Record home loan size comes despite drop in value of new lending
We have a bit more on the home loan data out from the ABS today.
Despite the drop in the value of new lending, the average national owner-occupier loan size hit a new record high in September to $642,121 (original data), up $43,254 from the year before.
New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland were the only states to record an increase to the average loan size, with Queensland’s average new loan size hitting a record high of $619,599 (original data) with a sizeable $15,611 increase - the highest increase in dollar terms since November 2021.
First home buyers fell out of the market with the value of new loans dropping by 3.3% to $5.21bn. However, compared to a year ago, new lending is up by 8.8%, or $421.4m.
Data insights director at Canstar, Sally Tindall, said:
This drop in new lending is evidence that after 13 RBA rises, and almost 12 months with a cash rate at 4.35%, borrowers may have now reached their limit.
It’s astonishing to think the average owner-occupier loan is now over $642,000. On a 30-year mortgage at the average new customer rate, that’s a monthly repayment of almost $4,000. No wonder buyers are starting to tap out.
While the proportion of new borrowers opting for a fixed rate is still incredibly low, this data will be worth watching in the months ahead to see if the deluge of fixed cuts gets borrowers locking in their rate.
National average home loan size hits record high, ABS lending data shows
The ABS lending data came out earlier today, showing the national average home loan size has hit a record high of $642,121.
While the value of investor home loans went down 1% in September to $11.6bn dollars, it is sitting nearly 30% higher than one year ago, and just slightly off the record high in January 2022.
In comparison, owner-occupier loans went up 1% to $18.6m, which is 13.1% in the year.
NSW police appeal for information on man’s death near Kyogle in October 2021
NSW detectives are appealing for information as an investigation continues into the death of a man near Kyogle in 2021.
In a statement, NSW police said:
About 12.40am on Sunday 17 October 2021, emergency services attended a property on Gonpa Road, Collins Creek, following reports a man had collapsed.
NSW Ambulance paramedics assisted the 46-year-old man at the scene; however, he could not be revived.
Officers attached to Richmond Police District attended and commenced inquiries into the man’s death.
A report was prepared for the Coroner, and a Coronial Inquiry was established; however, the Inquiry was suspended and the matter has since been referred to the Office of The Director of Public Prosecutions.
As part of ongoing inquiries, Casino Detectives executed a crime scene warrant at the Collins Creek property about 9.45am yesterday (Thursday 31 October 2024).
Truth-telling inquiry chair says ‘there’s been no contact’ from new premier Crisafulli
But Creamer said on Friday the process had been “hugely disrespectful” and would cause “a significant amount of devastation across the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island community.
“There is a lot of suffering, a lot of pain, a lot of hurt in relation to this decision,” he said.
“I appreciate the premier has said that his actions will be decent and respectful, but leading up to the [press conference] there was no contact between the premier and my office or myself.
“Even to this very moment, and I’ve asked the team to be continuing to be checking emails, there’s been no contact.”
Creamer said he had sought legal advice and had now halted the work of the inquiry.
It had been preparing to hear from 40 identified witnesses from the Indigenous community of Cherbourg.
“To have to stop this process is going to cause … a real impact on those people emotionally,” he said.
Creamer said it was unprecedented for a government to demand that an independent inquiry halt its work.
Queensland LNP’s moves to end truth-telling process ‘hugely disrespectful’, chair says
The chair of Queensland’s First Nations Truth Telling and Healing Inquiry, Joshua Creamer, says the new state government’s moves to end the process have been “hugely disrespectful” to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
Creamer, a Waanyi and Kalkadoon man, told reporters on Friday he heard secondhand that the new premier, David Crisafulli, had told a press conference the inquiry should cease work.
The LNP had said it would end the state’s “path to Treaty” process, of which the truth-telling inquiry is the first step.
Crisafulli has said the process would be ended with “respect and decency”.
Last month was Australia’s second-hottest October, BoM says
Just days after the Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO reminded us that Australia had heated up 1.5C since 1910 in their biennial state of the climate report, we have another reminder of our warming trend.
Last month, mean temperatures were 2.51C warmer than the 1961-90 average, making it the second-warmest October on record, BoM says. For Queensland, it was the warmest, up 2.77C.
For rain, the national area-averaged October tally was 18.4% below the 1961-1990 average. Only Western Australia was wetter than average, with all others states and territories drier than average last month.
“Rainfall was below to very much below average (in the lowest 10% of all Octobers since 1900) for south-western Western Australia, and parts of New South Wales and Victoria,” the BoM said. “For both Victoria and Tasmania area-averaged rainfall was the lowest since 2019, around 30% below the October average.”
Perth man dies after being taken to police watch house
A 35-year-old Perth man has died after being arrested and taken to Perth watch house.
In a statement, WA police said:
About 2pm on Thursday 31 October 2024, officers from Midland Police arrested a 35-year-old man – who was on bail for serious charges – for breaching bail conditions.
