Fall in home loans a worry for RBA March 13, 2013 - 1:16PM The chances of more interest rate cuts have improved after home loan approvals fell in January. The number home loans approved in January fell 1.5 per cent to 44,383, figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday show. JP Morgan economist Tom Kennedy says it was the fourth consecutive month that approvals fell and was a sign the Reserve Bank of Australia needed to cut the cash rate further. "That could suggest that consumers are still pretty apprehensive in acquiring new debt even though the RBA has delivered significant easing over the past 18 months," he said. I definitely think it supports the bias for the RBA to maintain a dovish tone and for rates to go lower. The RBA cut the cash rate 1.75 percentage points between November 2011 and December 2012, bringing it to its current level of three per cent. HSBC Australia chief economist Paul Bloxham said recent interest rate cuts by the central bank were yet to take effect in January. "Consumer sentiment jumped sharply in February and we know it held onto those gains in March," he said. We are yet to see the full effect of monetary policy on housing finance number and we expect to see more in the coming months. Mr Bloxham said he doesn't expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to cut the cash rate in 2013 after making four cuts in 2012. "The soft patch in the economy is probably behind us, we're going to see growth pick up on the back of the rate cuts that have already been delivered," he said.