Latest news with #DentonPugh
News.com.au
26-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Big bank exec reveals Aus hottest housing markets
A Big Four bank executive reveals the hottest housing markets that buyers are flocking to as the country prepares for imminent back-to-back interest rate cuts. Denton Pugh, who is the National Australia Bank executive for home lending, explains below where the momentum is currently building and which housing markets are seeing strong growth nationally from a borrowing perspective. Govt pays $3.3m for unliveable derelict house We might be deep into the winter months, but there's definite signs of warmth returning to Australia's property market. Home values across the country have nudged higher again, rising 0.5 per cent in May and lifting the national index 1.7pc over the first five months of the year. And every capital city recorded growth. A sign that confidence in the market is continuing to grow. We're seeing this confidence play out in people like Emily Chalk, a 32-year-old first-home buyer who recently bought a home just outside of Rockhampton, in regional Queensland. She'd spent six months looking for a place to call home. A conversation with her banker helped her understand how the Government's Home Guarantee Scheme could help get her into her first home sooner than she thought. Within weeks she'd bought a home in the town she grew up in. Stories like Emily's are becoming increasingly more common. It's not just upgraders or investors sitting on equity returning to the market. Many first-home buyers have been waiting for banks to reduce home lending rates so they can not only borrow more but also have that confidence to take the leap into homeownership. New NAB home lending data shows lending to first home buyers is up 16pc since February, and up 32pc to home buyers more broadly. While interest rates are still relatively high, recent rate cuts are helping. These cuts combined with initiatives like the Home Guarantee Scheme, we're starting to see more people take that first step into homeownership. Of course, we can't ignore the bigger picture. While monthly growth is returning, the annual pace of property price increases has slowed. Not great news for investors but good news for those trying to break into the market. We're also seeing strong momentum in regional markets; a trend that's been building since the pandemic years and is not going away. 10 hottest regional markets so far in 2025: 1. Toowoomba – QLD 2. Burnett – QLD 3. Springfield – Redbank – QLD 4. Geelong – VIC 5. Sunshine Coast Hinterland – QLD 6. Mandurah – WA 7. Loganlea – QLD 8. Ballarat – VIC 9. Maryborough – QLD 10 Mackay – QLD In fact, Queensland regional hotspots dominated our list of the five hottest regional markets so far in 2025. Toowoomba, Burnett, Springfield-Redbank, and the Sunshine Coast Hinterland all ranked high for home loan activity. Geelong in Victoria was the only non-Queensland regional hotspot to break into the top five. It may be the weather, or the lifestyle, but regional markets offer more than just charm and appealing work life balance. They offer affordability and the potential for long-term growth. For buyers like Emily, the appeal of staying close to family, and finding space for a young family was strong. 'I already know most of my neighbours, I definitely didn't have that when I was living in Brisbane,' first-home buyer, Emily Chalk. This continued momentum is promising, but it also highlights one of the biggest challenges still facing the market – we need more homes. Lower rates are helping on the demand side, but affordability and supply remain big hurdles. Addressing those issues will take time, commitment, and smart policy. Particularly when it comes to getting new housing built in the places people want to live. The winter months are usually quieter for the housing market, however, with most economists expecting further interest rate cuts this year, winter activity is expected to be a little higher than usual, continuing to build for the busier spring period.
