New residential home loans originated through the third party channel increased by 25% in the quarter to June 2016, according to APRA statistics.
The quarterly property exposure statistics released by the banking regulator showed that new home loans settled through brokers increased by $9.5 billion over the three months ending June, totalling $47.4 billion.
As a percentage of total residential home loans approved by all Australian deposit taking institutions (ADIs), brokers were responsible for 48%, up from 46% in the March 2016. A total of $98.4 billion residential home loans were approved in the June 2016 quarter, according to the APRA figures.
Owner-occupied mortgages accounted for the vast majority of the total (65%). However, the share of owner-occupied mortgages dipped slightly from the previous quarter, when this type of loan accounted for 68% of total loans approved.
Interest-only lending also jumped in the quarter, by 25%, with $35.6 billion worth of interest-only loans approved. However, the March figure was unusually low with interest-only lending plunging by 20% over that quarter.
Meanwhile, mortgages with a loan-to-valuation ratio (LVR) between 60% and 80% increased by the most by value over the June quarter, up $9 billion, or 21%, from the March quarter. The share of loans above 90% LVR increased by 16% over the three months to July 2016 while the share of loans below 60% LVR increased by $4.4 billion, or 22%, over the quarter.
