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"Perth&rsquo;s property market is getting less affordable despite falling prices as the slowdown in wages makes it more difficult to own a home. As the debate over Labor&rsquo;s negative gearing and capital gains tax policies ramps up, Real Estate Institute figures show it is getting tougher in Perth and nationally for people to put a roof over their heads. In the December quarter, the average WA home loan climbed to $315,000, an increase of $8000 over the previous three months. Household incomes grew just $11 a week in the same period to send affordability backwards even as house prices fell. Despite this, housing is slightly more affordable than at the end of 2014 and falling rents have made that market much more affordable. Nationally, the situation is worse, with people now spending 32.4 per cent of their incomes on mortgage repayments. Institute president Neville Sanders said the proportion of family income needed to meet the average monthly loan repayment was at its worst level since December 2012. &ldquo;Marginally lower interest rates did not curb the deterioration of affordability driven by the rising size of new loans and only modest increases in income,&rdquo; he said. The institute is one of several groups vehemently opposed to Labor&rsquo;s plans, which the Government claims would drive up rents and lower house prices. But shadow assistant treasurer Andrew Leigh has told a group of tax experts that the current intersection of negative gearing and capital gains tax is contributing to an increasingly unaffordable housing market."
<https://thewest.com.au/news/australia/property-fall-fails-to-help-affordability-ng-ya-100564>