Switching lenders drops back

Just over $1.9 billion of mortgages changed providers last month compared to $2.6 billion in July. This was an increase of 16.9% on a yearly basis, but down from 23.6% in July, the latest Reserve Bank data shows.

The share for changes in loan provider dropped to 26% per cent in August, down from 28.8% in July, while the average value for changes in loan provider dropped by 1.1% between July and August.

Overall, the number of new mortgages taken out in August was also down 16.4% from $9 billion in July to $7.6 billion. This was still a 22% increase on August last year.

Annual growth in the total value of new mortgages increased for first home buyers by 15.8%, owner-occupiers by 25.3% and investors by 19%.