The increase of first home buyer activity has led to prices falling for real estate in Perth, according to the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia (REIWA).
During the three months leading to August, median house prices in Perth decreased slightly by 1.4 per cent, which REIWA President David Airey states is largely attributed to new entrants entering the housing market.
"The reiwa.com data reported to us from our member's sales show the median house sale price dropping 1.4 per cent to $515,000 from the three months to May figure," said Mr Airey in a September 2 statement.
Perth is known for being one of the most expensive real estate markets in the country along with Sydney, with RP Data showing year-on-year price growth of 8.3 per cent over the 12 months ending July 2013.
Mr Airey stated that along with rising first home buyer activity, there have also been a large number of affordable houses for sale placed on the market, which has therefore helped to bring the median price down.
"This appears to be due to the large turnover of more affordable homes skewing the median downwards," said Mr Airey, commenting on the fall in median prices.
The Western Australian government has shown its support in introducing affordable housing into the market, so that the dream of owning a home can become a reality for many lower-income earning Australians.
Just last month, the government announced it will be placing $130 million into building 500 more affordable homes through the Housing Stock Redevelopment Strategy.
"We will continue to invest in our local communities to ensure we are building stronger societies. In addition to this housing boost, we recently allocated almost $50 million to build 1,000 affordable homes through the National Rental Affordability Scheme," said Minister for Housing Bill Marmion in an August 10 statement.
First home buyers in Western Australia are able to secure funding through the state-provided first home owners grant, which can also be used to buy affordable housing.
The government announced that it will be altering the first home owners grant from September 15. Currently, funding of $7,000 is available for new buyers to go towards the purchase of a home valued under $750,000.
Through the changes, new home buyers can receive funding of up to $10,000 for the purchase or construction of a new residential dwelling. Buyers of established homes can secure a grant of up to $3,000.
These grants, couple with the low interest rates currently on the market, may have helped to trigger more first home buyers to make a purchase, in turn, helping to drive down median house prices.
