DTI borrowing at lowest levels since 2017

Meanwhile the levels at which borrowers are taking out new mortgages indicate they won’t make any difference, according to the central bank’s latest figures.

Data for the March quarter this year reveal 41,056 mortgages were taken out, an 11.5% increase on the final quarter of last year, totalling $14.4 billion. This is down from $17.6b lent in the final quarter of last year.

In the March quarter, 31% of the mortgages were at a DTI of five.

This is well below the RBNZ’s proposed limits allowing banks to lend 20% of new residential mortgages to owner-occupiers with a DTI of more than six and for 20% for investors with a DTI of more than seven.