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Finance 365

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Perth, WA
Finance 365

Multi award winning Finance Brokerage focusing on all aspects of Home and Personal Finance.

14/07/2026

BUYERS GAIN MORE ROOM TO NEGOTIATE

Vendors are giving away a little more ground on price.

New data from Cotality shows the median vendor discount across the combined capitals rose to 3.3% in the three months to May 2026, up from 3.1% earlier in the year.

Regional markets have held steadier, with the median discount also sitting at 3.3%, little changed from where it started 2026.

Vendor discounting is one of the clearest signals of negotiating power. A wider discount means sellers are accepting a bigger gap between their original asking price and the final sale price, usually a sign that listings are building and buyers have more choice.

Nationally, the gap now sits at 3.3%, only marginally tighter than the 3.4% recorded a year earlier.

It suggests sellers are still in a reasonable position overall, but the extra choice on offer this year is starting to shift a little more power back towards buyers.

09/07/2026

COULD THIS LENDING CHANGE COST 40,000 HOMES.

Housing industry groups are sounding the alarm over a provision within the federal government's newly passed housing tax reforms.

Under the changes, self-managed super funds (SMSFs) will lose access to limited recourse borrowing arrangements when purchasing residential property.

The Urban Development Institute of Australia, Housing Industry Association and Property Council of Australia warn this could wipe out around 40,000 privately built rental homes, a number that roughly matches the affordable housing target under the government's own Housing Australia Future Fund.

And that's on top of a separate estimate that the broader tax reforms could already shave 35,000 dwellings off supply over the next decade.

That's a big impact for a relatively small pool of lending.

Annual SMSF property borrowing currently sits at just $8.2 billion (see Ray White graph below), yet industry groups say these investors play an outsized role in helping apartment developments reach the pre-sale thresholds lenders demand before releasing construction finance. Take those buyers away, and some projects may never get off the ground.

They're now pushing for an amendment that lets SMSF investment in new housing continue, while restrictions on established properties stay in place.

23/06/2026

AUSTRALIAN POPULATION REACHES 27.8 MILLION

Australia's population grew 1.5% in the year to December 2025, reaching 27.8 million people, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

Western Australia was the country's fastest-growing state at 2.2%, while Tasmania was the slowest at 0.5%.

A growing population can be good news for the economy, but it does create a familiar headache for housing. More people mean more demand for somewhere to live, and when supply cannot respond quickly enough, the result is tighter rental markets, firmer prices and stretched affordability.

Construction timelines, labour shortages and planning constraints all slow the supply response. That lag means even steady, moderate population growth can have a real impact on housing conditions over time.

Australia's housing challenge has never really been about one single factor. It is about building enough homes to keep pace with a growing country, and right now, that race is still very much on.

22/06/2026

HOW MUCH DO YOU REALLY NEED TO EARN TO BUY A HOME ?

Three rate rises in 2026 have pushed up more than just monthly repayments. They've also lifted the minimum income needed to qualify for a loan in the first place.

New Cotality modelling shows a household now needs to earn at least $178,194 to purchase a median Sydney house, up from $170,166 in January. Brisbane sits at $139,077 and Melbourne at $108,126, the most accessible of the major capitals.

The figures assume a 20% deposit, a 30-year principal and interest loan, borrowing at 6.25%, with a 3 percentage point serviceability buffer applied on top.

For aspiring buyers feeling the squeeze, there are still paths forward. Reducing debt, comparing lenders and broadening the search to include units or regional areas – where income thresholds can be significantly lower – can all help make the numbers work.

10/06/2026

NAB TIPS RATE CUTS FROM 2027

Good news for borrowers: NAB thinks the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is done raising rates.

The major lender has dropped its forecast for an August hike, and is now expecting the cash rate to hold at its current level of 4.35% before cuts begin in the second quarter of 2027.

The reason? Economic momentum is clearly fading. Both GDP growth and NAB's own business survey point to a slowdown, with growth likely having already peaked for this cycle.

That said, don't expect rate relief anytime soon. Underlying inflation is still forecast to stay above the RBA's 2–3% target until mid-2027, which means the central bank is unlikely to move quickly.

"We have greater conviction that the next move in rates is down, but less conviction on the timing," NAB chief economist Sally Auld said.

If NAB's forecasts prove correct, the cash rate would fall to 3.6% by the end of 2027.

09/06/2026

LISTINGS SURGE AS THE MARKET HITS A TURNING POINT

Something notable happened in May. For the first time in over a year, the number of homes listed for sale nationally is higher than it was 12 months ago.

