We keep track of housing finance approvals as they are a good “leading indicator” of what’s ahead for our property markets. Based on the latest data released by the ABS, new housing loan commitments fell 4.3% month on month in December, its eleventh consecutive month of decline, to be at its lowest level since October…
Queensland, Australia’s second-largest state, has made history by becoming the best-performing state economy for the first time. The recent CommSec State of the State report shows that its economy has been growing at a faster pace than any other state in Australia, thanks to strong population growth, a solid job market and overseas demand for energy resources,…
The dream of homeownership can drive people to do desperate things, including lying on their mortgage applications. In fact, according to Finder’s new research, thousands of Aussie homeowners have told a fib in order to secure their home loans. The survey revealed that out of 1,114 respondents – 310 of which have a mortgage –…
Our property markets have cooled from their peak, but housing affordability still plagues would-be first-home buyers. Buyer borrowing capacity is shrinking with every Reserve Bank interest rate hike, which, combined with concern about where the market is heading has replaced buyer FOMO (fear of missing out) with a fear of buying too soon. The question…
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 1.9% in the December 2022 quarter, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Annual inflation was 7.8%, close to the Reserve Bank of Australia forecast that headline inflation would peak at 8% over the year. More importantly, underlying core inflation (the RBA’s preferred reading…
A new season means a new look for the home, especially your bedroom. But instead of just the usual clearing of the closet, why not create a sense of harmony in the Feng Shui way? There’s no need to invest in an expensive consultant to style your room, let us guide you with a simple method…
It seems that bad credit habits are returning as Australia’s total credit card debt has ticked up for the second month in a row, based on the latest data released by the RBA. In fact, the data shows the total credit card bill attracting interest charges increased by $419 million to $17.3 billion. This is…
There’s a reason they call property investing “as safe as houses”, right? It’s because generally, buying property – provided you have a clear strategy and set goals – is a sound investment. Becoming a landlord can be a highly profitable venture for many people, including everyday Australians earning ordinary incomes. However, there are a few…
The Australian labour market still heavily favours jobseekers, with the latest ABS job vacancy data for November revealing more than a quarter of Australian businesses have jobs they cannot fill. Job vacancies fell 4.9% quarter on quarter in the three months to November, according to the latest release from the ABS. Despite that fall, the number…
Two-thirds of property investors make the mistake of buying in their own backyard. Now we know that most property investors never achieve the financial freedom they’re looking for. Of the 2.1 million property investors in Australia, 1.9 million never get past their first or second property while only around 20,000 investors around Australia own 6…
