Australia witnesses modest uptick in investor finances in June

The notable feature of the June housing finance data was the bounce in investor financing, up 1.6 percent m/m in value terms. This is the biggest increase in investor financing since January. A marked acceleration of investor financing would be a disturbing development for the regulator and RBA.

The value of housing finance commitments (excluding owner occupier refinancing) rose 1.5 percent m/m in May, slowing annual growth to 7.1 percent y/y from 9 percent the previous month. The investor finance segment bounced in June, with the value of investor housing up 1.6 percent m/m in June after falling in three of the four months prior.

As a consequence of these previous declines the annual pace of growth in investor finance slowed to 5.7 percent in June from 8 percent y/y in May and down from double digit y/y growth in April. The value of owner-occupier approvals (excluding refinancing) recorded the fifth consecutive monthly rise, up 1.4 percent m/m in June.

Owner-occupier approvals (excluding refinancing) are 8.3 percent higher over 12 months, a slowdown from the 9.8 percent y/y growth recorded in May but still the second fastest annual growth since May 2016.

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