First home buyers are increasingly purchasing properties alone or using government-backed schemes to enter the property market, as rising costs make it harder to buy.
According to Commbank, 40 per cent of first home buyers purchased a property alone in the first half of 2024, up from 35 per cent in 2019.
At the same time, the use of government-funded guarantees by first home buyers has surged 45 per cent between FY21 and FY24, indicating a growing reliance on government support to get into the market.
CBA, Executive General Manager Home Buying, Dr Michael Baumann, said the trends reflect the challenges faced by first home buyers in the current landscape.
“With property prices rising consistently and the current cost of living pressures, it is not surprising to see first home buyers looking at all of the options available to them – be it via innovative loan types, loan policy or government grants and incentives – in order to acquire their first home,” Dr Baumann said.
The national average first home buyer loan size was $497,692 in FY24, with metro buyers borrowing an average of $529,642 compared to $403,203 for regional buyers.
Despite lower loan sizes, regional first home buyers had a higher average loan-to-value ratio (LVR) of 86 per cent, compared to 82 per cent for city-based buyers.
This suggests regional buyers are stretching their finances further to enter the market.
Dr Baumann said that regional areas often provide more affordable options for first home buyers.
“Given the greater level of housing affordability in the regions, these areas often provide first home buyers with the perfect opportunity to take their first step into the market,” he said.
“We know that on average, regional properties are cheaper than metro-based dwellings and often sit on larger land lots – which could be attractive especially for some customer segments.
“Given the greater level of housing affordability in the regions, these areas often provide first home buyers with the perfect opportunity to take their first step into the market.”
