Borrowers are being told not to rush into any decisions about their mortgages.

The number of housing approvals granted has crept back up to pre-LVR rules levels, Reserve Bank data shows.

For advisers to be classed as offering Discretionary Investment Management Services (DIMS), they have to be able to tick two boxes, financial law experts say: Whether they have the discretion to make a decision and whether they have the power to implement it.

Advisers aren’t surprised at New Zealanders’ low levels of understanding about KiwiSaver.

Economists are united in their view that the official cash rate will rise this week – making the Reserve Bank the first central bank in the developed world to start to lift rates this cycle.

Schemes chosen as the new crop of KiwiSaver default funds this year may find there’s demand from investors who want to opt in, one financial services lawyer says.

The Warehouse Group’s decision to move into financial services is a response to consumers who want more convenience, says its chief executive, Mark Powell.

Loan-to-value restrictions haven’t done much to reduce the likelihood of a house price crash, one bank economist says.

There is concern regulation of discretionary investment management services under the new Financial Markets Conduct Act is overkill.

Augusta Capital is at “the business end” of a deal to acquire KCL Property’s syndication business, its managing director says.

Emerging market equities are a troubled asset class vulnerable to influences such as the unrest in Ukraine, says Lars Wincentsen, of Carnegie Asset Management.

Would-be buyers who have given up hope of getting into the property market because of the loan-to-value restrictions may be using their saved deposits to splurge on big-ticket items, the latest KPMG Financial Institutions Performance Survey says.

Most borrowers will feel the impact of Official Cash Rate rises not long after they start, the latest Reserve Bank figures reveal.

Health insurer nib has responded to criticism over the policies it is offering in tandem with Fidelity Life.

Mortgage brokers can play a vital part in the market at the moment, helping people with small deposits understand what they might be able to borrow, one adviser says.

About a quarter of real estate offices will pay less under Trade Me’s new real estate pricing structure, the website’s head of commercial says.