Australians who are considering buying their first home should act quickly, an expert has said.
Speaking to the Age, Frank Gelber, chief economist with business forecaster BIS Shrapnel, noted that as access to finance becomes more difficult and house prices rise, securing a mortgage will only become more difficult.
Already most mainstream lenders have reduced LVRs, while the Federal Government have reduced the FHOG. All this means that buyers need to have a larger deposit than last year.
In the weekend’s the Age, it was noted that during the previous decade, Melbourne’s median house price doubled to the high cost of $460,000.
It said that the likely interest rate rises this year and the lack of new housing available across Australia could mean that the proportion of a family income needed to meet home loan repayments will rise this year.