Time for government to act for first home buyers

First home buyers are calling for more government support to help them get a foot on the property ladder, according to survey on finder.com.au.

Franchise brokerage Mortgage Choice’s annual First Home Buyer Survey has found 64.4% of first home buyers who purchased within the last 24 months would have bought sooner had they received more financial assistance.

In addition to this, 57.3% of respondents to the survey said the government did not provide an adequate level of support for first home buyers.

The survey also found that 47.4% of respondents would like to see stamp duty fees abolished for first home buyers, while 35.5% said they would like to see grants for established properties re-introduced.

Mortgage Choice chief executive John Flavell said rising property prices were making the market less accessible for first home buyers.

He pointed to 11.3% house price growth in Sydney last financial year, and 11.5% growth in Melbourne.

“Sydney currently boasts a median dwelling price of $775,000, while Melbourne’s median property price is $585,000,” he said. “ [adrotate group=”15"]

Across Australia, there is only one capital city that doesn’t boast a median dwelling price above $400,000.

With that said, it is easy to see why so many first home buyers struggle to get a foot on the property ladder.”

Flavell said saving a deposit was becoming increasingly difficult for first home buyers, and called on the government to act.

“The government has actively spoken about the ongoing issue of housing affordability in a lot of public forums, but while there is a lot of talk about housing affordability and its impact on the broader community, there is next to no action.

I believe the time for political grandstanding has come to an end and it is now time to act.”

Originally published at Property Update -.