Our commentary on issues important to home owners, investors and borrowers
Republished from The Conversation.
In tax as in many endeavours, it’s easy to work out how things should be; harder to work out how to get there.
In NSW, Treasurer Dominic Perrottet wants to replace the one-off stamp duty on real estate transactions with an annual land tax.
In the long run, this one single reform could produce the biggest possible gains of any tax reform, state or federal.
Read MoreRepublished from The Conversation.
The budget plan to scrap Australia’s decade-old responsible lending obligations warrants detailed examination.
It is hard to see how the stated reasons for easing what’s asked of banks and other lenders make much sense, and the timing is strange.
Introduced in 2009, the responsible lending obligations made it illegal to offer credit that was unsuitable for a consumer based on their needs and capacity to make payments.
Read MoreThe Australian Competition and Consumer Commission conducted an inquiry into mortgage pricing as recently as last year.
Now Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has asked it to do another, broader one, in order to ensure the banks’ pricing practices are “better understood”, and perhaps also to concentrate their minds on the wisdom of fully passing on the next collection of rate cuts.
There’s a lot to better understand.
Read Moren June the Australian Prudential and Regulation Authority (APRA) announced its first relaxation of credit controls imposed on the banks since its imposition of much tighter controls in 2017. These had been imposed to wind back a ramp in lending to property investors, to put a ceiling on interest-only lending, and to force the banks to more thoroughly consider individual borrower’s living expenses.
From APRA’s perspective, this has had the intended effect on the property market. The rampant growth in capital city property prices was controlled, and risks to the financial system implicit in highly geared investors, and even owner-occupiers holding interest-only loans in a property market “bubble”.
Read MoreChoosing which loan structure is best for you depends on your personal situation, possible changes in income or expenses, and your short term expectations with your property. Your overriding approach should be to understand that fixed interest rates are a risk management tool; they are not necessarily a way to save money. Do not try to second guess the interest rate market. My rule of thumb is that 80% of the time lenders will end up ahead on any fixed rate loan contract, simply because they understand money markets much better than their customers.
Read MoreAn increase in the size of your family can be the catalyst for upgrading your living circumstances. But what issues do you need to consider before you prepare your loan application?
Read MoreLoanscape is your information resource about lending and property.
Loanscape has today released its Borrowing Capacity Index for Q3/2024. It shows that the borrowing capacities of Australian individuals and families have started to recover after the sharp decline over the past 2 years. Lower income borrowers continue to be disproportionately impacted by interest rate increases: the family income required to qualify for the average size loan in Australia is 37% higher than 2 years ago.
Loanscape has today released its Borrowing Capacity Index for Q2/2024. It shows that the borrowing capacities of Australian individuals and families have stabilised after the sharp decline over the past 2 years. Lower income borrowers continue to be disproportionately impacted by interest rate increases: the family income required to qualify for the average size loan in Australia is 35% higher than 2 years ago.
Combined dwelling values have re-accelerated across the nation in February, with all mainland capitals soaring in value. It probably comes as no surprise that Perth claimed the top spot by gaining a whopping 1.8% for the month
Loanscape has today released its Borrowing Capacity Index for Q1/2024. It shows that the borrowing capacities of Australian individuals and families continue to decline. The more modest decline in the size of average loans being taken confirms that lower income borrowers are being disproportionately impacted by interest rate hikes: the family income required to qualify for the average loan in Australia is now 32% higher than 18 months ago.
The end of the year is fast approaching, with most capitals experiencing a strong recovery on dwelling values from the downturn that culminated at the start of 2023.
The recovery is mainly due to an influx of immigration and constricted supply, which the Government is trying to remedy with its ambitious goal of building 1.2 million homes by 2029 through HAFF.
Loanscape has today released its Borrowing Capacity Index for Q4/2024. It confirms the forecast trend that borrowing capacities of Australian individuals and families are recovering from their low levels which coincided with the last of the recent increases to borrowing rates initiated by the Reserve Bank of Australia.