What do the figures show?
- Housing finance: The number of new owner-occupier housing loans rose for the fifth straight month in February, lifting by 0.4 per cent. The number of home loans (56,235) is at 11-month highs.
- Construction loans rose by 2.6 per cent, while the purchase of newly erected dwellings rose by 4.1 per cent. Loans for the purchase of established dwellings rose by 3.2 per cent while refinancing fell by 6.1 per cent.
- The value of new housing commitments (owner occupier and investment) rose by 1.3 per cent in February to $18.9 billion. Investment loans fell by 2.8 per cent while owner-occupier loans rose by 2.7 per cent.
- The value of home loans approved but not advanced rose by 4.3 per cent to a record high of $43.2 billion and stands 12.7 per cent up on a year earlier.
- First home buyers accounted for 26.9 per cent of all lending in February – the highest proportion on record (almost 18 years).
- The average loan stood at $253,200, up 10.0 per cent on a year ago. The average loan by first home-buyers soared 4.6 per cent in February to $280,600 and stands 23.1 per cent higher than a year ago.
- Fixed loans account for just 2.7 per cent of all new lending.
- Banks financed 92.4 per cent of all home loans (by value) in February – a fresh record 33 year high.
- Owner-occupier housing finance rose in four of the states/territories with the strongest being ACT, up 12.5 per cent, and NSW, up 3.3 per cent.
- The index of consumer sentiment soared by 7.1 points or 8.3 per cent to a 13-month high of 92.7 in April. The sentiment index is now up 6.0 per cent on a year earlier.
- The current conditions index rose by 6.3 per cent, while the expectations index rose by 9.8 per cent.
- Country people are happier than city people and interestingly tenants are happier than those who own their homes.
- All of the five components of the index improved in April. The estimate of family finances compared with a year ago rose by 10.8 per cent while the estimate of family finances over the next year rose by 11.8 per cent. The measure on whether it was a good time to buy a major household item rose by 3.1 per cent. Economic conditions over the next 12 months lifted by 16.9 per cent while the measure of economic conditions over the next 5 years rose by 4.0 per cent.
Tags: home loans, housing finance, new housing