Charter Group Finance in Sydney, Australia | Mortgage brokers

Charter Group Finance

Locality: Sydney, Australia

Phone: +61 418 471 333

Address: 43/48a Consul Rd Brookvale 2100 Sydney, NSW, Australia

Website: http://www.chartergroupfinance.com.au/

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25.01.2022 Please help protect competition in the home loan market!! Sign the petition at www.brokerbehindyou.com.au

24.01.2022 Expecting Growth RBA Commence Waiting Game This week’s Reserve Bank Board Meeting came and went as expected after rate cuts in June and July, the RBA are firmly on hold until we see how the monetary policy stimulus, plus recent tax cuts, flow through the economy. In a week of share market highs, followed by a day of heavy losses, rate cuts in New Zealand and USA, currency adjustments by China, and ongoing trade war rhetoric, the RBA has held firm on its stated plan of l...ooking for a reduction in unemployment, plus inflation heading back to its target band of 2-3%. We did see June qtr CPI at 1.6% last week, which was as expected. Market pundits expect that if another rate cut is to come, it will be delivered at the November meeting, by which time we would have 3 months of employment data, plus Sep qtr GDP and CPI outcomes. With concerns growing around the global economy, I believe the RBA would lean against a further rate cut just yet. With official rates now at just 1%, they don’t have much ammunition available should they need to take drastic action as a result of global events. The full statement from the RBA Governor is available via the link below. The lower official rates have seen home loan rates fall to record lows. Owner-Occupied rates for principal and interest loans are available below 3.30%, even lower for basic products. And fixed rates are also available at 2.99% for 3 years! On the investment interest only front, I’m seeing rates in the mid to high 3% range, for fixed and variable options. Coupled with these low rates, banks are also reducing their assessment, or floor rates, following guidance from APRA. This has increased borrowing capacity by around 5%-10%, and with the cheap rates its easy to see how the property market will regain some of the losses from the last 18 months. I’ve definitely seen an increase in enquiries and applications since the first rate cut in June. As always, please feel free to call or email with any questions, it’s a good time to spring clean your home loan! Cheers, Paul

20.01.2022 What a huge success! Thank you to everyone who attended on Wednesday night for the the First Home Buyers Cocktail Evening! Stay tuned for more photos uploaded early next week.

20.01.2022 September RBA Interest Rate Meeting Another month, and another RBA Meeting sees the cash rate on hold at 1.5% for the 25th straight month. The result was of no surprise to economists and market analysts. The statement from RBA Governor, Dr. Philip Lowe, makes similar reading to previous months. Inflation to remain below the target level, unemployment with room to improve further, and GDP growth forecasts being reviewed lower. Whilst there are positive contributions coming fro...m infrastructure investment and resource exports, this is being offset by a decline in consumer spending and effects of the drought. The housing market remains subdued and more lenders are being forced to increase rates due to offshore funding pressures. So yes, basically a carbon copy from last month! Despite recent rate increases, some lenders are still aggressively seeking new business with sharp rates, and more banks are now offering 2 and 3 year fixed rates at less than 4% for owner-occupied loans. Some Investment rates are also heading closer to that 4% level. So if you’d like to have a chat about fixing your loans, or looking at a new purchase or refinancing, please give me a call! Until next month, Paul

17.01.2022 Firstly, I'd like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas, and a healthy and prosperous 2019! I'll be taking a break for a few weeks, and will be back on deck from January 14. At the start of December, the RBA meeting concluded with another outcome of "rates on hold". But the big news came the day after, with some seriously disappointing GDP numbers for the December quarter. The market was expecting a result of +0.6%, but it came in at half that figure, with the c...urrent year-on-year growth rate falling to 2.8%. This is significant as the RBA forecasts had GDP sitting around the 3.5% level. This shock low number, together with weaker property markets in Sydney and Melbourne, has led some market economists to predict another official rate cut in 2019. In the Credit markets, as many of you have experienced first-hand these last few months, banks are tightening their lending policies as a consequence of the Royal Commission. So much so, that RBA Board Members - including the Governor himself - have publicly stated their concerns around this "credit crunch" and how it can negatively feed into overall economic growth. So what can we expect in 2019? The tightening in lending policy - and the extra paperwork and questions that has come with it - is here to stay. Patience is the new virtue when it comes to waiting for your loan approvals! It has been a frustrating few months as the market adjusted to this new regime, however with new systems in place to process the extra data, we should soon have the pipeline flowing again. We have witnessed the Sydney property market fall around 8% this year, with most industry experts predicting up to another 10% fall in some areas. With a Federal Election due in May, its hard to predict what impact some of the proposed Labor policies will have on the market. I'll have some further updates on this over the coming months. But for now - enjoy your holidays!! Cheers Paul

