SENATOR DEAN SMITH
SHADOW ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR COMPETITION, CHARITIES AND TREASURY
SENATOR FOR WESTERN AUSTRALIA
MEDIA RELEASE
10 June 2024
ABS DATA CONFIRMS WA’S RECORD HOUSING PAIN
WA is again breaking property records for all the wrong reasons, with average home loans reaching new highs and piling unprecedented pressure on aspiring homebuyers.
New Australian Bureau of Statistics figures reveals the average home loan in WA is now $537,913 – the highest since published ABS data began.
It is a significant rise from the $475,405 average in September 2023, a jump of $62,508 over just 8 months.
Based on the average loan amount of $537,913, assuming a 30 year loan at an interest rate of 6.22%, this translates to repayments of $ 3,302 per month.
That is an increase of $384 per month since September 2023 – or 13.5%.
It mirrors REIWA data showing that Perth house prices grew by three times the national rate in April 2024, up by $78,000 since January last year.
The latest property prediction by Oxford Economics Australia is that the median price of a home in Perth will rise to over $1 million within three years.
This week’s ABS data also reveals investor loans in WA rose by 37% between September last year to reach $1.1 billion in April 2024.
Again, this is at the highest level since published ABS records became available.
75% of all investor lending in WA during April 2024 was directed towards buying established homes, putting them in direct competition with local owner occupiers.
Many are interstate investors and in a stronger financial position to outbid local WA buyers because East Coast property values and levels of equity are higher than in in the West.
In fact, interstate property buyers overall now account for one quarter of all online searches for WA property, mostly directed at lower priced properties given they offer higher rental yields than those in larger cities like Sydney.
Over the last year, the biggest increases in property prices have been in the more affordable areas of Perth, with prices in Armadale surging by 31.6%. Kwinana (+28.6%) and Rockingham (+ 27.9 %).
Compounding the situation is another record – the Albanese Government’s unmodelled immigration boom, which has seen WA growing at a faster rate than any other state or territory.
The result is an acute shortage of established housing and the reality that low income earners, in particular will increasingly be unable to buy a home in Perth.
Comments attributable to Senator Dean Smith:
“At the election, Anthony Albanese promised he would stand up for WA, but instead he is punishing first homebuyers and mortgagees with crippling interest rates because he has failed to bring down inflation.
“Month on month, it becomes harder for homeowners to make their dreams a reality in WA – for some it is now virtually impossible”.
“While the current market benefits some investors, these record ABS numbers confirm the situation facing hundreds of thousands of Western Australians who just want somewhere to live.
“Labor has an obligation to boost housing supply urgently, but, in the meantime, poor policy like Anthony Albanese’s unmodelled immigration has made a bad situation worse.
“In the meantime, the Albanese Government’s spending is pushing up inflation and – as the RBA Governor confirmed this week – risks increased interest rates at any time.
“Many WA households are already in a vulnerable position and could be forced over the edge if there are further rate rises by the RBA, which continues to do the Government’s heavy lifting for it.
“These are the hard facts of two years and three budgets under Labor.”
ENDS