Rate cuts boost home loan approvals
Home-loan approvals gained in December as consumers warmed to lower interest rates and Government packages aimed at helping people buy houses.
The number of home loans, seasonally adjusted, gained 6.4% in December from the previous month, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg were expecting a 3.5% increase in the month, reflecting the easing credit conditions.
The December rise marks the third consecutive month of gains in home-loan approvals, as interest rate cuts and a $10.4 billion Government stimulus package - aimed in part at home buyers - begins to get traction.
"It's quite positive,'' ANZ housing economist Paul Braddock said. "It's starting to show signs we're past the nadir and that hopefully things are onward and upward from here.''
Loans for new dwellings skyrocketed 15.2% in the month, seasonally adjusted, as consumers took advantage of falling interest rates and grants for first time buyers on new homes announced by the government in October.
Owner-occupied housing bounced by 7.1% in December, seasonally adjusted, while investment loans edged up 2.9%
"This is the first real confirmed sign in official data that households are reacting to the interest rate cuts last year,'' Mr Braddock said.
The Reserve Bank has cut the interest rate to 4.25% from 7.25% in September in an effort to increase activity in the construction and lending markets.
Full Story