Are first-home buyers really being priced out of the housing market?

It appears not – not to the extent that we have been told anyway.

Fewer investors, more owner-occupiers: housing finance figures showed a further rebalancing in July. Credit:Ken Irwin

The Bureau of Statistics has admitted that first-home buyer statistics have been flawed since October 2012, leading to a misperception about the struggles young home buyers are facing.

An ABS investigation of data has found some of Australia's banks have been under-reporting the number of loans made to first-home buyers in recent years because they have counted as first-home buyers only people who have received first-home owner grants.