According to SQM Research, total property listings rose 10.4% in May from April to 258,803 dwellings. New listings are now 12.0% above May 2025 levels, suggesting vendors are returning to the market in meaningful numbers.

But here is the telling part. Five of the eight capital cities – Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide – recorded monthly falls in asking prices.

SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said the combination of rising supply and stalling prices is "usually an early sign that the market is at a turning point."

For buyers, that means more choice and less urgency. For sellers, pricing realistically matters more than ever.

30/05/2026

HEADLINE INFLATION FALLS BUT DEEPER PRESSURES ARE BUILDING

First, the good news: the latest inflation figures have probably reduced the chances of another interest rate hike in June.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, annual inflation slowed from 4.6% in March to 4.2% in April. That was broadly in line with market expectations and will likely, at least, provide some breathing room for borrowers after the February, March and May rate hikes already delivered this year.

However, the fall in headline inflation was heavily influenced by lower petrol prices after the federal government temporarily halved the fuel excise. As a result, the headline figure may look healthier than the underlying reality.

This explains why the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will probably be more concerned about the trimmed mean inflation figure, which actually increased from 3.3% to 3.4% during the month.

That’s significant because trimmed mean inflation strips out volatile items like fuel and gives a better indication of whether higher costs are spreading through the broader economy. And right now, they are.

Higher energy, freight and construction costs are increasingly flowing into other goods and services, suggesting inflation pressures are becoming more embedded rather than fading away.

20/05/2026

WHY REGIONAL AUSTRALIA IS OUTPERFORMING THE CAPITAL CITIES

Australia’s regional property markets are once again outperforming the capitals.
New Cotality data shows regional dwelling values rose 3.3% in the three months to April, compared to just 1.1% across the combined capitals.

Western Australia remains the standout, with Busselton leading the nation at 7.5% quarterly growth, followed by Albany (7.2%), Geraldton (6.8%) and Bunbury (5.8%).

Queensland also recorded strong conditions, particularly in Townsville, Maryborough and Toowoomba, while Tasmania saw renewed momentum in Burnie-Somerset and Launceston.

The common theme? Affordability.

As prices in many capitals remain high, more buyers are looking to regional markets where they can get more value for money and often a better lifestyle.

Importantly, demand is still outpacing supply in many areas. For instance, in Albany, properties are taking just 10 days to sell, while Busselton homes are selling in 12 days.

“Internal migration patterns continue to favour regional areas where buyers can find greater value and a different pace of life,” said Cotality’s Head of Research for Australia, Gerard Burg.

📲 call 08 6166 6391
📧 email [email protected]

06/05/2026

BACK TO SQUARE ONE FOR INTEREST RATES

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) lifted the cash rate by 0.25 percentage points to 4.35% in May.

That is the third increase this year and fully reverses last year’s rate cuts.

It is a sharp reset, driven by inflation moving in the wrong direction. Consumer prices rose 4.6% in the year to March, pushed up by a global energy shock that has seen oil prices climb above US$120 a barrel.

Elevated fuel costs are already feeding into the economy and are expected to lift inflation further in the coming months.

While the RBA cannot control global oil prices, it can influence how those costs feed into wages and broader prices. The focus now is on stopping what starts as a temporary shock from becoming a longer-term inflation problem.

That suggests interest rates may need to stay higher for longer, even as the economy slows.

04/05/2026

PRICE GROWTH SLOWS AS RATE PRESSURE BUILDS

Australia’s housing market is losing momentum, according to Cotality’s latest data.

National home values rose just 0.3% in April, the slowest monthly growth since January 2025, with Sydney and Melbourne dragging the result lower after both fell 0.6%.

Those declines are now adding up. Sydney values sit 1.0% below their November peak, while Melbourne is 1.9% down.

Elsewhere, growth is still positive but clearly slowing. Brisbane, Adelaide and Darwin all recorded monthly gains above 1%, while Perth rose 2.1%, although even there the pace is easing.

Cotality research director Tim Lawless said affordability and borrowing constraints are now biting harder.

Sales activity reflects that shift, with volumes down 5.4% year on year and auction clearance rates holding below 55%, pointing to weaker competition.

At the same time, growth is becoming more targeted with lower-priced segments outperforming in every capital, as buyers concentrate on more accessible parts of the market.

“The largest difference between upper and lower quartile value growth is in Sydney, where lower-tier house values are up 2.9% year-to-date compared with a 3.3% fall across the most expensive quarter of the market,” Mr Lawless said.

📲 08 6166 6391
📧 [email protected]

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