Housing affordability has been on the radar this week with the release of the HIA (Housing Industry Association)/Commonwealth Bank Housing Affordability Index for the March 2007 Qtr.
The HIA reports that stable interest rates over the last quarter did not prevent a rise in the monthly loan repayment needed on a typical first-home mortgage which increased from $2,352 to $2,387. Mortgage repayments now account for 30.7 per cent of an average first homebuyer’s income, up 0.2 percentage points on the December 2006 quarter. It was the fourth consecutive drop in the housing affordability index and stemmed from a 1.3per cent rise in the median first-home price.
The report is available online at economics.hia.com.au. The report is based on the The Commonwealth Bank Property Value Guide which is compiled monthly to provide insight to Australian property values.
Other recent property outlooks and reports for Australia are also available from:
ANZ Property Outlook – ANZ Property Outlook
RP Data-Rismark Hedonic Property Index – RP Data-Rismark Hedonic Property Index
Westpac – Outlook for Australian Property Markets – Westpac – Outlook for Australian Property Markets
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