More people will make their way on to the Australian property ladder over the course of 2012 as market conditions soften slightly and the interest rate cuts from the Reserve Bank of Australia begin to have an effect on property affordability, an analyst has predicted.
Tim Lawless, RP Data research director, pointed out that a fall in first-time buyer activity is possible in the first quarter of 2012, after results in the final quarter of 2011 were influenced by the start of the stamp duty exemption in New South Wales.
Writing in Smart Company, he added that the end of this exemption on January 1st 2012 is likely to have had a negative effect on first-time buyers.
"However, over 2012 we expect a greater volume of first home buyer activity than that which was recorded in 2011," concluded Mr Lawless.
Andrew Wilson, chief economist of Australian Property Monitors, recently advised the Sydney Morning Herald that upcoming auctions will act as a "litmus test" of the prospects for the residential market in New South Wales.
Posted by Steve Douglas
