The rush of first home buyers into the market in September helped to lift the number of new home loans to the highest level in seven months, official data shows.
According to official ABS data, the number of home loans, seasonally adjusted, rose 5.1 percent in September, the best result since the 5.3 percent jump in March. First home owners made up 26.1 percent of the total.
Many first home buyers entered the market in September, while the Federal Government stimulus remained in place and interest rates stayed low.
“It’s obviously above what the market was expecting,” Housing Industry Association chief economist Harley Dale said. “It looks like quite a strong result.”
The Federal Government cut back the boost to the First Home Owners Grant at the end of September. It will remain in place at a lower level until the end of the year.
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