The November Report
Things heat up as silly season hits full swing!
Christmas is around the corner and interest rates are still hot topic in the market. We saw another rate increase rise on Melbourne Cup Day.This sees the official cash rate hit 2.85% which is seeing the majority of homeowners now on a variable rate of approximately 4.5%
Economists are still predicting a further rate rise inDecember and NAB’s chief economist released their forecast predicting rates to increase right through until March 2023. After which point there will be a level of stability and anticipating things to slow down.
The head of the RBA Philip Lowe openly apologised to the country for stating that rates would not increase until 2024.
He made comment that no one could have forecast the rate of recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic. Noting that he will be mindful of the language he uses in the future.
Inflation is still higher than what the RBA want to see so we can expect to see continued rises until this comes back into check.
With the “silly season” just around the corner and consumer spending a key indicator for inflation this will be closely monitored this year to see if we are up on last year’s Christmas spending.
We have started to see some interesting movements with the banks lending policy, now accepting 90% of the rental income received from investment property, increasing up from 80%.
This is a reflection of the current rental market conditions and the low vacancy rates that we are seeing across the country. This new addition has helped serviceability for our investor customers.
The banks are also offering sharper rates for investment lending so if you have not checked on your investment loan, now is a good time to get in touch to see what we can negotiate for you.
We have also started to see some policy changes in the self-employed lending space which we are hoping will make it easier for our self-employed customers to get a loan.
As we come into the holiday season banks timelines for settlements before Christmas break draw near so if you are looking to settle before Christmas, please be sure to reach out to us to ensure this all happens.