Digital Finance Analytics (DFA) Blog
"Intelligent Insight"
Today we discuss which post codes will be most impacted by the interest only mortgage loan reset issue, and update our estimates of the number and value of loans likely to be impacted. This received media coverage in the AFR and the Australian over the weekend. We discussed recently the size of the interest only … Continue reading “Problem IO Loans Close To Home – The $100 Billion Problem”
We contributed to a segment aired last night on irresponsible lending. From ABC’s business reporter Phillip Lasker. Banks, not just customers are potentially exposed. Investment guru Warren Buffet wasn’t commenting on the Australian mortgage market when he said, “Only when the tide goes out do you discover who has been swimming naked”, but it is … Continue reading “ABC The Business Does Lax Loans”
Wayne Byres, APRA chairman appeared before the Senate Economics Legislation Committee today. During the session he said that the 10% cap on banks lending to housing investors imposed in December 2014 was “probably reaching the end of its useful life” as lending standards have improved. Essentially it had become redundant. But the other policy which … Continue reading “APRA’s Latest On IO and Investment Loans”
What’s the story with Interest only? Welcome to the Property Imperative Weekly to 24th February 2018. Welcome to the latest weekly digest of property and finance news. Watch the video or read the transcript. Michelle Bullock from the RBA spoke about Mortgage Stress and Investor Loans this week. She argued that, based on HILDA data … Continue reading “The Interest Only Loan Problem – The Property Imperative Weekly 24 Feb 2018”
National not-for-profit, Good Shepherd Microfinance, has made a bold move into online lending with the support of NAB to launch Speckle – a fast online cash-loan which offers a better alternative for people seeking small cash loans under $2,000. They also cite our updated research on the Pay Day Loan market in Australia. We think … Continue reading “A Viable Alternative To Pay Day Loans”
Many U.S. banks reported relative strength in consumer lending in fourth quarter earnings, while corporate lending growth was below expectations, according to Fitch Ratings‘ latest “U.S. Banking Quarterly Comment: 4Q17.” The industry reported around 3% loan growth for the full-year, well below historical averages. With the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), … Continue reading “Loan Growth is Uncertain for U.S. Banks”
From The Conversation. How truthful are we when it comes to negotiating loans in Australia? With increasing pressure on the housing market, some of us might be tempted to stretch the truth to secure a mortgage on our dream property – but research shows that this practice can have serious repercussions. Recent news reports have … Continue reading “How ‘liar loans’ undermine sound lending practices”
According to the MFAA, the boom in brokers may be unsustainable, given lower mortgage growth. The snapshot, up to March 2017, shows that the number of brokers is estimated to be 16,009, representing 1 broker for every 1,500 in the population. Overall brokers rose 3.3% but net lending only 0.1%. As a result the average … Continue reading “Broker Boom Outpaces Loan Growth – MFAA”
From The Conversation. The federal government will be forcing banks to hand over half their credit data ready for reporting by mid-2018 (with the remainder available in 2019). It seems rather quaint in the age of big data that the big four banks have been able to hold onto their treasure troves of loan data … Continue reading “Forcing the banks to hand over our credit history might help with a home loan but it has risks”
From The Australian Financial Review. The number of Australian families facing mortgage distress has soared by nearly 20 per cent in the past six months to more than 900,000 and is on track to top 1 million by next year, according to new analysis of lending repayments and household incomes. That means net incomes are … Continue reading “Mortgage stress soars to record highs as borrowers struggle with jumbo loans”