Homebuyers’ appetite for new homes remained weak in July, falling by another 2.4%.
This is according to the latest data from Housing Industry Association (HIA), which tracks new home sales across the five largest states as the leading indicator of future detached home construction.
With the recent decline, new home sales over the three months to July 2023 were down 33.4% from last year.
HIA senior economist Tom Devitt said the sluggish new home sales and the elevated number of previous sales being cancelled point to the home-building activity reaching its lowest level in the decade next year.
“Even a cut to the cash rate now would not produce a recovery in new house commencements until the second half of 2024,” he said.
"Underlying demand for housing continues to be supported by population growth, acute shortages of rental accommodation and strong employment figures.”
Compared to the previous month, sales in July 2023 decreased in most of the large states, led by Queensland with an 11.6% decline, followed by Western Australia (9.3%), New South Wales (1.6%) and Victoria (0.6%).
Only South Australia witnessed an increase in new home sales at 35.5%.
Mr Devitt said the National Cabinet’s recent announcement to increase its five-year housing supply target is significant step in helping address the potential shortage of housing.
“Coordination among all levels of government and the industry will be crucial to achieving this goal,” he said.
Recently, the National Cabinet pledged an additional $3.5bn funding to incentivise state governments and local councils to improve housing supply. This was on top of the $2bn Social Housing Accelerator announced earlier in June.
Buying a home or looking to refinance? The table below features home loans with some of the lowest interest rates on the market for owner occupiers.
| Lender | Home Loan | Interest Rate | Comparison Rate* | Monthly Repayment | Repayment type | Rate Type | Offset | Redraw | Ongoing Fees | Upfront Fees | Max LVR | Lump Sum Repayment | Extra Repayments | Split Loan Option | Tags | Features | Link | Compare | Promoted Product | Disclosure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5.29% p.a. | 5.33% p.a. | $2,773 | Principal & Interest | Variable | $0 | $530 | 90% |
| Promoted | Disclosure | ||||||||||
5.19% p.a. | 5.10% p.a. | $2,742 | Principal & Interest | Variable | $0 | $0 | 80% |
| Disclosure | |||||||||||
5.39% p.a. | 5.43% p.a. | $2,805 | Principal & Interest | Variable | $0 | $530 | 90% |
| Promoted | Disclosure |
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