News.com.au
17-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
More first-home buyers bite the bullet as market confidence swells
More first-time buyers are taking the plunge on home ownership with loan applications surging 16 per cent at one of Australia's big four banks. Victoria is leading the way in first-home owner activity, recording a 28 per cent jump in lending since February, new NAB data shows. It's followed closely by Western Australia, up 22 per cent, and Queensland, up 21 per cent. Overall, lending to all owner occupiers increased by almost a third nationwide since the Reserve Bank delivered its first rate earlier this year. Surprise source of home deposits exposed Geelong children's librarian Charlotte Dru Ziegeler is one of a growing number of first-home buyers re-entering the market as conditions improve. The 33-year-old recently purchased a house in the seaside Bellarine Peninsula town of St Leonards, near where she grew up. She said had been watching the market and wasn't sure if her deposit would be enough to purchase a home but was encouraged as variable home loan rates started to fall. 'I spoke to a banker, got pre-approved in less than an hour and then, not long after, the right house came up,' Ms Dru Ziegeler said. 'It all happened so fast, it was really exciting, and a huge 'pinch me' moment.' She moved in just six weeks after kickstarting the process, becoming the first of her siblings to buy a house. NAB home lending executive Denton Pugh said cuts to both fixed and variable home loan rates were enticing more first-home and other buyers to re-enter the market. 'We're seeing momentum return, especially with people like Charlotte who've been saving or waiting for the right time to take heat jump into home ownership,' Mr Pugh said. 'And that momentum could carry through winter, which is usually a quieter time with less sellers listing over the cooler months.' He said despite the rate cuts, borrowing costs remained high but this worked in favour of first-home buyers by keeping a lid on property price rises. Buyers' advocate Cate Bakos said first-home buyers were sensing that now might be their chance to get a foot in the door. 'I think it's driven by a few factors. There's a bit of FOMO, sure, but more than that, it's optimism,' Ms Bakos said. 'The federal election is out of the way, interest rates look to be on a downward path, and that's creating a window of confidence.' She said the expansion of the First Home Guarantee scheme had been a game changer for some of her clients, while other were co-buying with their parents or siblings. 'Victoria, in particular, has been a more accessible market for first-home buyers lately,' she said. 'Investor demand here has been softer compared to other states, which has opened up more opportunity.'
News.com.au
30-05-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Property shakeup: Big bank flags surprise trends since rate cuts
A big bank executive has revealed savvy Aussies are outsmarting sky-high property prices and the soaring cost of living, with shock trends emerging since rate cuts. In a surprise move considering how badly the cost of living crisis has hit Australia, National Australia Bank has found 95 per cent of home borrowers have elected to maintain mortgage repayments at previous higher levels despite lower interest rates. NAB executive for home lending Denton Pugh said they've also seen a massive 10 per cent spike in people choosing an investment for their first property – sharing below the trends that have emerged since rate cuts and a shock forecast for what this means for the mortgage and housing market. Australia's biggest political property moguls revealed Australia's property market is picking up again. With school and public holidays, an election, and an RBA decision out of the way, we're seeing buyers and sellers re-enter the market. The Reserve Bank's decision to cut interest rates again this month wasn't a shock. With inflation now sitting comfortably inside the RBA's 2-3 per cent target range, most economists expected this move. When NAB cut its variable rate back in February, we saw activity increase. For mortgage holders, some chose to reduce their monthly repayments to free up cash, but more than 95 per cent of NAB customers have kept their repayments at the same level to pay down their home loan quicker and save more in the long term. Zac Efron's Aussie long lunch haunt is on the market On the buyer side, the cut provided a bit of a sugar hit for the market, but momentum eased in April as a mix of holidays, election uncertainty and anticipation around the RBA's next move saw many potential home buyers hit pause. Now that some of this uncertainty has cleared, and further cuts have been announced, more buyers are back searching for their dream home. At NAB, we've seen steady growth in first home buyer activity since February, with some entering the market through investment. We've seen a 10 per cent increase this year in buyers purchasing an investment property as their first home – a trend known as 'rent-vesting'. NAB insights show this strategy is especially popular in NSW and WA, where a home buyer buys in one suburb while choosing to rent in another. This is a popular strategy for younger buyers who want to get on the property ladder without giving up the lifestyle or location they love. MORE: Buyer of $12m mansion plans to give it away Culture Kings founders' bold $30m push Through May, new listings have started to recover. Consumer confidence, which dipped in April, is also trending up. And that matters because when people feel more confident, they're more likely to make a big purchase on something like a home. Lower rates and growing confidence should help carry the momentum we're seeing through the typically quieter winter months. But we're not expecting house prices to take off in 2025. While lower rates do give buyers a bit more borrowing power, stretched affordability and ongoing cost-of-living pressures are still holding price growth back. So, what should potential buyers be doing now? Start by getting clarity on your borrowing power. Speak to a banker and get pre-approval. In many instances, this can be done in under an hour. I was talking to a first home buyer who told me how quick her home buying journey was. She spoke to her banker to understand how much she could borrow, got pre-approved in under an hour, and just six weeks later she had the keys to her new home. With the market moving again, opportunities are there. Being ready to act can make all the difference. * This is an opinion piece by Denton Pugh who is the National Australia Bank executive for home lending.
