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Housing more expensive, but first home buyers returning to market

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house and money1Bad news for buyers in the latest housing data is good news for renters.

Housing loan affordability has fallen across Australia according to the newest Adelaide Bank/Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) Housing Affordability Report. The report found that the proportion of median family income needed to meet the average loan repayment rose by 0.2% over the second quarter to 31.4%.

There was more encouraging news for renters, however. Rental affordability improved over the quarter, with the proportion of median family income needed to meet rent payments falling 0.6% to 24.3%.

REIA president Malcolm Gunning said rental affordability had been showing a trend of improvement since the March quarter of 2010, when the proportion of income needed to meet rent payments peaked.

There was good news on the first home buyer front as well, as the number of loans to first home buyers increased by 14%.

First home buyer? Read our guide.

“First home buyers now make up 14.3% of total owner-occupied housing. This rate has been dropping steadily over the past 5 years but seems to have stabilised over the past 18 months,” Gunning said.

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