First timers doing it tough: Finder’s top five insights into the current market

The August Housing Finance Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics has found that first home buyers are consistent, but remain at low levels with a new record low of 11.8%.

Finder.com.au delved into the statistics to bring us these five points about what first home buyers are facing in the current market and how they are acting as a response.

1. There was a 10% drop in the number of first home buyer home loans financed in August, from 6,718 in July to 6,055.
   
   
2. First home buyer numbers are at almost the same level as a decade ago, despite some capital cities experiencing more than double growth in median house prices and fewer incentives. The actual number of first home buyer home loans is close to the same level as a decade ago. For the 12 months to August 2014, there were 77,881 first home buyer loans financed, compared to 87,577 for the same period 10 years ago, for the year to August 2004.
   
   
3. In 2004, the First Home Owner Grant was uncapped so all Australian first home buyers were eligible for the $7000. Compared to today, the government has tightened its incentives, with limitations to new homes and caps, which vary across each state.
   
   
4. Interest rates are tipped to rise next year, which could change the equation again. The finder.com.au Reserve Bank Survey, which is now the biggest in Australia, found all 28 leading experts and economists are forecasting the cash rate to start rising next year, with an expected gradual rise to 4 percent over the next two-three years. That means home loan repayments for a $300,000 home loan is likely to increase by $300 per month.
   
   
5. The national median house value has risen by 72% in the past decade, from $325,000 in 2004 to $559,376 in 2014. The biggest jump was Darwin, with 170% increase over the past decade
   
   Median house prices across capital cities

Source: finder.com.au analysis of Australian Property Monitors, Real Estate Institute of Australia