Australian Mortgage Finance News

Fast-track your home deposit - Mar 08, 2010
Special-purpose savings accounts can earn up to 34 per cent thanks to government incentives.

Surprisingly few people have taken advantage of the new First Home Saver Accounts (FHSAs) despite the lure of a federal government

co-contribution and a tax break on interest earnings...

Banks holding RBA line - for now - Mar 03, 2010
MORTGAGE holders can breathe a guarded sigh of relief after the first official rate rise of the year...

Spare change can liberate your mortgage - Feb 26, 2010
Don't let your spare cash sit idle. Use a home loan offset or redraw account to earn the equivalent of 12...

Housing affordability plunges on rising prices, rates - Feb 23, 2010
A leading industry group says housing affordability has slumped more than 20 per cent in the past year due to rising interest rates and house prices...

Recovery bolsters mortgage competition - Feb 22, 2010
A RECOVERY in securitisation markets is gathering pace with an increasing number of banks and financiers managing to get away issues that are bolstering competition in the home loan sector...

Don't get out of your depth - Feb 19, 2010
Property investors who are hoping for easy money and first-timers keen to get a foothold on the property ladder will have to weigh the numbers carefully...

Credit underwriting rules set to tighten - Feb 15, 2010
Big and regional bank loan officers expect credit underwriting standards for home loans and small businesses to be tightened further in 2010...

Rising rates drive loan delinquencies - Feb 15, 2010
Mortgage delinquencies are set to rise in 2010 as borrowers battle rising interest rates and Christmas-induced credit card bills, says global ratings agency Fitch...

Treasurer's reassurance for home buyers - Feb 10, 2010
The Treasurer, Troy Buswell, says he is taking steps to find a solution to protect homebuyers and builders when a major insurance company withdraws from the indemnity market...

Interest rate rises in Labor hands - Feb 10, 2010
THE head of the Reserve Bank has held out the prospect of continuing low interest rates, as long as Labor sticks to its pledge to restrain spending...

Mortgage brokers seek trusting relationship with planners - Feb 09, 2010
Mortgage brokers will increasingly look to join with financial planners as their industries converge...

First home buyers brace for tougher year - Feb 08, 2010
First home buyers will find it harder to get a foothold in the residential property market this year as supply dwindles and interest rates begin to bite, analysts say...

RBA flags further rate rises - Feb 08, 2010
The Reserve Bank expects it will need to impose another three increases in the official interest rate by the end of this year to reduce inflation as the Australian economy strengthens...

Government to pull bank guarantee - Feb 08, 2010
The Federal Government says its guarantee of wholesale funding for banks and other lenders is no longer needed...

Borrowers not off the hook, experts warn - Feb 03, 2010
Homeowners may be welcoming the RBA's decision to keep interest rates on hold, but experts warn it will not be long before the central bank deals more mortgage pain...

Handouts for first-home buyers - Feb 02, 2010
Be it a grant, a boost or a concession, there is helpful cash available to realise the great Australian dream...

Aussie set to lead non-bank lenders - Feb 01, 2010
Aussie Home Loans executive chairman John Symond is positioning the company to dominate the non-bank lending sector despite expectations of up to three more interest rate rises in 2010...

Rate rise a 'risk' to recovery - Feb 01, 2010
RISING interest rates are threatening to curb the economic recoveries under way in NSW and Victoria, raising fears of a return to the ''two-speed economy'' dogged by uneven growth across the states...

Smaller home lenders take off - Jan 27, 2010
SECOND-TIER lenders, including Liberty Financial, Credit Union Australia and Homeloans Ltd, are making a tentative return to the market after the global financial crisis forced many non-bank players to stop writing loans...

Inflation set to ease, rates to rise - Jan 25, 2010
Underlying inflation is expected to have eased slightly in the December quarter but the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will raise interest rates again, economists say...

Westpac tightens mortgage criteria - Jan 21, 2010
Westpac Banking Corporation has tightened its mortgage loan criteria and realigned its funding towards high-quality mortgage intermediaries, as subsidiary RAMS Home Loans prepares to quit the mortgage broker channel...

Indicators point to rates going up again - Jan 19, 2010
IF THE Reserve Bank board paid attention only to Australia's official inflation rate due for release next week, it'd put up its feet and leave interest rates alone...

Non-bank lenders to return in 2010 - Dec 16, 2009
Competition in Australia's home loan market is likely to intensify next year as non-bank lenders, who were sidelined during the financial crisis, regain access to securitisation markets...

Thorny issue for borrowers - Dec 15, 2009
During the next 12 months interest rates will continue to rise, so now is the time to get your mortgage in order...

Lending falls, but RBA likely to raise rates - Dec 15, 2009
LENDING finance commitments fell to an eight-month low in October as consumers and businesses felt the pressure of rising interest rates...

