The Reserve Bank of Australia has made the decision to cut the official interest rate once more – it now stands as the record low 0.10%pa. A number of economists predicted this, with the consensus being the easing of monetary policy is the result of the Board’s ‘every little bit helps’ stance.
With interest rates at an all-time low, experts are seeing what has been described as a ‘remarkable’ rise in house prices in October – the first since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak. Data from CoreLogic shows the housing market experienced a 0.4% rise on a national basis.
Rise in regional house values
Although the capital city markets are helping to bring the national average up, regional markets are now outperforming them. It’s a new trend that some experts believe is the result of more people working from home, and who no longer feel the need to live in major cities.
Increase in consumer confidence
CoreLogic head of research, Eliza Owen, says there was both an increase in listings and an increase in the number of house sales on a national basis. “We also saw a sharp rise in consumer confidence, with the Westpac-Melbourne Institute consumer sentiment index up about 12 per cent in October,” she said.
All of this is great news for mortgage holders – record low interest rates, a housing value boost, and a rise in consumer confidence, all open up more opportunities for home-owners. If you would like to explore your options, please feel free to give us a call.
Until next month,