Australians aren’t encouraged by the Australian Labor Party’s housing plans, with more than one in three voters saying they are less likely to buy a home if Kevin Rudd wins the federal election.
 
According to a survey of home buying intentions by mortgage broker X Inc Finance, 34% of respondents considered themselves “less likely” to buy a property if the Coalition is defeated.
 
19% of respondents are “more likely” to enter the property market following an ALP victory, however, while around 47% said that a change in government would make no difference to their home-buying intentions.
 
“People traditionally delay making major purchases during federal election campaigns but the survey results would indicate there is greater concern about a Labor win than there is about the Coalition retaining power,” said Jennifer Nielsen, X Inc Finance Chief Executive. “Certainly, we’ve enjoyed a strong domestic economy, stable employment and relatively low interest rates for almost a decade now under a Coalition government.
 
“After being unnerved by the sub-prime lending crisis in the US and recent interest rate rises, consumers are on edge for anything that they believe might further affect the national economy,” she said.
 
Another factor deterring people from entering the property market is the threat of further interest rate hikes, with 57.5% of respondents admitting this has caused them to delay.
 
“Again, this is an entirely natural reaction,” says Nielsen. “Rises in official interest rates are intended to slow consumer spending and the survey illustrates that the rate hikes are having precisely that effect.
 
“But in this case I don’t think you can look at interest rates in isolation,” she added. “The federal election and volatility in the US sub-prime market are conspiring with the recent rate rises, and concerns of further rises, to make consumers extremely nervous,” she said.

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