There are still a lot of people seeking to buy their first property in Australia, but the figure has declined significantly over the past year, Office of State Revenue figures have shown.
Alan Bourke, president of the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia said that this is because many first-time buyers rushed to purchase property last year to take advantage of lower interest rates.
They were also keen to benefit from the federal government's cash boost, which was stopped in December 2009.
"It helped sell a backlog of over-supplied homes built in 2006 and fired up the construction sector, but now things are much quieter in this section of the market," Mr Bourke said.
He went on to say that not all people buying their first property in Australia had a restricted budget and that many immigrants could be seeking a relatively expensive home having sold their house or apartment overseas.
Earlier this week, Queensland's government advised those seeking to buy their first property in the state to look further north than the Gold Coast or Brisbane as they could be eligible to receive a special $11,000 (£6,800) contribution under the Regional First Home Owners Grant.
Posted by Ravin Chatlani