RBA tipped to deliver third rate blow - Nov 30, 2009
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is likely to make history on Tuesday by lifting interest rates for a third straight month, economists say...

Gen Y capable of repaying their mortgage - Nov 24, 2009
Generation Y mortgage holders are capable of repaying their mortgage at an interest rate of at least nine per cent, a mortgage broker survey says...

Low-doc loans on borrowed time - Nov 23, 2009
Responsible lending laws may bring an end to these potentially predatory financial products.

The British financial services regulator has announced plans to ban so-called self-certified home loans, pointing to the possible fate of no-doc and low-doc loans in Australia once responsible lending laws start to come into force here from mid-2010...

AMPFP improves lending services - Nov 18, 2009
AMP Financial Planning (AMPFP) has appointed Australian Finance Group (AFG) as the provider of mortgage aggregation services to its mortgage consultants and financial planners in a three-year deal...

RBA poker-faced over December rate rise - Nov 18, 2009
The Reserve Bank has given no strong hints about its interest rate intentions for December in the minutes from last meeting...

Bankers sprint to lift rates - Nov 04, 2009
JUST weeks after lifting mortgage rates by 0.25 percentage points, the big four banks and the Reserve Bank have done it again...

Regulator smacks mortgage franchisor on special deal - Oct 22, 2009
Australia’s competition regulator, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), has moved against a mortgage franchiser who claimed he had a special relationship with the regulator...

Govt guarantees should extend to mortgages: credit unions - Oct 13, 2009
An organisation representing credit unions and building societies has welcomed the Federal Government's further $8 billion investment in residential mortgage-backed securities, but says it could go further...

Swan announces $8b mortgage market investment - Oct 12, 2009
Australians will be ''quite angry'' if the big four banks increase mortgage rates beyond moves by the Reserve Bank, Treasurer Wayne Swan said as he announced measures to help smaller lenders...

Banks inconsistent on interest rates: Choice - Oct 09, 2009
Consumer group Choice has accused Australia's major banks of inconsistency when setting their mortgage rates...

Reserve weighs up early rate rise - Oct 06, 2009
AUSTRALIA is poised to lead the developed world in lifting interest rates, and home owners may be hit by higher borrowing costs from today...

Budgets the key to buying a home: expert - Oct 05, 2009
Potential borrowers need discipline to build a deposit for a housing loan and small sacrifices can boost savings for owning a home, a leading mortgage broker says...

Seven-year inflation low reduces rate rise chances - Oct 05, 2009
A leading private measure has shown no inflation in September, and an annual inflation rate of only 1...

Planning is key to home loan success - Sep 22, 2009
When arranging a loan, borrowers need to attend to several crucial issues.

Australian consumers like to think of themselves as financially literate people, able to assess financial products and make an informed choice...

Wrestling competition - Sep 21, 2009
The Government needs to make more money available to non-bank lenders if it wishes to ensure there is some half-decent competition in the mortgage lending market...

Banks dominate Australia's housing debt overhang - Sep 21, 2009
A report from the Reserve Bank confirms that Australians are in a lot of debt, and that most of it belongs to the major banks...

Time for a mortgage health check: broker - Sep 09, 2009
An independent mortgage broker is recommending homeowners give their mortgage a "health check" ahead of any interest rate rise...

Rate rise speculation fuelled by business confidence - Sep 09, 2009
Economists are now suggesting the Reserve Bank could raise interest rates as early as next month after business confidence hit a six-year high...

Cut your home loan rate - Sep 08, 2009
Stick with one institution for all financial services and you can vault your savings into the fast lane...

Variable rates still better: expert - Sep 07, 2009
Borrowers should consider switching from fixed rate home loans to variable rate mortgages because they are cheaper over the longer run...

NAB tipping rate rises before Christmas - Sep 07, 2009
National Australia Bank (NAB) says it expects the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to increase official interest rates once or twice before the end of the year...

Big four banks have all the mortgages - Sep 02, 2009
COMPETITION in the home loan market has collapsed, with the big four banks now writing almost every new mortgage as small lenders are squeezed out of contention...

Rates on hold, but for how long? - Sep 02, 2009
The Reserve Bank has left official interest rates on hold for another month at 3 per cent.

The official cash target rate has been at 3 per cent, which is its lowest level in almost 50 years, since April, and Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens says that is appropriate, for now...

Interest rates tipped to stay on hold - Sep 01, 2009
The Reserve Bank board is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged when it meets today.

There is widespread agreement among economists that interest rates will remain unchanged at the 49-year low of 3 per cent...

$5b lighter as GE sheds mortgage business - Aug 31, 2009
GE CAPITAL has run down by a third the $15 billion of mortgages it retained after pulling out of the home loan market last December through the sale of Wizard, but it will still be servicing the last slice of the loan book for at least another five years...

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