A New Year, a new start

In October 2010, official housing finance figures had crept back almost to the same healthy levels as those seen in January 2010, with a total $14.161 billion in housing finance commitments posted in October.

Similarly, the number of housing finance commitments in October has picked up after dropping in February 2010, sitting at 49,307 in October – again, almost back to the January 2010 level of 49,636 commitments.

A gradual upswing in finance commitments has been partially attributed to an improvement in property price growth over the last 12 months.

Houses in Sydney, for example, achieved a capital growth rate of 22.61 per cent over the last 12 months, boasting a median house price of $570,000 at November 2010, according to RP Data.

In Melbourne, houses grew 21.25 per cent over the last 12 months, with a median price of $490,000.

In Darwin and Melbourne, prices for units achieved significant annual growth, at 18.18 per cent and 16.67 per cent respectively, according to RP Data.

Following the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS’s) reporting of a sharp increase in the number of residential buildings approved in October 2010 – up 9.3 per cent – the indications are that 2011 will be a productive year for the Australian property market.

The first home buyer sector was down 0.5 per cent in October, making up only 15.4 per cent of owner-occupier finance, according to the latest ABS data. However, a sharp upswing in building approvals for private sector units in the year to October – up by 67.3 per cent – may provide renewed opportunities for first home buyers to get onto the property ladder in the year ahead.

Meanwhile, the investor market remains particularly healthy in Hobart, Darwin and Canberra, according to RP Data, where rental yields currently sit above 5 per cent.