From Goldies:
Housing finance approvals were slightly weaker than expected in September, with annual growth now negative for the first time since January 2013. Putting aside an encouraging lift in approvals for new construction, approvals for owner occupied established dwellings have declined over 7 consecutive months and refinancing is also weakening. Although the value of approvals to investors surged again in the month, the ABS has cautioned that it may be under-reporting first home buyer activity. We believe one interpretation is that the flip-side of this under-reporting is that investor activity is being over reported. If true, this would be welcome news for the RBA – who continue to signal unease with the apparent strength of investor activity. In any case, with this investigation into the data ongoing, we expect the introduction of some new macro prudential measures to constrain investor demand over the coming months.
