MORTGAGE LOANS – AUSTRALIA

Rate hikes starting to take a toll on borrowers

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 21-Jun-17

The proportion of Australian home loan customers that are in arrears rose by five basis points to 1.21 per cent in April 2017. Erin Kitson of Standard & Poor’s says moves by lenders to raise mortgage interest rates independently of the Reserve Bank in recent months was a major contributor to this trend. The rate rises have been prompted by a regulatory crackdown on interest-only mortgage loans. Meanwhile, Australian Securities & Investments Commission chairman Greg Medcraft has stressed the need for responsible lending.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S FINANCIAL SERVICES LLC, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, CANSTAR PTY LTD, ST GEORGE BANK LIMITED, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, SOCIETE GENERALE SA

Mortgage rate hikes pressure income

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 24 : 14-Jun-17

Data from RateCity shows that Australian mortgage interest rates for investors and borrowers with interest-only loans have generally risen by about 56 basis points in the last two months. Lenders have increased home loan interest rates seven times in the last two years, with rates for interest-only loans rising more quickly than those for owner-occupiers as lenders seek to shift customers from interest-only loans to principal-and-interest products. Martin Crabb of Shaw & Partners notes that a rise in home loan repayments is having an adverse impact on the level of household savings.

CORPORATES
RATECITY PTY LTD, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Banks set for earnings boost from rate hikes

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Frost, Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 16 : 1-May-17

The ANZ Bank, Westpac and National Australia Bank will release their 2016-17 interim results in early May 2017, while the Commonwealth Bank will release a trading update for the third quarter of its financial year. The "big four" banks are forecast to post a combined interim cash profit of around $A16bn. Earnings are expected to have been bolstered by the banks’ recent moves to lift their interest rates for investor and interest-only home loans. Citigroup forecasts that the rate rises will boost earnings per share by up to two per cent in 2017.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, AUSBIL INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, STANDARD CHARTERED BANK MALAYSIA BERHAD, STANDARD CHARTERED BANK PLC, DNR CAPITAL PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Mining states hit by sharp drop in home loan activity: AFG

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 15 : 12-Jan-17

Listed mortgage broker Australian Finance Group has reported 9.9 per cent growth in home loan lodgements nationwide in calendar 2016. However, there was a 16 per cent downturn in loan lodgements in Western Australia, while lodgements fell by 18 per cent in the Northern Territory. Meanwhile, AFG CEO Brett McKeon says the WA Government’s decision to temporarily increase the first-home owners’ grant by $A5,000 for new homes is unlikely to significantly boost construction activity in the residential property market.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN FINANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX AFG, REAL ESTATE INSTITUTE OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, DIGITAL FINANCE ANALYTICS

Mortgage payments steady as rates rise

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 17 : 11-Jan-17

Data from Deutsche Bank shows that Australians’ home loan repayments now comprise around 17 per cent of their income, which is consistent with the average over the last three decades. The figures also show that mortgage payment account for 63.6 per cent of Sydney borrowers’ weekly income, compared with 45.3 per cent in Melbourne and just 27.3 per cent in Perth. Meanwhile, Paul Bloxham of HSBC says the residential construction boom is nearing its peak.

CORPORATES
DEUTSCHE BANK AG, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN, ING DIRECT, DIGITAL FINANCE ANALYTICS

Mortgage stress strikes bush, city amid fears of an interest rate hike

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 13 & 18 : 21-Dec-16

Standard & Poor’s has reported that the number of Australian mortgage borrowers in arrear rose in October 2016. Digital Finance Analytics has identified the 20 postcodes across Australia that boast the highest level of mortgage stress. Many of these are in regional areas, although the list includes a number of suburbs in major capital cities. Martin North of DFA says the outlook for interest rates will determine whether there is an increase in home loan arrears and defaults. He anticipates that the cash rate will rise by 50 basis points in 2017.

CORPORATES
DIGITAL FINANCE ANALYTICS, STANDARD AND POOR’S FINANCIAL SERVICES LLC, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, ALLIANCEBERNSTEIN HOLDING LP, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, BANK OF QUEENSLAND LIMITED – ASX BOQ, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Lenders see sanity return to home loans

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 15 & 18 : 19-Dec-16

Bendigo & Adelaide Bank CEO Mike Hirst notes that Australia’s four major banks are offering smaller discounts on mortgage interest rates than in the first half of 2016. He adds that the banks would have struggled to achieve a good return on these loans given the size of some discounts. Credit Union Australia CEO Rob Goudswaard expects a rise in mortgage interest rates after a period of intense competition. He also does anticipate a rise in the cash rate in 2017.

CORPORATES
BENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK LIMITED – ASX BEN, CREDIT UNION AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BANK OF QUEENSLAND LIMITED – ASX BOQ, LIBERTY FINANCIAL PTY LTD, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, DIGITAL FINANCE ANALYTICS, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Westpac and NAB lift rates on investors

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 6-Dec-16

National Australia Bank (NAB) and Westpac have raised their interest rates on loans to property investors. NAB’s new and existing investors will now pay 5.55 per cent on loans with variable rates. A rise of 15 basis points will take effect on 12 December 2016. The rate for owners-occupiers remains unchanged at 5.25 per cent. Westpac has lifted interest-only rates for investors and owner-occupiers by eight basis points.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Foreign banks fill lending void

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Scott Murdoch
The Australian – Page: 23 : 30-Nov-16

Data from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority shows that the average mortgage balance has risen from $A244,000 in 2015 to $A255,000. However, the value of new home loans grew by only 0.1 per cent year-on-year in the September 2016 quarter. A recent move by Australia’s major banks to reduce their lending to residential developers has also seen the value of offshore banks’ lending to local developers rise from $A1.49bn to $A2.65bn in the last year. Meanwhile, data from the Housing Industry Association shows that sales of new detached homes and apartments fell by 8.2 per cent and 9.2 per cent respectively in October.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, HOUSING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD

Get your next home loan by video session

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 24-Nov-16

Hashching is conducting a pilot program for a biometric identity verification service which is to be used in processing mortgage applications. As the program complies with "know your client" banking regulations, it eliminates the need for the presence of the applicant in the bank branch. Hashching co-founder Mandeep Sodhi says he will meet with representatives of the banks to persuade them to make mortgage applications fully digital.

CORPORATES
HASHCHING PTY LTD, ISELECT LIMITED – ASX ISU, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, TYRO PAYMENTS