The Reserve Bank meets this week and it appears rates are set to go up again. There  remains a desire among consumers for greater certainty around the current rate rise  cycle.

First home buyer activity appears to be declining, according to ABS data released last  week, and the recent rate increases are being blamed.  

The various first home buyer schemes and incentives do not appear to be stacking up  against the impact of lower borrowing limits and higher repayment costs.

This turns attention back to the part of the solution with the most obvious potential to  improve affordability: supply.

Elsewhere in the market, actual transaction activity continues to contrast the doom and  gloom headlines.

Revenue NSW figures show there were over 19,000 transactions in July, from which the  NSW Government collected over $981 million in stamp duty.

The number of transactions was slightly down on the July 2021 figure and slightly above  the July 2020 figure.
REINSW members report a similar number of genuine and prepared buyers in the  market as this time last year. The buyer frenzy has obviously calmed, but the prices  vendors are receiving are typically still well above pre-COVID levels.

Should rates go up again as seems likely, it will be more of the same in the weeks  ahead: strong deals still getting done, accompanied by select commentators declaring a  catastrophe.