Acting Reserve Bank governor Rod Carr has raised interest rates, as expected, but not as much as some economists had predicted.

Three of New Zealand’s big five banks still rank among the top 10 retail fund managers, although total funds under management fell slightly in 2001 compared with a year earlier, KPMG’s latest annual survey shows.

While mortgage lending grew in 2001 and still dominates New Zealand bank’s loan books, it declined as a proportion of total lending assets, according to KPMG’s latest annual survey of financial institutions.

Just about everybody expects the Reserve Bank to raise interest rates on Wednesday for a third time this year. The only argument is over whether the official cash rate (OCR) will rise from 5.25% to 5.5% or to 5.75%.

The partnership between rebel non-lawyer conveyancer Lester Dempster and Australian-owned real estate firm LJ Hooker has ended over differences over the way the work was handled.

A cursory glance across the Tasman gives the impression that Australian mortgage holders are in much the same boat as their New Zealand counterparts.

Commercial property is performing well enough that property syndication is making a come-back after several years of troubled times, AMP Henderson property manager Anthony Beverley says.

New Zealand’s non-bank mortgage lenders may not have achieved the success their Australian counterparts have, but that hasn’t deterred one new entrant.

New Zealanders borrowed an additional $761 million in mortgages in March, bringing the total owed on housing to $69.502 billion, according to the latest Reserve Bank figures.

In perhaps a timely reminder to whoever replaces Reserve Bank governor Don Brash, Statistics New Zealand points out that although the trend in new housing consents has jumped 23% in the 15 months since December 2000, the level is still below the last peak in July 1999.

The media spotlight has been on the housing sector of late, but commercial property is also performing well enough that New Zealand’s biggest fund manager is calling it the star asset class in the year ended March.

The media spotlight has been on the housing sector of late, but commercial property is also performing well enough that New Zealand’s biggest fund manager is calling it the star asset class in the year ended March.

New Zealand's median house price in March held to its record reached in February and sales activity jumped to its highest level in six years.

Although the traditional response to rising interest rates is for mortgage borrowers to flock to fixed rate loans, that’s not the best move for all but a few, says William Cairns of mortgage banker Cairns Lockie.

This time around, Reserve Bank governor Don Brash met concensus expectations and raised his official cash rate (OCR) from 5% to 5.25%, the second rise of the current tightening cycle.

The Reserve Bank today raised the official cash rate from 5.0 per cent to 5.25 per cent.