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“Australia has an unquestionably strong financial sector. It has withstood significant shocks, such as the Global Financial Crisis and the COVID recession, without the emergence of financial contagion.
“The share of loans that are impaired is exceptionally low, at around 0.4 per cent of all loans issued. This is significantly lower than in other developed economies.
“The very low levels of mortgage delinquency in Australia reflect the restrictive lending regulations imposed by financial regulators in Australia. Since 2010, financial regulations have made it increasingly conservative making it progressively more difficult for first home buyers to enter the market.
“Despite the lows levels of mortgage delinquency, APRA announced this morning that it has increased the ‘serviceability buffer’ for a new mortgage from 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent.
“First home buyers accounted for 35 per cent of owner occupier loans issued in August 2021 and these measures will make it harder to access a loan.
“This additional constraint is being imposed despite the share of loans with a 10 per cent deposit or less declining since December 2020. This share is well below those observed over the past decade.
“First home buyers are the group who are typically constrained by serviceability thresholds. It is this group that will be hit the hardest by these changes.
“Restricting access to credit for new households seeking to enter the housing market will put further downward pressure on the rate of home ownership in Australia,” concluded Mr Reardon.
In mid-June 2025, the NSW Premier released the Housing and Productivity Contribution (HPC) Works-in-Kind Guideline for public consultation.
Today the State Government announced proposed changes to the regulatory powers to investigate registered builders who may be unable to meet the financial requirements of registration. The announcement also included a long-awaited review of the Home Building Contracts Act 1991 (HBCA) and associated laws.
Housing Industry Association welcomes today’s announcement by the Cook Labor Government to review key aspects of the home building contracts legislation and provide the building regulator with additional powers to work with builders in distress.
“Two cuts to the cash rate have seen the volume of detached house building approvals rise to be 3.2 per cent higher than the same month last year,” stated HIA Senior Economist Tom Devitt.