REIWA Deputy President Lisa Joyce said loosening the restrictions was a win for Western Australian home buyers and investors. When APRA originally introduced these tighter lending rules, the decision was made with the red-hot east coast markets, like Sydney and Melbourne.
Now that these restrictions have been loosened, more West Australians will now be able to access interest-only loans. Therefore, making home ownership and property investment more affordable, which should help stimulate our local property market as it starts to recover.
Following the negative impact these national rules have had on the WA market, REIWA calls on APRA to ensure WA is not further burdened by its national approach.
These changes will come into effect on 1 January 2019.