Demand for new home loans slumped nearly eight per cent in January against the backdrop of rising interest rates and the end of the federal government's more generous first homebuyers grant.
In January, 51,056 loans were granted to owner-occupiers, a 7.9 per cent seasonally-adjusted decline on December, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data released on Wednesday.
It was a fourth consecutive monthly decline.
Economists had expected home loan commitments to have risen by 2.0 per cent.
The fall follows December's third consecutive increase in mortgage rates and the end of the government's increased grant, which returned to $7000 on January 1.
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The proportion of loans granted to first homebuyers slipped to 20.5 per cent compared to 21.0 per cent in December. A record peak of 28.5 per cent was set last May.
The Reserve Bank of Australia raised the official cash rate for a fourth time to 4.0 per cent last week.
