Tight lending criteria and soaring house prices have left first home buyers with no choice but to save up hefty deposits – and
CBA is reaping the benefits.
The hard push to save for a down payments has been a major driver behind the $40bn in new deposits picked up by the bank in the last year, CBA fund manager John Abernethy told
The Australian.
“The first homebuyer is struggling to get a loan so they’ve got to get their deposit up,’’ said Abernethy.
Retirement and
SMSF savings also accounted for a significant part of the deposit increase, he said.
“There’s an expectation of about $100 billion of increase in self-managed super funds over the last 12 to 18 months."
SMSFs also tend to have high levels of cash, usually deposited at banks, during the settling-in period between establishment and full investment in local and overseas equities and property, he said.
CBA chief executive Ian Narve announced last week half-year profits of over $4.27bn, while rebuking claims the big four bank’s receive an unfair advantages and security from the government.
CBA makes a margin of 2.14 per cent on its lending, overall.
