What do you think is an "average" home loan amount these days???

**Olive** · April 1st, 2013, 06:57 PM

I'm in outer eastern melbourne, houses here are around 500k+
Our house is worth around 500k

**Beach Mama** · April 1st, 2013, 07:09 PM

OK I'm delusional *doh*
I thought that the average might be about 500k
Round here 700k buys you a run down house with garden. For a nice house that doesn't need any improvements you'll cough up about 1m.

Not delusional at all, although I guess around 3-400 while Dh and I were chatting I was actually telling him that I am surprised that it is so low, we were outer east of Melbs and our house sold for over 600k recently, and although the median in the area was more like 480 I still find 300 surprising, although as we have stated it's not the house value but mortgage amount for changeover peeps. Still though Zazou that would mean for averages around you and as you head in from where we were in Melbs it would mean most people have a mortgage of around 300-400 and are paying 400ish cash?? I know it varies a lot obviously and I am making lots of generalisations, but its interesting what some people think is a large mortgage compared to a normal or small one.

ETA: Just re-read my post and it's scatty as, can you tell I have had a Baileys? Can't go back and fix it because I have lost my train of thought

**onthefly** · April 1st, 2013, 07:11 PM

Mortgage size swells to an all time high - Your Mortgage Australia

**Beach Mama** · April 1st, 2013, 07:22 PM

Well there you go!! Then from REIV - the median house price in Melbourne is $555,000 and rurally is 305,000 for regional based on the December quarter. I still find that 350 figure low!

**luna moth** · April 1st, 2013, 07:35 PM

We are pretty close to average, at 350K. We also have average household income. I use both of these Facts when bleating to politicians in the hope it will make them more likely to listen to me, as an "average" Australian.

**wysiwyg** · April 1st, 2013, 07:42 PM

Should have stated, in capital cities/suburbs as rural is a different kettle of fish.

ABS - from 10/11 - first home owners average mortgage amount is under 300, from memory was around 270, and changeover buyers was around 350,000 (Australian census).

Average monthly mortgage repayments are $1950 in Vic. (2011 Census).

Not sure if to thank you for introducing the ABS website - I could waste alot of time on that. It lets you review the figures by suburb - so for your area you might not be delusional Zazou.

There are lots of other stats on there which may or may not depress you number of cars per household, number of different housing types, number of families etc.

For those interested in the Melb and Sydney comparisons

Median monthly mortgage repayments $2,169 (Sydney Significant Urban Areas) from ABS 2011 Census

Median monthly mortgage repayments $1,820 (Vic Major Urban - basically greater Melbourne + Geelong) from ABS 2011 Census

**Beach Mama** · April 1st, 2013, 07:45 PM

What scares me is that we could on both our incomes (once DH is building again) get a pretty huge mortgage, we have no debt other than an investment property that is rented out, and that mortgage is small (under 250) and pays itself, but that is it, no credit cards, personal loans etc. and we make decent money when both working full time, but my parents lived through recession and 18% interest rates and that scares me. Yes I know it goes in cycles etc. but even a 1 or 2% interest rate rise on a 500k mortgage is crazy town!!! Imagine 3,4 or 5% up from now on that amount

**Phteven** · April 1st, 2013, 08:08 PM

Average monthly mortgage repayment in our postcode is $2500/month. There are quite a lot of retired people who don't pay mortgages. I guess the GG and PM don't pay mortgages either or the embassies... Do they include Ambassadors etc in the census?

**sangie** · April 1st, 2013, 08:36 PM

What scares me is that we could on both our incomes (once DH is building again) get a pretty huge mortgage, we have no debt other than an investment property that is rented out, and that mortgage is small (under 250) and pays itself, but that is it, no credit cards, personal loans etc. and we make decent money when both working full time, but my parents lived through recession and 18% interest rates and that scares me. Yes I know it goes in cycles etc. but even a 1 or 2% interest rate rise on a 500k mortgage is crazy town!!! Imagine 3,4 or 5% up from now on that amount

I can't imagine being in that much debt either, I seriously couldn't sleep at night. And yeah I've heard all the recession stories from parents/grandparents which is probably part of the reason I could never see myself getting into that much debt. The banks were willing to lend us an insane amount of money when we went to get a home loan preapproval for this house and I just laughed out loud and said no way, think he was a bit shocked lol! My expectations on the average mortgage were the same as yours.

**AnyDream** · April 1st, 2013, 09:43 PM

Average monthly mortgage repayment in our postcode is $2500/month. There are quite a lot of retired people who don't pay mortgages. I guess the GG and PM don't pay mortgages either or the embassies... Do they include Ambassadors etc in the census?

No.

There might be a problem with using monthly mortgage payments as a measure for comparison because one loan may be structured over a ten year period & another may be structured over 25 or even 35 years, obviously that would change the repayment amounts significantly.

**chody47** · April 2nd, 2013, 05:12 AM

Average monthly mortgage repayment in our postcode is $2500/month. There are quite a lot of retired people who don't pay mortgages. I guess the GG and PM don't pay mortgages either or the embassies... Do they include Ambassadors etc in the census?

Just reading this again. If its just the average mortgage that seems fair enough. Some have mortgages, some don't. If its the average per household (and lots aren't paying), then those who do have mortgages must have massive ones lol.

**Phteven** · April 2nd, 2013, 10:59 AM

The median household income is $2,581/week so I guess the average household is capable of serving the average mortgage.

**lady_neon** · April 2nd, 2013, 11:10 AM

Good to know our repayments are less than the average, at a little over $2k a month.

The median rent in our area is higher than our mortgage, so I'm happy we finally bought a home!

**wysiwyg** · April 2nd, 2013, 11:27 AM

Good to know our repayments are less than the average, at a little over $2k a month.

The median rent in our area is higher than our mortgage, so I'm happy we finally bought a home!

Wow where are you? My area the median rent is only just over half median mortgage repayments. In UK is the norm for rent to be more than mortgage (and people do still have investment properties) but here seems to average about 2/3 or less of mortgage. (Negative gearing is a big contribuor to housing affordability particularly in inner suburbs in my opinion)

**Cally** · April 2nd, 2013, 11:44 AM

I'm pretty sure that if they were averaging mortgage repayments they don't take into account people who no longer have mortgages - ie 10 people, 2 have paid off mortgage, the average is based on the 8 remaining, otherwise it's not realistic.

Embassies/diplomatic residences are not included within the census figures. GG and PM should however, if they are staying there that night, alhough I'm thinking there's no mortgage on those properties!

Also, I can't remember if the question in the census is based on what you actually pay versus what the minimum repayment is - we pay more than twice our minimum payment so we get through it much faster, but if people just looked at how much our mortgage repayment was it would look like we had a massive mortgage, whereas it was just average (but now nice and small).

**lady_neon** · April 2nd, 2013, 12:44 PM

Wow where are you? My area the median rent is only just over half median mortgage repayments. In UK is the norm for rent to be more than mortgage (and people do still have investment properties) but here seems to average about 2/3 or less of mortgage. (Negative gearing is a big contribuor to housing affordability particularly in inner suburbs in my opinion)

Perth NOR, 11kms from CBD. We saved a good deposit, I'm saying if we didn't do that and buy, we'd be paying $500 weekly rent.

**lady_neon** · April 2nd, 2013, 12:49 PM

But the vacancy rate in Perth is shocking. Agents are turning away prospective tenants at viewings because literally 100's of people are turning up, offering $100, even $200 more than asking just to have somewhere to live.