Australian Property Demand From Investors Nosedives Which Means Pain Coming in Higher Rents
By ANR Reporter
The number of property investors active in the market in June fell an extraordinary 6.3 per cent in just a month, according to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics Lending Indicators.
The sharp reduction means that investor activity has once again fallen below the long-term average of 34.9 per cent of the market, after only hitting that historical benchmark in March this year, according to a leading national buyers’ agent.
Atlas Property Group Director Lachlan Vidler said the latest data to June 2022 shows investors now comprise 33.8 per cent of mortgage demand by value, with a recent peak of 35.75 per cent being recorded in April, and a record low of just 22.9 per cent during 2020.
“It’s clear that the rapid escalation in interest rates buffeted investor lending as well as confidence in May and June,” Mr Vidler said.
“Also, we have to recognise that since June interest rates have been ramped up a further two times in successive months, so investor activity is even more subdued than this data-set reflects.”
Mr Vidler said that investor activity has been below historical averages for a number of years – apart from in March and April this year – which was one of the predominant reasons for the critical rental undersupply currently occurring.
