The mortgage broking industry has notched up an exciting record with the news that brokers now account for 81% of Australia’s residential lending market. Here’s why. For some time now, mortgage brokers have been tantalisingly close to clearing the 80% market share benchmark, and we’ve finally smashed our own previous record. We’re thrilled to announce that brokers facilitated a record high of 81% of new home loans in the first quarter of 2026. That’s up from 77% last year, a

Worried you’ll still be paying off your mortgage in retirement? New research shows you’re not alone. Here are five tips to help clear the slate before you hang up your work boots. A new trend is emerging that could leave retired home owners with less money to spend than they expected. A recent study found at least one-in-three Gen X homeowners expect to be paying off a home loan in retirement. Gen Xers aren’t alone. Separate research shows one-in-three Millennials and one-in-

House price growth is slowing but experts say not to expect a crash. We look at what’s changed, and why today’s market may offer good opportunities for homebuyers. Recent home price data from Cotality may be just what homebuyers have been waiting for. The latest figures show zero (0%) increase in home prices nationally in May – quite a change from the past 12 months when the trend has largely been upwards. But the national picture doesn’t tell the full story, and the numbers

A few tweaks to a popular first home buyer scheme has driven a “surge” in Gen Zs buying their first home. And it’s not the only upside giving first home buyers a boost now. The expansion of the popular 5% Deposit Scheme, combined with recent changes to rules for property investors, may be opening doors for young home buyers. The scheme, which lets first home buyers get started with as little as 5% deposit, or 2% for single parents, is now open to all first home buyers – with

It was great while it lasted, but the rate cut party is well and truly over. Today we look at how you could potentially reduce your home loan interest rate without relying on the Reserve Bank. A string of rate hikes this year has pushed the cash rate back up to 4.35% – exactly where it was at the start of 2025. Except this time, there are no rate cuts on the horizon. These rising interest rates are squeezing many household budgets. But you don’t have to just resign yourself t

Reforms to negative gearing and capital gains tax have been unveiled in the latest national budget. Here’s what they could mean for investors, first home buyers and home owners. The Albanese Government has tabled its budget for 2026-27, and tax reforms for property investors are top of the agenda. Treasurer Jim Chalmers says these reforms are all about getting more Australians into a first home of their own. But, as with any federal budget, there are winners and losers. We br

The hits just keep coming for mortgage holders, with the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) today raising the cash rate for a third time this year to 4.35%. If you’re starting to struggle with your mortgage repayments, here’s how you can potentially take action. Today’s 0.25% cash rate increase brings us in line with the 2024 cash rate peak of 4.35% – which was the highest it had climbed to since December 2011. The RBA’s Monetary Policy Board said in a statement that the conflic

There’s no better feeling than living in a brand new home – it’s fresh, clean and it’s all yours. But financing a new-build works very differently from buying an established home. Here’s what you need to know. There’s a lot to love about home ownership, and it’s especially exciting when you’re building a place of your own from scratch. You have the freedom to select your preferred design, personalise the finishes, and then watch as your new home steadily comes to life from th

Having loan pre-approval can be a smart move for home buyers. But the recent Reserve Bank cash rate hikes could leave your pre-approval in need of an update. There’s a lot to love about home loan pre-approval. It shows how much a bank will let you borrow for a home – that’s your ‘borrowing power’. Pre-approval also indicates you’re a serious buyer, providing extra bargaining clout in price negotiations. And while pre-approval typically only lasts for three to six months, that

Rate hikes and soaring fuel prices aren’t dampening home buyer enthusiasm, with a strong majority of Aussies still believing the time to buy is now. We look at why home-buying sentiment remains so high. Petrol prices have been stealing the headlines lately. But behind the scenes, Aussie homes have been notching up fresh gains. Over the past year, home values rose 9.9% nationally – the fastest 12-month growth since June 2022. And despite the current fuel crisis and two rate h

Is the grass really greener on the other side? Maybe. Australia has seen a surge of investor activity in recent years, with investment loans reaching record highs. But as home prices rise, plenty of investors are looking beyond their own backyard and making interstate purchases. Australian homes have delivered plenty of pluses for investors in recent years . Vacancy rates are low and rents are rising across much of the country. Strong price growth has seen more than 93%

Buying a first home doesn’t have to mean years of eating beans on toast while you scrape together a 20% deposit. Here’s how you could break into the property market with just a 5% deposit. The Australian government’s 5% Deposit Scheme has been around since 2020, and in that time it’s been a game-changer for more than 300,000 first home buyers . That’s because the scheme offers a chance to buy a first home with a 5% deposit – or as little as 2% for single parents. The scheme

If you’re in the market for a home, you may have noticed there hasn’t always been a whole lot of choice in recent months. Fortunately, it looks like property listings are really starting to pick back up. Here’s how to make the most of the increase in choice. Sure, price is the obvious big barrier when it comes buying your first home. But that’s often got a whole lot to do with a lack of supply (less supply than demand typically = higher prices). And in fact, Westpac says supp

More bad news for mortgage holders around the country: the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) today raised the cash rate for the second time this year to 4.10% in a 5-4 split decision vote. How might this impact your monthly mortgage repayments? Hardly seems fair to hike the cash rate by another 0.25% with petrol prices so high right now (which one could argue will reduce discretionary spending) – but it wasn’t enough to sway the majority of the RBA board, unfortunately, which v

Who wouldn’t want to save on home loan interest and pay off their mortgage faster? Homeowners are increasingly turning to offset accounts to do just that. So today we’ll look into whether an offset account could benefit you. The recent RBA cash rate hike has led homeowners to embrace a variety of strategies to ease the rate pain, and it turns out one of the most popular options is a home loan offset account. One of the big 4 banks, NAB, says it is seeing “ offset accounts sur

As home prices climb higher, first home buyers can feel like the goal posts are continually shifting further out of reach. But there is a way to potentially cut years off the time taken to buy a home. Saving a first home deposit has never been easy – especially in the last decade or two. And as property prices continue to head north, first home buyers can be left wondering if they’ll ever be able to save a 20% deposit. But don’t give up on your dream of home ownership just ye

Sure, saving a deposit is important, but your income can hold the real key to getting into the market. That’s because it shapes your borrowing power. It stands to reason that lenders will look closely at your personal income when you apply for a home loan. It’s not just about you being able to comfortably handle loan repayments. Lenders also have a legal responsibility to be sure you’re not taking on too much debt . The challenge for home buyers is that it can be unclear what

Growing numbers of younger Australians are opting for regional living, and part of the lure of a ‘seachange’ or ‘treechange’ can be the chance to get more bang for your buck. As property values climb higher, the median home price across our combined capitals has just pushed past the $1 million mark . That’s seeing a rethink among plenty of Aussies, who are swapping city skylines for regional horizons. Relocations from capitals to regions are outpacing moves in the opposite di

Myth busted! Baby Boomers no longer own the bulk of housing wealth in Australia. We reveal who does, and how you could get started in the property market. As many Baby Boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) start to enjoy their retirements, they are passing the baton of property ownership over to the next generation. A new report by KPMG reveals that Gen X (born 1965-1980) now holds more property-based wealth than any other generation . Not to be outdone, Millennials (198

Bad news for mortgage holders around the country: the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) today raised the cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.85%. Today we’ll look at why it did so, and how this rate hike could impact your monthly mortgage repayments. Well, those three rate cuts in 2025 were nice while they lasted! But recent ABS inflation data (3.8% in the year to December 2025) has the RBA concerned enough to start 2026 with a rate rise in an attempt to beat inflation back dow