15.01.2022 Reserve Bank Cut Rates to Historic Lows As was widely predicted (and pre-empted by the Reserve Bank Governor himself last week), the RBA this afternoon dropped the Official Cash Rate to a historic low of 1.25%. This is the first move in Official Rates since August 2016. In his statement, Governor Dr. Philip Lowe highlighted weaker global growth, subdued levels of inflation, low income growth and stagnant household consumption as key factors in today’s decision. The recent sli...ght increase in the unemployment rate from 5% to 5.2% appears to have forced the RBA’s hand. All eyes are on this key monthly indicator from now on. GDP is still forecast to reach 2.75%, and underlying inflation to 2%, over the next 18 months. Today’s move, and likely one further rate cut, should help stimulate the economy back to these levels. From here, we await the responses from the banks. The Government has urged all lenders pass on the full rate cut just now CBA have announced that they will, whilst earlier, ANZ announced they will reduce by 0.18% only. The last 6-12 months has seen a lot of movement in variable rates, as banks were squeezed on their own funding costs, but also moved to attract borrowers to retain market share. I’m personally very keen to see how this competition plays out, with variable rates heading well below 3.5% - levels never seen before!! The other big news from last week, was APRA announcing a review into the hurdle rate that banks must use when assessing loan applications. You may recall I flagged this in last month’s email. This will take some months to flow through to the lenders, and I suspect it will improve everyone’s borrowing capacity by about 5% on average. Nothing huge, but it does start to claw back some of the credit tightening we witnessed last year. So, stay tuned for news on your lower variable rates should keep us all excited for another few months at least! Chat soon, Paul

15.01.2022 RBA Cuts Rates Again, Pumps Cash into the Economy The Reserve Bank have held an emergency meeting and this afternoon have announced measures to support the economy and jobs during this COVID-19 crisis. The Official Cash Rate has been cut by 0.25%. The last time they cut rates in-between official monthly meetings, was in 1997.... The rate cut will bring the Official Cash Rate to a new historic low of 0.25%. In addition to the rate cut, they have announced additional measures to ensure there is enough money in the system for business to access, and help the economy. These measures are known as Quantitative Easing (QE). They will purchase government bonds from banks and other institutions, and also create a cheap lending option for banks to borrow and then on-lend to business customers. The full statement from the RBA Governor can be viewed via the link below. Its important to note that the RBA have previously noted that 0.25% was the lowest they could reduce the official rates to, so this is it from them! All eyes now on the Government to see what Fiscal Policies they will implement to support jobs and keep the economy moving. BUSINESS OPERATIONS OVER THE COMING WEEKS AND MONTHS With the current disruptions to our daily lives, there are many challenges ahead as the implications and timing of Social Distancing become clearer. Firstly, I truly hope you and your families are safe and well, and coping during this period. Charter Group Finance is well and truly open to take your inquiries. I am working from my home office and can still arrange quick visits as required, mainly to collect copies of identification, whilst the rest of our application procedures can be completed on line and over the phone/Skype. I will email you more regularly with updates on how the finance and property industries are responding to these challenges, and how those updates may impact you. If you are concerned that you have a short-medium term risk of missing a repayment, please communicate with me as soon as possible. It is very important that we are proactive with the Lender. You may start receiving correspondence from your lender. Please send this to me if you have any questions. Stay safe, and I shall be in touch again soon. Paul

10.01.2022 Firstly, I’d like to wish you and your loved ones a very safe and Merry Christmas, and best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2020. Thanks for your ongoing support of me and my business, and the Mortgage Broker industry as a whole, in what was a very challenging year following the report of the Banking Royal Commission back in February. If we worked through a new loan, refinance or variation this year, thanks also for your patience with the loan application, in this new co...mpliance-driven era of banking. I’m taking a short break through to January 13, however if you have a deal in progress for January settlement, I am still working on your files over the holiday period. Otherwise, for any new scenarios or requests feel free to get in contact with me after Jan 13. Reserve Bank December Statement, Outlook for Rates 2020 After the October rate cut of 0.25%, bringing the Official Cash Rate to 0.75%, the RBA have been very consistent with their messages we will cut rates again if we need to support economic growth, growth in employment (Unemployment Rate to be <5%), and a return of inflation to the 2-3% level. They remain broadly positive on the global economic outlook (i.e. US-China trade talks) and have noted that there is always a lag in impact of this year’s tax cuts and expansionary monetary policy. The recent strength in home and asset prices will also feed into consumer confidence. Thus, all eyes are on the Christmas retail sales figures, although there was huge response to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, with the value of credit card sales up 87% for that weekend, whereas previous years were only up 25%!! If only I had invested in a courier/delivery business 15 years ago. The RBA expect to see GDP reaching 3% during 2021. The recent Sep QTR figure of 0.4% was on expectations, and the Jun QTR was revised up from 0.5% to 0.6%. That makes 1% growth in the last 6 months, which annualises to 2%. So I would put the likelihood of another rate cut at 50% for February, with a lot riding on consumer spending for this period. The RBA would need to see some solid evidence that their continued optimism is misplaced, for these chances to increase. No RBA meeting in January, so I’ll be back to report on the February 2020 RBA meeting. All the best, Paul

