Homebuyer boom
There was a surge of mortgage lending to a record high for Australia's largest mortgage aggregator.
And AFG showed that the driver was not refinancing or investors, but a surge in first homebuyers, and to a lesser degree upgraders.
Only 21 per cent of loans by volume for investors, and just 14 per cent of commitments were interest-only (a series low).
Here are some of the key numbers:
Source: AFG
AFG reported $18.25 billion of mortgage lodgements for the quarter, up sharply from $15.7 billion a year earlier.
Volumes were up by 16 per cent from a year earlier to a record high, with some 35,461 loans lodged (prior year: 29,141).
Lending was very strong in New South Wales and Queensland.
Mortgage wars loom
Stand by for mortgage wars, as the major lenders saw their market share flagging again, down to just 59 per cent of the pie in the September quarter.
In 2013 major lenders accounted for a thumping 78 per cent market share, and the noose has tightened considerably since that time.
But now responsible lending obligations are set to be wound back, so expect to see increasingly furious competition in the home lending space and more mortgage rates available from around 2 per cent.
