Half of household income going to the mortgage

Payments as a percentage of median household income at 54% are close to the 56-57% peak and well above the 43% average, CoreLogic research shows.

Despite weaker property values and rising incomes, affordability remains worse than long-term averages - with the median property value 7.7 times the gross annual median household income.

The value-to-income ratio has fallen from 7.9 in the first quarter of this year and is at the lowest level since early 2020.

Although the metric has declined from its peak of 10.2 during the height of the post-COVID boom in the fourth quarter of 2021, home values continue to exceed household incomes, remaining above the long-term average of 6.8 established since 2004.