Mortgages ‘hitting home’

By Shaun Inguanzo
GREATER Dandenong residents are struggling to pay their mortgages, with home loan repayments gobbling up more than one-third of household incomes.
Labor candidate for the federal seat of Isaacs Mark Dreyfus this week said he was concerned about Australian Bureau of Statistics figures showing that more than 5000 households in the electorate were under mortgage stress.
Mortgage stress is a term used when a household is paying more than one-third of its income into home loan repayments, he said.
“This represents over 30 per cent of local households with mortgages,” Mr Dreyfus said.
Mr Dreyfus said the Howard Government had allowed house prices to skyrocket beyond affordable levels for working class families.
“Home ownership has now slipped beyond the reach of many young Greater Dandenong families, with housing less affordable now than at any time in Australia’s history,” he said.
Liberal candidate for Isaacs Ross Fox dsimissed Mr Dreyfus’ comments and said mortgage stress was due to state taxes and the Bracks Government’s reluctance to release more land.
“As someone saving for a deposit to buy a home in my area, I know what it is like to have to save for a home,” he said.
“The reality is that state taxes and charges on housing sales have ballooned, which puts more pressure on home buyers.
“The people I meet every day in my community tell me of the challenges they face in paying a mortgage and meeting other commitments.
“When it comes to mortgage stress, there would be nothing worse than returning to 17 per cent interest rates under Labor and the days of almost 11 per cent unemployment.”
Mr Fox said Mr Dreyfus and the Labor party were ‘all talk and no action’.
“The hard facts are that Labor is yet to release a single detailed policy to manage the economy,” he said.