Today’s housing finance data for September from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) recorded a continued rebound in mortgage commitments:
As shown above, total finance commitments (excluding refinancings) rose by 1.3% in September, with owner-occupied commitments rising 3.2%, more than offsetting a 4.0% fall in investor commitments.
However over the year, total finance commitments (excluding refinancings) fell by 2.7%, with investor commitments tanking by 13.0% but owner-occupied rising by 1.4%.
First home buyer (FHB) commitments fell by 1.9% in number terms and by 2.0% in value terms in September. Over the year, FHB commitments were up by 6.8% (number) and by 16.9% (value):
FHB’s share of Australian mortgages (excluding refinancings) fell to 28% by number and 25% by value:
New home finance (construction and new combined) rose by 0.8% over September and was up by 0.2% year-on-year:
As you can see, increased demand for purchases has been largely offset by lower demand for construction.
Finally, the below chart tracks the annual growth in the value of finance commitments (-2.7%) in trend terms, and shows both owner-occupied finance (+1.4%) and investor finance growth (-13.0%) are showing an improving trend:
The above data shows is further evidence of Australia’s property recovery, given growing new mortgage demand is the key driver of rising prices.
