The ratio of household income to mortgage size is a key measure of housing affordability in Australia. As property prices have risen faster than wages in most capital cities, the income-to-mortgage ratio has deteriorated significantly over the past two decades.
The Reserve Bank of Australia tracks household debt-to-income ratios as part of its financial stability assessment. Australian households now carry among the highest household debt ratios in the developed world.
APRA has implemented guidance on high debt-to-income ratio lending, requiring lenders to carefully manage loans where the total debt exceeds six times the borrower's gross income.
Data sourced from Reserve Bank of Australia Financial Aggregates and ABS Housing Finance statistics. Updated quarterly.