Changes entice first-time buyers

VICTORIAN f i rst- home buyer numbers jumped by a third in the September quarter following stamp duty concessions introduced in July.

Figures provided by the Housing Industry Association based on latest Australian Bureau of Statistics housing finance data show a 32.2 per cent increase in first-timers entering the market from the previous quarter, before the changes that offered stamp duty exemptions and concessions on properties up to $750,000.

HIA principal economist Tim Reardon said first-home buyers had risen to their highest percentage of the market in Victoria in four years.

“First-home buyers have historically been at very low levels over the past few years. They’re now at 18.5 per cent of the market,” Mr Reardon said.

“They got down as low as 13.9 per cent in February.”

He said “there can be no doubt” the rise had been driven mostly by the new concessions.

NSW also recorded a significant boost — 57.7 per cent — following similar changes at the same time as Victoria’s.

Comparatively, Queensland first-home buyers were up 4.5 per cent, South Australia 2 per cent, and Tasmania 1.6 per cent in the September quarter, Mr Reardon said.

Another factor contributing to the lift in first-timers was the imposition of restrictions on the housing market by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority that impeded investor activity.

“First-home owners have also been brought back to the market due to the large supply of apartments that are being completed at the moment,” Mr Reardon said.