Savers can look forward to another lucrative year in 2011. Guy Debelle, the Assistant Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, told bankers this week that the RBA is predicting that Australians will continue to grow their savings in 2011 and competition for those dollars will remain intense. On the other end of the spectrum, [...]
Tough new regulations that give the corporate regulator, ASIC, the power to take action against unfair or unconscionable mortgage loan exit fees will come into effect on Thursday July 1 2010.
The National Australia Bank welcomed ‘the tough new laws’ which would aid consumers and lenders that charged lower rates than their competitors.
After July 1, a borrower can complain to their mortgage lender and to an external complaint service about their high exit fees. They can also complain to ASIC and/or take the matter to court.
 Mortgage lenders continue to tighten lending criteriaAccording to a study by RateCity, most of the lenders in Australia show no signs of easing their lending criteria. Research of more than 2,000 home loans has found a decline in the number of home loans with an LVR of 95% or above. The report found that there were 1,079 home loans with a [...] |
 House prices have increasedCombined property values for houses in Australia increased by a total 41% and 42% for units over the past five years. According to a new report by RP Data, the average annual increase for houses is 7% and 3% for units. The report states that in dollar terms, house values have increased by a total [...] |