» Home sales slump in June - The Australian, 30th July 2007.

WHO’D have guessed it? Housing is the reason global stockmarkets are suddenly looking sickly, housing is the curse of the credit system, and it just might be the key to this year’s federal election.

» Australia’s real crunch in housing yet to come - The Age, 29th July 2009

» Middle earners ’squeezed’ as house prices jump - ABC News, 28th July 2007.

Subprime housing worries caused the ASX all ords to fall 2.85% yesterday or 174.5 points to 6127.

» Sub-prime crisis may trigger global meltdown - The Australian, July 28th 2007
» US mortgage debris has not fully hit Australia - The Australian, July 28th 2007
» Subprime could create global crisis, economist says - Market Watch, Jul 26th 2007

Last night it was reported new home sales in the USA fell 6.6% to 834,000, the lowest record since 2002. Compared year on year to June 2006, sales are down 22.3%.

The sales price of new homes is down 2.2% year on year compared with June 2006.

Meanwhile Inventories of unsold houses totaled 537,000, unchanged. Year on Year, Inventories are down 5%. Builders are offering a range of incentives such as free holidays and new cars to help sell new homes and reduce inventories.

» New-home sales drop 6.6% to 834,000 in June - Market Watch, July 26th 2007.

» US subprime mortgage crisis hits Aust funds - The ABC, Jul 26th 2007.

Sales of existing US homes are down 3.8% in June, the lowest rate in five years. Annually, sales of single family homes have fallen 30%, the sharpest decline in 28 years.

» Existing-home sales fall to 5-year low - Market Watch, July 2007.

The HIA has called on the Federal and State governments to set up a rental assistance fund. It predicts the number of Australians under rental stress will soar in the next three years to 750,000. Rental stress is defined as handing over more than 30 percent of their income to pay rent.

» HIA calls for rental assistance fund - The ABC, 20th July 2007.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Basis Capital, a firm with more than $2 billion in assets that was named Australian hedge fund of the year in 2006, has become the latest to be hit by turmoil in the subprime mortgage market.

» Basis fund misses margin calls, research firm says; Well-regarded Australian firm latest to be hit by subprime mortgage turmoil- Market Watch, 19th Jul 2007

» Housing market hasn’t bottomed yet - Market Watch, 17th June 2007.

» Home builders’ confidence plunges again in July - Market Watch, 17th Jul 2007.

» Home borrowers ‘may need 20% deposit’ - The Australian, 18th July 2007.

» Real Estate: Awaiting The Foreclosure Time Bomb - CNBC, 13th July 2007.

The Sunday Telegraph has printed an article today suggesting Sydney property is now priced out of reach of 75% of families.

With the medium house price in Sydney now $521,100, they indicate when a 10% deposit has been put down, you need an annual household income of $145,412. From recent Census data, 80 percent of households have an annual income of less than $155,000.

» Sydney to be city of renters - 8th July 2007.

Don’t worry about peak oil, now a new house price surge is predicted which in the words of property analyst, Michael McNamara, will bring “Peak Debt”, when mortgage repayments outstrip disposable income.

Australian Property Monitors predicts that in the next decade many in the mortgage belt of “average Australia” will reach a point where they are unable to put food on the table because loan repayments swallow their incomes.

The general manager of Australian Property Monitors, Michael McNamara, said he coined the term “peak debt” to echo the “peak oil” theory, which suggests the production of oil has peaked and is running out. Likewise the capacity to borrow will simply run out, he claims.

Meanwhile the Brisbane times reports :

Australia is fast approaching peak debt. By 2016 we will spend so much of our discretionary income on mortgages there will be nothing left for putting food on the table.

This comes to a similar conclusion to what we forcasted in February this year. Based on Adelaide home prices and wage data, we suggested in September 2007 100% of your wage would go to service the mortgage.

» Home prices set to surge again, fuelling debt crisis - Sydney Morning Herald, 3rd July 2007.
» Brakes fail on housing stress - Brisbane Times, 3rd June 2007.