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As the economy recovers, NAB is helping brokers seize the potential of more property investors entering the market in 2021.
At NAB, we have an optimistic view on Australia’s economic recovery. The residential housing market is currently on trend to experience significant growth despite the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Off the back of positive economic data late last year, we now expect a rise in capital city home values of around 5 per cent in 2021 and 6 per cent in 2022. The Australian housing market has proven to be far more resilient through the pandemic than initially forecast given strong support measures from governments and the banking industry, as well as reductions in interest rates to new record lows.
We believe house price growth in 2021 is likely to be stronger than the apartment segment, while the move to remote working on an ongoing basis has led to increased demand for regional locations as Australians consider lifestyle properties as a base to work from home. This trend could also tempt dormant property investors back into the market as the COVID-19 pandemic reshapes the way we live and work.
The latest housing finance figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show a 5.6 per cent increase in total home lending in November 2020. Owner-occupiers and first home buyers led growth in the market throughout the year. However, home lending to property investors picked up in November, increasing 6 per cent and outpacing growth of 5.5 per cent for owner-occupied lending in the month.
Australia’s love affair with real estate shows no signs of cooling and property investors remain eager to take advantage of new growth corridors, new trends and record low rates, which presents a compelling case for brokers.
New NAB policy changes for property investors backed by competitive service levels
NAB is open for business for investors and has a strong offering in market backed by competitive service levels.
Property investors often have more complex needs and traditionally prefer working with mortgage brokers to achieve their goals. Most investors will have a relationship with a broker and NAB is actively supporting those relationships with a market leading offering, backed by a highly competitive service proposition.
We are offering faster approvals and fully assessed pre-approvals with quick service level agreements (SLAs) once the customer has passed pre-assessment, with our SLAs being updated daily on the broker portal. As every broker knows, fast turnaround times are essential to investors, particularly in a growing market, which is why NAB is proud to be the leading major bank in Australia for service times.
Our recent policy changes have also simplified the application process for brokers and their investor clients. Some notable changes include:
- An increased LVR for interest-only investment lending to 90% with LMI waivers permitted.
- LMI waivers of up to 90% LVR available for even more customer segments(targeted professional services partners and Medicos).
- Rentalincome shading has been reduced from 30 per cent to 20 per cent.
- Our home lending minimum affordability rate has been reduced from 5.5 per cent to 4.95 per cent.
Accelerating digital home lending solutions
Working in partnership with brokers, NAB continues to develop and enhance its digital solutions. We are now one of the few lenders to offer a true end-to-end digital mortgage experience.
Throughout our digital mortgage journey – which started in September 2019 – our long-standing objectives have been delivering more efficient turnaround times and an overall better experience for our brokers and their customers.
As customers increasingly expect a seamless end-to-end digital experience in all aspects of their lives, including buying property, we will continue to improve and evolve our digital mortgage solutions.
Our latest ApplyOnline updates are designed to support our brokers in getting home loan applications right the first time by ensuring our submission requirements and policies are as easy to understand as possible.
Our eSign capability, powered by DocuSign, has proven to be critical amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.We are seeing that the majority of NAB customers are now opting in to digitally sign their home lending documentation, which is a trend we expect customers and brokers will continue to adopt long after the social distancing measures have been eased.
Supporting broker business growth
As the bank behind the broker, NAB is here to support the growth of your business by providing the tools you need to deliver great outcomes to your clients. Great outcomes lead to positive reviews and repeat business - particularly among time-poor property investors.
With our digital mortgage solutions and the rapid adoption of video conferencing tools, brokers can now seamlessly service customers across Australia. We see this as a game changer for the industry and are proud to be backing the growth of Australian mortgage broking businesses.
As the new year gets well underway and property market momentum heats up, we encourage all our broker partners to contact their NAB BDM today to see how we can help you grow your business in 2021.
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