A push by FAMNZ to get the Government to mandate continuing professional development (CPD) for mortgage advisers has many wondering how many hours they should be putting in.

More than 40% of households who took part in the latest Westpac McDermott Miller Consumer Confidence say their financial position has deteriorated over the past year.

While the Reserve Bank is expected to cut the OCR to 2.5% by the end of the year, the age-old question being faced by mortgage advisers from clients about whether to float of fix their mortgage interest rate is more common now than ever before.

Within the next six months AI will be playing a pivotal part in the processing of mortgage applications for Loan Market.

Westpac says there are signs that more marginal borrowers are being drawn into buying homes.

Housing supply has overtaken population growth in the country’s biggest city Auckland and the capital keeping a lid on prices –another piece of good news for first home buyers.

Housing affordability is improving as house prices continue falling.

QV’s House Price Index dropped 0.8% in the three months to the end of August and house prices are now 13.4% lower than the peak market value in January 2022.

ANZ is coughing up $3.25 million to the Crown in lieu of a fine after admitting breaching fair dealing laws following an investigation by the FMA.

NZFSG says it is unclear whether customers are receiving superior financial advice, but the level of consumer trust has grown with greater transparency.

One-year fixed term mortgages are flavour of the month for new mortgage borrowers – a sign mortgage holders believe rates have further to fall.

Non-performing housing loans plunged by $55 million in July just as new mortgage lending was 24.4% higher in the quarter than a year ago.

Only one of the major banks appears to have made changes to its clawback policy despite it being one of the 14 recommendations in last year’s Commerce Commission’s report into retail banking competition the Government is implementing.

Housing affordability is at its best since 2019 and with ANZ predicting no growth in prices for the rest of the year it could improve further for first home buyers.

A new high of $2.6 billion in mortgage money changed lenders last month.

Recommendations in the recently released Finance & Expenditure Select Committee inquiry into banking competition are on the right track to encourage competition, Squirrel Mortgages says.

A new country manager for the Finance and Mortgage Advisers Association of New Zealand (FAMNZ) is expected to be appointed in the next fortnight.