OnePath, formerly ING, continued to suffer declining new life insurance business in the December quarter while market leader Sovereign's share of new business surged to its highest level since the June 2010 quarter.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia-owned ASB Bank's mortgage book shrank for a seventh successive quarter in the three months ended December although profit rose strongly.

The loan-to-valuation ratio table in the bank's latest disclosure statement shows its mortgage book grew just $29 million to $35 billion in the three months ended December.

Sluggish growth in net mortgage lending appears to be driving some of the major banks to compete by aggressively loosening their credit criteria with ASB Bank leading the charge even as its mortgage book continues to shrink.

Allied Farmers continued to write down its former Hanover assets in the six months ended December which contributed to its overall $9 million loss.

ANZ Bank's profit rose strongly in the December quarter but its mortgage book shrank for a third successive quarter.

TSB Bank's profit jumped but its mortgage book barely budged in the December quarter as customers tried to reduce debt and competitors ramped up incentives to attract borrowers.

The Co-operative Bank's December quarter profit fell 34.6%, partly reflecting the costs of becoming a bank, while its mortgage book grew at about the same rate as its market share.

Kiwibank's second quarter profit near quadrupled and its mortgage book continued to grow strongly, albeit at a slower pace than the previous two quarters.

TNP insists it isn't out to “rape, pillage and plunder” with its plan to form its own professional association but many in the mortgage advisory industry are incensed.

Forsyth Barr has put Heartland's bonds on "hold" while it sees how well the company manages to maintain reinvestment and attract new investors without a government guarantee which expired on December 31.

Inflation expectations have fallen sharply while expectations of economic growth are little changed, according to the Reserve Bank's latest survey.

TNP's plans to form its own professional association may scupper plans to subsume the NZ Mortgage Brokers Association (NZMBA) into the Professional Advisers Association (PAA).

BNZ chalked up another strong quarter of mortgage book growth and its profit surged in the December quarter.

Equitable Mortgages' receivers say they expect loan recoveries may ultimately enable them to repay between 65% and 70% of the principal owed about 6,000 investors, or between $124.9 million and $134.6 million.

One mortgage broker found recently that the controversial fees banks charged when a client breaks a fixed term mortgage haven't been charged recently.