What is the average mortgage in Australia in April 2024?
As the rate of Australian homeowners continues to descend, it’s a strange time for those invested in the property market. Whether you are currently a homeowner, looking to buy a house, or simply interested in the movement of house prices, the average loan size is something we can all be curious about.
So what is the average mortgage? In February 2024, it was $598,624 based of lending indicators from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
However, this figure only tells a part of the story. The average home loan in Sydney is an entirely different thing from the average home loan in the regional Northern Territory. We’ll take a look at the average Australian home loan for investors and owner-occupiers, hopefully giving you a more complete picture of Australian real estate.
The average mortgage around Australia
There are a few factors to remember when looking at average figures for home loan size. These include the location of the property (each state has a very different property market), whether it is an investor or owner-occupier loan, and whether it is for an existing property or a newly built property.
Looking at all new home loans (excluding refinancers), the average loan amounts for each state are:
- New South Wales (NSW) average mortgage amount: $721,599
- Australian Capital Territory (ACT) average mortgage amount: $628,411
- Victoria (Vic) average mortgage amount: $603,142
- Queensland (QLD) average mortgage amount: $561,625
- South Australia (SA) average mortgage amount: $500,934
- Western Australia (WA) average mortgage amount: $506,004
- Northern Territory (NT) average mortgage amount: $429,496
- Tasmania (Tas) average mortgage amount: $437,079
Data from Lending Indicator February 2024 ABS.
In April 2024, the latest data shows the national average mortgage size has fallen from the all-time high of $624,383 in December 2023 to $598,624 in February 2024.
The average mortgage size reflects the amount left owing by long-term homeowners and new home loans by buyers in the current market. This means that growing mortgage sizes will likely reflect higher property prices since the pandemic property boom and the reduced borrowing power from higher interest rates..
Despite uniformly high Australian mortgages, first-home buyers face the continuing problem of shrinking availability. Corelogic reporting has new property listings down year on year in all areas of Australia except Hobart and the regional NT, with an overall drop in new listings of 17.5%.
When paying off a mortgage, borrowers also have to consider the cost of repayments and how those will fit in with their financial situation.
How to lower your mortgage rate
How much are average mortgage repayments in Australia?
To work out the average mortgage repayment, we have to consider whether the home loans are fixed rate or variable rate. Consistent hikes in the cash rate from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) have brought up the cost of monthly repayments for many homeowners, with a lot of uncertainty around how they will continue onwards.
The RBA controls the cash rate, which trickles onto other products that attract interest (like personal loans and credit cards). This includes mortgage rates, where variable-rate home loans are subject to changes, along with banks increasing or reducing their interest rates. Fixed-rate home loans will temporarily be locked at the rate they were applied for, but once the fixed rate expires, borrowers will be subject to all of the same rate movements.
Some home loan repayments may also include additional fees, like monthly service fees. Looking at the comparison rate rather than the headline rate can give you a more accurate idea of how much you will pay on top of the loan amount.
Calculating an average mortgage repayment is difficult since the average mortgage size varies so much. To do this, we work out the average interest rate on an owner-occupier home loan from the current RBA Owner-occupied Variable Housing Rate data (6.3% p.a.), and apply this to the average mortgage size for each state listed above (assuming a 30-year loan term). This works out as follows:
- NSW Average monthly mortgage repayments: $4,467
- ACT Average monthly mortgage repayments: $3,890
- Vic Average monthly mortgage repayments: $3,733
- QLD Average monthly mortgage repayments: $3,476
- SA Average monthly mortgage repayments: $3,101
- WA Average monthly mortgage repayments: $3,132
- NT Average monthly mortgage repayments: $2,658
- Tas Average monthly mortgage repayments: $2,705
These averages do not consider any extra repayments, promotional interest rates, or the ability to refinance.
If you can refinance to a lower interest rate on your home loan, you may be able to save a considerable amount on your repayments. Different lenders may offer more competitive options, with particular products offering incentives like cashback or offset accounts. If you find yourself in this position, it may be worth shopping around or consulting a mortgage broker.
