PHOTO: JIM SMITH/AFP/Getty ImagesHome buyers have taken the plunge as prices have done the same
- As home prices begin to find a floor in Sydney and Melbourne, Australians have been borrowing more, with the latest figures showing a 1.3% jump in lending.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics director Ben Dorber said June marked the first increase in both investor and home buyer borrowing in more than a year.
- It coincides with the strongest auction clearance rates since 2017, as buyers appear to be returning to ailing property markets and prices stabilise.
The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show Australians borrowed 1.3% more in June than they did in May, and it’s being put down to the property market.
With prices plummeting in both capital cities since 2017, the month of May saw buyers return to the market as auction sales ticked up to their highest level in 18-months.
“Consistent with recent house price movements, the decline in new lending commitments for dwellings has slowed in recent months,” ABS director of financial statistics Ben Dorber said in a statement accompanying the new numbers.
“In June we saw rises in new lending commitments for both owner-occupier and investor dwellings for the first time in over a year.”
READ MORE VIA BUSINESS INSIDER