Housing finance deals for owner-occupiers rose by a seasonally-adjusted 0.9 per cent in April to 60,395 loans, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday.
Low mortgage rates and a more generous first-homeowner's grant lifted the proportion of loans taken up by first-time buyers to a record 28 per cent.
It was unclear in April whether the Rudd government would extend its more generous grant beyond June 30 in the May budget, which may have caused a further spurt of interest in securing properties to beat the deadline.
In the event, Treasurer Wayne Swan extended the increased grant until September 30, after which it is to be scaled back over the rest of the year before returning to pre-October 2008 levels next year.
The grant was doubled to $14,000 for established homes and trebled to $21,000 for new properties as part of the government's first stimulus package in October last year.
After September 30 it will be reduced to $10,500 for established homes and $14,000 for new homes until December 31, before returning to its original $7,000 next year.