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Fresh figures from credit information provider Veda point to a national slowdown in mortgage application growth over the September quarter.
The Veda Quarterly Consumer Credit Demand Index, released this week, provides an early indication of movements in consumer spending and retail sales.
Mortgage application growth slowed in the September quarter to an annual growth of 9.0 per cent, down from 12.5 per cent for the June quarter.
The index showed the annual rate of growth in mortgage applications was strongest in NSW (17.4 per cent), followed by the ACT (12.4 per cent), Victoria (11.7 per cent), SA (6.1 per cent) and Queensland (5.3 per cent).
Mortgage applications fell in the Northern Territory (down 18.6 per cent), Tasmania (down 10.4 per cent) and WA (down 8.5 per cent).
Veda’s general manager of consumer risk Angus Luffman said mortgage applications are a good lead indicator of future activity in homebuyer demand and housing turnover. Historically, movements in Veda mortgage demand have tended to lead movements in house prices by around six to nine months, he said.
“Mortgage demand was down for the September quarter but still saw positive growth. The recent growth in mortgage demand peaked over June and July 2015 and started to tail off in the latter part of this quarter,” he said.
According to Mr Luffman, the established trend of older applicant age groups, continually replacing younger age groups in mortgage applications did not continue in the September water. This may confirm a link between investor mortgages and previous mortgage application growth, he said.
“It may also suggest APRA’s recent regulatory focus on investor mortgages is starting to have an impact on demand.”
[Related: FBAA partners with Veda]
