A new survey of Australian mortgage brokers from Hashching has revealed that more than 8 in 10 Australians are looking to lock in fixed interest rates than this time last year.
July’s national survey of brokers has revealed 84% of respondents said more customers were looking to have fixed term interest rates than this time in 2020.
While 71% have a more favourable outlook on the Australian housing market than this time last year, 38% of brokers have seen a drop in activity since the state-wide lockdowns began.
Additionally 37% of brokers have seen fewer deals and report more sluggish conditions because of the impact of the global pandemic due to the corona virus outbreak.
Mortgage brokers’ lessons from Hashching survey
“Mortgage brokers are a great sounding board for consumer sentiment on the general economic conditions in the country and globally,” said Hashching CEO Arun Maharaj.
“Consumers are looking for certainty in a time of great uncertainty and that’s why there have been more enquiries about locking in fixed term rates. It’s one area of the home loan process that consumers can control and they’re happy to pay the price for that.”
Other findings in this month’s broker survey include
- More than 50% of brokers being in favour of scrapping stamp duty on residential properties
- 87% of respondents saying mortgage brokers were more important than ever, given the increased competition from non bank and alternative lenders.
“While most Australians believe in the strength of the Australian housing market, uncertainty created by the spread of COVID-19 is creating unease and uncertainty in the market.”
“To that extent, the sentiment might be changing, and consumers are taking the opportunity to lock in the historic low rates now on offer across the board,” said Mr Maharaj.
