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 –…
Millions of Aussie families are switching to public schooling to help save the budget, according to new research by Finder. According to Finder’s Parenting Report 2023, which surveyed 1,032 Australian parents of children under 12, 17% are contemplating moving their child from a private school to a public school to reduce their expenses. A further…
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…
Dwelling construction was significantly delayed in mid-2022 due to the combined shortages of labour and materials, and the number of new dwellings under construction remained resolutely high until September at around 243,500. Although attached dwellings under construction eased in the two most heavily populated states, south-east Queensland did see in an increase in much-needed supply…
Did you know that Australians are blowing their budget in an effort to impress others? Well, according to Finder’s new research, 16% of Australians – equivalent to 3.2 million people – have spent more than they can afford to keep up with their inner circle. In fact, the respondents admitted to spending a whopping $1,246…
Successive interest rate rises, surging inflation, low consumer sentiment and deteriorating affordability drove a shift in Australia’s 2022 housing market performance, CoreLogic’s Annual Best of the Best report reveals. When summing up the year that was, CoreLogic Head of Research Eliza Owen highlighted two distinct characteristics of capital growth trends in 2022, with the first…
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…
How were your Christmas expenses? Did you stay on budget? Or did you splurge? Well, according to new research by Finder, a credit-funded Christmas has pushed millions of Aussies into debt. The survey of 1,086 respondents revealed almost half (49%) of Australians – equivalent to 9.8 million people – have racked up Christmas debt. The…