He was subsequently taken to the Perth Watch House where he was assessed by a nurse on admittance, police said in a statement.
About 8pm, a change in his behaviour was noticed and following consultation with nursing staff, a decision was made to convey the man to Royal Perth Hospital for further assessment.
Tragically he suffered a medical episode while still in police presence prior to being admitted.
Despite the best efforts of Emergency Department staff, the man could not be revived.
The death is not being treated as suspicious and a report will be prepared for the Coroner.
PwC International threatened Australian arm with expulsion unless it handed over control of scandal
Henry Belot
New documents reveal PwC International leaders threatened their Australian counterparts with expulsion from the network unless they handed over ultimate control of the consultancy firm’s response to the damaging tax leaks scandal.
In May 2023, PwC International’s global general counsel, Diana Weiss, wrote to the Australian executive warning its response to the scandal had “caused a breakdown of trust and confidence in the firm and significant damage to PwC’s reputation”.
The scathing letter outlines how deeply unhappy the global executive was with the Australian firm. The letter, published by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services on Friday, includes:
A series of public hearings and disclosures have shed light on the firm’s involvement in consulting engagements that have been beset by poor risk management practices, evidenced gaps in professional judgment and exposed the firm to further public scrutiny and criticism.
The firm made public statements that improperly downplayed the severity of the … matter and minimized the significance of the underlying behaviours, which have given rise to significant adverse media, both domestically and globally.
The global firm demanded PwC Australia hand over ultimate control of its communications with regulators and ongoing investigations. PwC Australia accepted the conditions.
The chair of the inquiry, Labor senator Deborah O’Neill, said in a statement:
Australians deserve to know who is actually running the large consulting, audit and accounting firms which are so deeply enmeshed with not just our government, but our financial markets and collective economic security.
Details of PwC’s misconduct, and the steps taken by PwC International to firewall itself from the Australian firm and protect its global reputation, are of significant public interest.
Costs rising faster than revenues in private hospital sector, report shows
The Health Check assessed private hospital financial data for the period 2017–18 to 2023–24.
Its analysis found private hospital’s expenditures were increasing at a growth rate of4.1% while revenues were falling behind at a growth rate of only 2.9% between 2018-19 to 2021-22.
Those figures were based on assessing the National Hospital Cost Data Collection and Private Hospital Data Bureau, which represent 89 overnight hospitals, representing 38% of private hospital discharges and 50% of private hospital revenue in 2022–23.
For private hospitals that submitted financial data to the Health Check, there was a decline in the weighted average earnings before interest, tax and depreciation (EBITDA) margins from 8.7% in 2018-19 to 4.4% in 2022-23.
Financial data was voluntarily provided by 243 out of 647 hospitals, representing 58% of private hospital discharges and 63% of hospital revenue in 2022–23.
The report acknowledged its potential selection bias due to the incomplete submission of financial data across the private hospital sector.
Taking into account other publicly available financial data, the department estimates that the sector’s weighted average EBITDA margin is likely to have been between 7% and 8% in 2022-23.
‘Private Hospital Sector Financial Health Check’ shows maternity and mental health services are areas of concern
Maternity and mental health services within private hospitals are “increasingly difficult to offer”, a government review of the sector’s financial viability has highlighted as particular areas of concern amid an overall reduction in profitability.
The government has published a summary of its ‘Private Hospital Sector Financial Health Check’, which is the most we’ll be able to learn about its analysis because the report in full can’t be shared due to commercial in confidence information.
The stoush between privatehospitals and insurers prompted the federal health department to ask hospitals and other stakeholders to hand over their financial information to assess the performance, pressures and profitability of the sector.
In a statement made on releasing the summary, the health minister, Mark Butler, said while parts of the sector have remained strong, there has been a reduction in profitability over time as costs have risen faster than revenue. “This shows that there is substantial work for private health insurers and private hospitals to do to ensure the sector’s long-term viability.”
Butler said he was “grateful to all those who participated in the health check as we all work towards a strong and sustainable future for private hospitals in Australia”.
There will be no silver bullet from Canberra or funding solution from taxpayers to deal with what are essentially private pressures in this system.
The government will work in partnership the private health sector to develop innovative solutions which meet the needs of the sector and the Australian people.
‘Jobseekers and businesses have waited long enough’ for employment service reform, says CPSU secretary
Melissa Donnelly, CPSU national secretary, said:
The public service is well placed to prioritise the needs of parents and carers who participate in this program, by offering tailored support to help them achieve their personal and work goals.
For too long Australians have been let down by a privatised system that is more concerned with banking big profits for tax dodging multinationals, than it is with delivering high quality employment services in local communities.
We must not lose sight of the urgency of this reform. Jobseekers and businesses have waited long enough for an effective employment service.
The CPSU looks forward to the successful implementation of this pilot and the valuable insights it will provide for future employment service reforms.
