Australians Borrow $16b to Buy Cars

The year 2017 set a record for new car sales in Australia, with well over a million factory-fresh automobiles hitting the bitumen, AAP reported. That raised the obvious question: With wages stagnant and housing debt at ridiculous levels, how are Australians funding this boom? The Australian Bureau of Statistics data says that in the 12 months to November 2017, Australians borrowed more than $16 billion specifically to buy motor vehicles. Of that, $8.5 billion was used to buy new cars, $6 billion was borrowed to buy used cars, and the rest went on other types of vehicles. Meanwhile, in the 12 months to November, Australians borrowed a massive $247.7 billion to buy properties. In other words, Australians borrowed more than 15 times as much to buy houses as they did to buy cars. Twenty years ago, things looked very different. In 1997, the amount borrowed in personal loans was almost equal to the amount borrowed in home loans.