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The rental market has turned decisively in favour of property investors, with the number of vacant rental properties plummeting by one-third over a 12-month period.Between January of 2022 and 2023, the number of rental vacancies across Australia fell from 47,977 to 31,592, a reduction of 34.2%, according to SQM Research. At the same time, the vacancy rate – which measures the share of untenanted rental properties – fell from an already-low 1.6% to just 1.0%.Vacancy rates differ from city to city, but are low throughout the country, ranging from 0.4% in Perth to 1.6% in Canberra.SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said low vacancy rates were contributing to a “surge in rents”, which in turn was pushing up rental yields.“I believe would-be investors will be attracted to higher rental yields in later 2023, provided the cash rate peaks at below 4% [it's currently 3.35%],” he said.Get in touch if you need an investment loan.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about Rental vacancies fall by a staggering 34.2%

While inflation continues to be worryingly high, it may have peaked.The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ latest data show that inflation rose from 6.9% in October to 7.3% in November.In early December, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) forecast that inflation would "peak at around 8%" in December.If that’s the case, inflation may already be cooling – even though the next inflation announcement (of the December result) may show an increase on the previous period.Inflation is expected to decline in 2023 "due to the ongoing resolution of global supply-side problems, recent declines in some commodity prices and slower growth in demand", according to the RBA, before falling further in 2024, to "a little above 3%".The RBA has said that high inflation "damages our economy and makes life more difficult for people", so it’s determined “to re-establish low inflation and return inflation to the 2-3% range over time".Book a free appointment.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about RBA expects inflation to fall in 2023

Home building costs continue to rise sharply, but it appears the worst is behind us.Residential construction costs rose 11.9% during 2022, after climbing 7.3% in 2021, according to CoreLogic’s Cordell Construction Cost Index (CCCI).The 2022 result was the largest annual increase on record, apart from the period impacted by the introduction of the GST.However, the pace of growth appears to be slowing: prices increased 4.7% in the September quarter, but only 1.9% in the December quarter.CoreLogic construction cost estimation manager John Bennett said, in 2023, costs would be unlikely to rise at the same rapid pace as in the recent past, because rising interest rates and inflation have made consumers, builders and suppliers more cautious.Analysing the price increases, Mr Bennett said:Volatile timber prices are affecting the cost of structural timber and general timber productsPrices continue to increase for metal products, such as gutters, lintels and fixings, which are used for roofing and structural purposesPetrol price increases are affecting cartage and delivery costs, including for concrete and rainwater tanksGravel, aggregates and fill prices have increased, possibly affected by the rise in petrol pricesCosts have also increased for appliances and fittingsReach out if you need a building loan.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about Growth in residential construction costs expected to slow in 2023

Many property investors enjoyed a big rise in their rental income during 2022.CoreLogic has reported that the median rent for an Australia investment property increased 10.2% during the year. The city-by-city breakdown was:Brisbane 13.4%Adelaide 12.9%Sydney 11.4%Perth 11.2%Melbourne 9.6%Hobart 5.3%Darwin 5.1%Canberra 4.3%During 2022, the national vacancy rate fell from 2.1% to 1.2%. To put it another way, the number of untenanted rental properties fell from 21 per 1000 to a very low 12. That forced tenants to compete harder, pushing up rents. "Rents are still rising in most capital cities and regional areas, with vacancy rates low," according to CoreLogic head of research Eliza Owen.Between September 2020 (when this period of rental increases began) and December 2022, Australian rental rates increased 22.2% – the largest increase in a 27-month period in recorded history.Get in touch if you need an investment loan.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about Rents rise from 4.3% in Canberra to 13.4% in Brisbane

Refinancing activity is at ultra-high levels right now, as owner-occupiers and investors alike try to find home loans with lower interest rates as the Reserve Bank continues to raise the cash rate.Borrowers refinanced a record $19.5 billion of loans in November, the most recent month for which we have data, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia.By way of comparison, that was 20.4% higher than the year before and 88.2% higher than two years before. The Reserve Bank has hinted that at least one more rate rise is coming. In December, it said it wanted to "return inflation to the 2-3% target range over time" (it's currently 7.3%) and would “do what is necessary to achieve that outcome" – i.e. further increase the cash rate.So if it’s been a while since you took out your home loan, now would be a good time to think about refinancing.Contact me to get the ball rolling. I’ll be happy to crunch the numbers for you, so you can see if refinancing would be suitable for you and how much money you could save by switching to a comparable lower-rate loan.Want to compare interest rates? Let's talk.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about Borrowers refinance a record $19.5bn of home loans

An ever-growing majority of consumers are taking out home loans via mortgage brokers, rather than going direct-to-lender.Between July and September 2022, mortgage brokers facilitated 71.7% of all new residential home loans – a record share – according to research group Comparator.That compared to 66.9% the year before and 60.1% the year before that. Anja Pannek, the chief executive of the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia, which commissioned the research, said the result highlighted the trust and confidence that consumers have in mortgage brokers."With a backdrop of a rising interest rate environment, and with many borrowers reverting from fixed to variable rates in 2023, mortgage brokers are also well placed to support their clients to understand their options and select the product best suited to them," she said."This may include negotiating a more competitive rate with their client's current lender or refinancing to a different product that is in their best interests."Book a free appointment.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about More than 7 in 10 Australians now using a broker

Very few borrowers are currently fixing their home loans – unlike a year earlier when about half of borrowers were doing so.In October 2022, the most recent month for which we have data, only 4% of borrowers fixed their loans (both new loans and refinances), according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.By contrast, 44% of borrowers fixed in October 2021 and 46% in August 2021 (when fixing peaked).While the Reserve Bank only started increasing the cash rate in May 2022, lenders knew it was coming, so they’d already started raising interest rates on their fixed-rate loans. In response, borrowers had begun shifting towards lower-rate variable loans.This is confirmed by Reserve Bank data on new owner-occupied loans. In October 2021, the average interest rate on a new fixed loan (with a fixed periodd of three years or less) was 0.63 percentage points lower than a new variable loan.By February 2022, new fixed loans had become 0.09 percentage points dearer; by May they'd become 0.70 percentage points dearer.That has since declined – by October, they were only 0.30 percentage points dearer.Compare fixed and variable interest rates.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about Most borrowers favouring lower-rate variable loans right now

The latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics has revealed that enormous numbers of borrowers are refinancing their home loans.Australians refinanced $17.8 billion of mortgages in October – not far off the record $18.6 billion of refinancing that occurred in August.Indeed, the past six months have been the six biggest months in refinancing history.Part of the reason so many borrowers are refinancing right now is because many lenders charge lower interest rates to new borrowers than loyal customers, as shown by Reserve Bank data.In October, owner-occupiers who took out new variable loans were charged, on average, 0.51 percentage points less than owner-occupiers with existing loans.Refinancing to a comparable lower-rate loan could potentially save you tens of thousands of dollars over the life of your loan. I’d be happy to explain the pros and cons of refinancing, and to crunch the numbers to see how much you might be able to save by switching loans.Reach out if you want to refinance.Hit the button below to arrange a conversation with one of my loan specialists to find a deal that's best for your situation. Chat to us today We partner with over 50 lenders so you can find the perfect solutionFollow Facebook Linkedin Do you have questions about mortgages or loans?Ask us in the comments below … [Read more...] about The biggest six months in refinancing history