Australia: Housing finance ticks up in February - Westpac

Matthew Hassan, analyst at Westpac, notes that the Australia’s housing finance approvals posted a modest gain in Feb, as the total number of owner occupier loans ex refi rose 0.8%mth, slightly better than the consensus forecasts of a 0.5% gain but more in line with Westpac's forecast of a 1% gain.

Key Quotes

“That follows a sharp slide since mid-2018 with monthly falls averaging 1.5% over the previous six months. Approvals are down 12.5%yr.”

“The value of investor loans ex refi rose 0.9%mth, a starker and more surprising turnaround after average declines of 3.6%mth over the previous six months. The monthly value of loans to this segment is still down heavily, by 29.1%, over the last year.”

“The combined total value of housing finance approvals across both owner occupier and investor segments (and excluding refi) rose 2.7%mth but was still down 18.6%yr.”

“Overall, the February update was a little firmer than expected, consistent with the improved tone from auction market activity and a slowing in price declines in recent months.”