10.01.2022 Introducing our sponsored athlete for the inaugural Sultana Bran Hockey One League- Grace Stewart. Hockeyroo Grace Stewart has 79 caps for Australia. She has been representing NSW since she was 11 years old, and makes her debut for NSW Pride in the new and revamped tournament this month. The striker is originally from Gerringong, NSW and looks forward to playing back in her home state having moved to Perth to be part of the Australian Program in 2016. "I'm looking forward t...o seeing all the new teams and I just always love getting back and playing with my NSW girls." Grace says. We're looking forward to watching this exciting player throughout the tournament and seeing what the Pride Women can produce, having won the Australian Hockey League in 2018. The tournament begins this Sunday September 29 at Sydney Olympic Park and runs throughout October and November. For more information on Sultana Bran Hockey One and to stay up to date, visit the link below. https://hockeyone.com.au/ Good Luck Grace and the NSW Pride, we will be following all the action! Grace Stewart Hockey NSW Hockey One NSW Pride Hockeyroos Kellogg's Australia

09.01.2022 RATES REMAIN ON HOLD AS PROPERTY MARKET SOFTENS The RBA Board held its regular monthly meeting today, and once again left the official cash rate on hold at 1.50%. From their Monetary Policy statement, they have again noted the softening in the main residential property markets, and risks to economic activity from offshore factors. Low inflation and wages growth also continue to keep interest rates low, however the last GDP figures were stronger than expected. I suspect the RB...A will closely watch all the other indicators for similar signs of strength in the coming months. Almost all Lenders have now increased their rates due to overseas funding cost increases this also impacts any potential moves by the RBA. There are still some great rates for Owner Occupied, principal and interest loans at below 4% - please shoot me an email if you’d like to review your current facilities, or have a new purchase in mind. Will be in touch again next month Melbourne Cup Day November 6! Cheers Paul

08.01.2022 Looking good Grace! Officially part of the Charter Group Finance Team! Go the Pride!! Grace Stewart Hockey One NSW Pride Sydney Olympic Park Hockey Centre

05.01.2022 Interest Rates Fall Around the World After the February RBA meeting where rates were left firmly on hold, our Central Bank, together with many Central Banks across the globe, have cut interest rates this week for the sole purpose of supporting the economy during the coronavirus pandemic. The impact of factory shut downs in China, travel restrictions which are impacting tourism and education markets, and general isolation requirements, will have far reaching economic impacts o...Continue reading

05.01.2022 Official Rates cut by 0.25% in response to coronavirus, to support the economy. More to come...

05.01.2022 RBA - Dragging Us Along for Another Month Official Cash Rate remains unchanged @ 1.5% after the Reserve Bank board met on Tuesday. Most market economists are now tipping one or two cuts in the official rate this year, due mainly to lackluster economic growth, virtually non-existent inflation, and low wages growth. Falling property prices are also having the knock-on effect of subdued household consumption.... However, with the Federal Election looming, the RBA decided to wait another month, pointing out that despite the apparent weakness in the economy, our unemployment rate is showing resilience, holding at the 5% level. They will keep a close eye on this measure before deciding to cut rates. There is talk within our industry that an official rate cut, which likely won’t be passed on in full by the banks, won’t provide a great deal of support to the property market. It now appears as though APRA, who regulate bank lending behaviour, may allow the banks to reduce the higher assessment, or hurdle rates, that we use to assess your loans. i.e. instead of assessing payments at current rates of 3.79% for an owner-occupied, principal and interest loan, we have to use a rate of at least 7.25%. If this rate is reduced to say, 6.5%, it will improve everyone’s borrowing capacity, which should help support property prices. The biggest issue facing property right at this moment, is the outcome of the Election, and the impacts of the proposed negative gearing and CGT changes. Even a Labor victory won’t ensure the passing of legislation through a hostile Senate. So it could well be 6 months or so before we have a better idea of how the market will react. In the meantime, and as always, please feel free to call or email with any questions or for a rate review! Chat soon, Paul

03.01.2022 RBA Motionless but Ready to Pull the Rate-Cut Trigger The Reserve Bank have been sitting on their hands since monthly Monetary Policy meetings recommenced in February, but with each month passing, it has become pretty clear to most market observers that 2 rate cuts can be expected before the end of 2019. The only reason they have held off moving so far, has been the timing of the Federal Budget, and expected Federal Election in May. Australia’s strong fiscal position has mo...Continue reading