Mortgage Broker

23/03/2017

The five biggest property buying fails and how to avoid them

BUYING your forever home is one of life’s most exciting and emotional milestones. But it is also going to be your biggest commitment. And in a competitive property market, the emotions of home buying can be amplified, making it even easier for first home hopefuls to make mistakes that could cost thousands. These are the five most common buying fails property punters make, according Darren Piper, director of Universal Buyers Agents, and how to avoid them. FALLING IN LOVE Getting […]
21/03/2017

Canada’s plan to tax foreign investors is already working

IF you’re looking for a home in Sydney or Melbourne, chances are you’re feeling frustrated, overwhelmed and irate, priced out of the market you were born to buy into. Most are quick to blame the deep pockets of foreign investors, with high demand seeing properties sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars over reserve. Recent figures show one in 10 properties in NSW are being snapped up by foreigners, and with interests rates so low, this trend shows no signs […]
21/03/2017

Australian banks lead digital global race

AUSTRALIAN banks are outperforming their peers in North America and Europe as the transition to digital services rolls out but a new report has found there is still more work to do. The top 10 banks, including Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, National Australia Bank, Westpac and one mutual bank, are offering retail customers a wider range of account products online compared to their international counterparts, according to a new report by software developer for the banking industry Avoka. Avoka’s second annual […]
20/03/2017

Housing market is in an environment of ‘heightened risk’, but it’s not ‘the B-word’

Australia’s banking regulator says the country’s housing market is in an environment of “heightened risk”, but he won’t say there’s a housing bubble. Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority chairman Wayne Byres told a Sydney conference that he wouldn’t use “the B-word” to describe the housing market. “I don’t use the B-word. I refuse to use the B-word. It implies a binary, that’s too simplistic,” Mr Byres said speaking at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission annual forum. “We are in an […]
19/03/2017

Westpac joins NAB in raising interest rates

TWO down, two to go. Westpac has joined rival National Australia Bank in hiking mortgage interest rates for investors and owner-occupiers. Interest-only investor loans will be hardest hit, increasing by 28 basis points to 5.96 per cent per annum. Principal and interest investor loans will increase by 23 basis points to 5.79 per cent. The bank will also raise its owner-occupier rate by three basis points to 5.32 per cent, while interest-only owner-occupier loans will increase by eight basis points […]