Consumer finances improving, shift in housing behaviour seen by researchers
September 23, 2009
Australian household finances are improving, and consumer behaviour in the property sector has shifted in two states, according to the latest national research from the Melbourne Institute.
The Household Financial Conditions Index increased by 7.4 per cent compared to the situation in June, and by 13.5 per cent compared to the situation this time last year as economic conditions became rosier.
Professor Guay Lim, a Professorial Research Fellow at the Melbourne Institute, said that saving was now less common as confidence in the growth prospects of the country soared.
“Households are expressing more optimism about their financial future - the proportion of respondents nominating ’saving for a rainy day’ has fallen significantly compared to the response in June,” he reported. “This proportion which has been rising sharply since December 2007 is now below the proportion of respondents nominating ‘holiday/travel’ as their main motivation for saving.”
Professor Lim added that, in two of the nation’s softer housing markets over the past year, there has been a noticeable shift in consumer behaviour.
“Compared to this time last year, the survey also shows a discernable shift in housing behaviour away from ‘renting’ to ‘taking up a mortgage’ in Queensland and Western Australia. There was no clear evidence of such a change in the other States,” he advised.
WA and Queensland were two of the worst performed states in the latter part of last year and early this year, but house prices have now started to climb again in line with improvement seen nationwide.