This week the mortgage industry saw rate cuts and rate hikes, a major milestone for an aggregator and a major bank's mortgage push.
Early in the week,
ANZ vowed to make major moves in the mortgage market. The bank's incoming CEO Shayne Elliott
flagged a more aggressive push into mortgages, with a particular focus on New South Wales. Elliott said the bank had lagged behind its major bank rivals in the state.
The week also saw some give and take from lenders. AMP
announced discounts to its variable rate, while
Adelaide Bank cut variable rates across the board.
ING Direct got into the action by
cutting rates on commercial investment loans, and ME announced a 40bp cut to its fixed rates. But
Westpac may have drawn the most media attention with a
20bp rate hike.
Finsure's John Kolenda said borrowers and brokers should
prepare for other lenders to follow suit.
Finally,
a major aggregator announced a new membership milestone. Vow Financial used its annual conference in South Africa to announce the addition of its 1,000th broker member. The aggregator has grown by 300 brokers since being acquired by
Mark Bouris' Yellow Brick Road.
