New data shows mortgage lenders are increasingly entering into more realistic repayment arrangements with struggling customers.
The results of a new survey from the Professional Insurance Brokers Association (PIBA) show during the final quarter of 2012, nearly 70% of mortgage lenders were negotiating more realistic options with clients — an 8% rise on the previous two quarters of the year.
But PIBA said there was room for improvement.
“While there are a variety of arrangements being entered into by the various banks, it is also evident that there is still some way to go to achieve the desired intent of the legislation,” Rachel Doyle, chief operations officer said.
“Some lenders are entering into arrangements very reluctantly, others lack a realistic view of what is achievable when someone is under severe financial pressure, and a few are still resisting the input of a financial expert,” she said.
The report also shows demand for mortgages remains strong, but is not being adequately met. PIBA claims nearly one-in-three brokers are seeing a 60%-80% mortgage rejection rate on behalf of consumers.
Recent bank data showed a near 30% increase in mortgage approvals.
“This doesn’t tally with the experience of brokers, and is probably accounted for in there being a very large gap between mortgage approval and mortgage draw-down,” Ms Doyle said.
