Investor loans surge 19% as Qld overtakes Victoria

Queensland has emerged as a key player, overtaking Victoria as the second-largest investor market, holding 23.4 per cent of investor loans for the year – a 0.4 per cent increase over Victoria, according to the latest Mortgage Insights report from Money.com.au.

In September alone, Queensland recorded 4,593 investor loans, nearly 700 more than Victoria. Western Australia continues to lead the charge in investor loan growth, with a remarkable 43 per cent annual increase in loan numbers.

Queensland and NSW are also experiencing strong growth, with rises of 24 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively.

Notably, the Northern Territory has seen a sharp 50 per cent increase in investor loans in September, reaching 99 loans for the month, compared to 66 a year ago.

While the overall number of investor loans remains small – totalling 1,093 for the year – this growth highlights the potential of the NT’s housing market.

“The Northern Territory housing market presents a compelling opportunity for investors. While house prices have remained stable or declined, rental yields, particularly in Darwin, are among the highest in Australia,” said Mansour Soltani, Money.com.au’s home loans expert.

Soltani said that the investor market dynamics are shifting across the country: “Western Australia has been the standout market of 2024, but with Victoria now hot on its heels, we’re seeing a significant shift in buyer activity.

“My prediction for 2025 is that as interest rates drop, buyer activity will ramp up again in the Eastern seaboard states – NSW, VIC, and QLD. Meanwhile, Western Australia and South Australia, which are becoming saturated markets, may start to stabilise.”

Loan sizes up

In addition to the rise in investor activity, the average new loan size in Australia has increased to $642,121, up 7.2 per cent annually, with investors taking out slightly larger loans, averaging $654,056, a 7.7 per cent rise.

This growth comes amid a broader trend of renewed confidence in the housing market.

Peter Drennan, Money.com.au’s research & data expert, believes this is partly driven by recent lender cuts to fixed rates across various products, as well as predictions of a rate cut in 2025.

“Despite conversations around Australia’s housing affordability crisis, the increase in loan numbers suggests renewed confidence in the housing market, potentially driven by recent lender cuts to fixed rates across multiple products, and predictions that a rate cut is on the cards in 2025,” Drennan said.

Western Australia and Victoria are leading the way in owner-occupied loan growth, with annual increases of 9 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively. However, NSW and Queensland recorded more modest growth of just 4 per cent and all other states reported declines in owner-occupied loan numbers.

In another key area of the housing market, first home buyer loans have seen steady growth, increasing 8 per cent annually.

Victoria and NSW lead the way with impressive growth rates of 14 per cent and 13 per cent, respectively, followed by South Australia at 9 per cent, Queensland at 6 per cent, and Western Australia at 4 per cent.

[RELATED: New mortgage lending dropped over September]

Adrian Suljanovic is a journalist at Broker Daily with more than two years experience reporting on all facets of the third party distribution channel.

Adrian has written for a range of business and finance titles including IFA, Investor Daily and Lawyer’s Weekly before joining the mortgages team in 2022.

He graduated from the University of Wollongong in 2021 gaining a Bachelor of Communication & Media with a major in Digital & Social Media.

E-mail Adrian at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.