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Aussie house prices to surge 16% this year, Fitch warns

Eliza Bavin
·Personal Finance Editor
·2-min read
Aerial view of a leafy suburb in Adelaide
Ultra low interest rates and a better than expected recovery are going to cause a further surge in home prices, this ratings house has warned (Source: Getty)

Lockdowns, border closures and working from home have all helped Aussies save for home deposits, which is expected to drive home prices up even further.

Credit rating agency Fitch said low interest rates in Australia have also started encouraging investors into the housing market, potentially pricing out first home buyers.

“Government programs, such as support for FTB in Australia, have also incentivised purchases,” the Fitch ratings report said.

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Lending to first home buyers in Australia made up around a quarter of overall lending in March 2021, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. That’s around 10 per cent higher than four years ago.

Previously Fitch anticipated Australia home prices would rise around 12 per cent in 2021, but they now anticipate they will rise up to 16 per cent.

Another reason for the rise in home prices is lockdowns because hybrid work situations mean there is higher demand for housing outside the city centres.

“Hybrid working looks likely to become the norm for at least the next year, as does the desire for more space and the acceptance of longer commutes,” Fitch said.

Aussie home prices booming

Aussie house prices ticked up 1.9 per cent in the month of June, recent CoreLogic data revealed, bringing annual growth in the 2020 financial year to an eye-watering 13.5 per cent.

Dwelling values in every single capital city grew over the blockbuster year, with Darwin marking the most meteoric growth at 21 per cent, followed by the nation’s capital of Canberra at 18.1 per cent.

ABS data shows that Aussies borrowed $75 billion in the first four months of 2020, compared to a record $48 billion in the first four months of 2020.

According to a Finder survey, the vast majority of economists agree that housing is becoming unaffordable for the average Aussie, with experts blaming wage growth and extremely low home loan rates.

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