According to the Daily Mail, a frightening chart shows the level of housing debt for Australians and suggests that residents of major Australian cities are vulnerable to the economic crisis.
At its most recent board meeting, the bank has warned that rising debt levels pose a serious risk to residents.
Australia's housing debt hit an all-time high and is now almost double the annual disposable income of households, according to an icon released at the July 3 meeting.
The rise in debt levels is in line with the rising trend in house prices. Now, house prices in Australia are more than five times the annual disposable income of households.
At the ADB board meeting, participants expressed concern about household debt levels. Over the past 30 years, Australian household debt has outpaced household income growth.
"households with high debt levels are more vulnerable in the face of an economic crisis and are more likely to reduce consumption in the face of uncertain future incomes."
The board also said that while most of Australia's household debt was owed by higher-income middle-aged people, many were owed by low-income families.
Home buyers in Melbourne and Sydney are particularly worrisome. Home prices have soared in both places over the past decade.
Australian Reserve Bank members note that while Sydney's house prices have fallen by 5 percent over the past year, this is also largely due to lower prices in the high-end market.
Prices for relatively high-end properties in Sydney and Melbourne have fallen, but prices at the lower end have barely changed. Prices in other state cities have remained basically stable, with the exception of Hobart, where housing demand is high, but supply is limited, so prices have risen. "
The slow wage growth has also added to the concerns of the industry. " Household income growth has been slow for the past two years, and growth in all aspects of income has been below average. "
As a result, the bank has kept interest rates low at 1.5 percent, saying it could support the Australian economy.