was 19 per cent lower than a year earlier, while investor finance commitments was 27 per cent down for the year.

“With the election out of the way and no change in property taxation, a cut in official interest rates in June and the possibility of a further cut later this year we should see the market, which is already showing signs that the rate of price falls is declining, stabilise,” Kelly said.

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Kelly echoes commentary that the housing market could reach the bottom of its decline this year or 2020.

Corelogic data shows the pace of declines eased in May, with national dwelling values taking a 0.4 per cent fall, the smallest month-on-month drop in the past 12 months.

Brisbane and Adelaide were the only cities to record an increase in median house prices over the past year, reveals REIA’s March quarter report.

Adelaide recorded the largest increase in median house price over the past year at 2.5 per cent, while Sydney showed the largest fall 11.5 per cent.

Property prices for the March quarter decreased across Australia with the weighted average median prices declining by 2.2 per cent for houses and by 1.4 per cent for attached dwellings.

“The weighted average median price for houses for the eight capital cities decreased to $722,028 over the quarter, with prices decreasing in all capital cities except for Adelaide and Darwin,” Kelly said.

“For all other dwellings the weighted average median price dropped to $568,584 over the quarter, with prices decreasing in all capital cities except for Adelaide and Hobart.”