Investor home loans fall a record 30.6% in a quarter, ABS says

Why it matters

The ABS table puts investor commitments at 35,301 for the quarter, down 38.5% on a year earlier, with $24.7 billion lent. Owner-occupier commitments fell 5.3% to 76,578.

First home buyer commitments fell 8.6% to 26,415, and their value fell 8.0% to $16.2 billion. HTW notes this is the first full quarter since the Budget announcement and the first to include the ban on SMSF limited recourse borrowing arrangements.

What HTW says

HTW chief economist Cameron Kusher said: “It’s hard to see how the tax changes, along with five interest rate increases this year, have done anything but decimate confidence in the property market.” He added that even first home buyers, whom the changes were meant to help, are hesitant to purchase.

Mr Kusher said the scale of the investor retreat was without precedent in the series, and that falling prices and sales volumes made the drop in finance commitments unsurprising.

What’s next

The ABS lists the December quarter lending indicators for release on 10 February 2027. That release will show whether the fall deepens or steadies.