Dixon Mortgages

11/03/2021

Tips to save for a house in 1 year (little changes – BIG difference)

STOP PARTYING!
Recent research shows that on average 26-39 year olds spend $130 on a night out, and that is 40% of younger drinkers go out at least once a week. Fun though this lifestyle sounds, that’s over $500 a month being spent. If you can abstain for a year, you’ll save on average approximately $6,000 (or if you’re a couple, $12,000).

CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY PLANS
The average cost of going on holiday is now $2,700, so if you’re a couple then that’s another $5,400 saved.

And if you're an average-sized family then your annual holiday costs over $5,000. On average families spend 17% or $1,000 more on their holiday than they were expecting.

"Holidays are a great way to relax and switch off, but this can all be ruined if people overspend abroad”.

"While we know budgeting and finances are not a top holiday priority it is important not to lose control completely. Foreign currency, changing exchange rates and excitable family members can all lead to budgeting confusion when you are away."

SELL YOUR CAR

Unless you need a car to get to work or live in the countryside, it’s a luxury. And it could be another couple of grand added to your savings.

Even if you drive an old car and do just 10,000 miles a year then your likely spend, on average $320,000 during your life on running your car, which includes $87,000 on petrol.

TRADE ME EVERYTHING ELSE

Depending on who you ask, the average home has between $780 and $2,000 of unwanted or unused items within it that could be sold online or at a car boot sale.

DO NOT BUY UNNECESSARY THINGS

Try not to get sucked into repeated After Pays, Laybuys and Gambling (such as placing bets) it shows your potential Lender that it is a habit and they will most likely decline you. It shows the Lender, because it happens often it will keep happening after you get your lending and that it will effect your servicing.

10/02/2021

🏦 % Reserve Bank Reinstating LVR Restrictions To Pre Covid-19 Levels

The hot topic at the moment is the recent publication of the Reserve bank reinstating LVR restrictions to pre covid-19 levels. We are going to discuss what these actually mean for both homeowners and investors and how these changes may affect the property market.

Changes:
From May 01, LVR Restrictions for owner-occupiers will remain at a maximum of 20% of new lending at LVRS above 80%. Meanwhile, LVR restrictions for investors will be further to a maximum of 5% of new lending at LVRs above 60%.

What this actually means: Investors are going to need a minimum of 40% deposit to purchase any new investment property from 1 May. However as of this week all of the main banks have already introduced the minimum 40% deposit needed for any new applications.

Home owners are going to need a minimum of 20% deposit to purchase with an exception of 20% of lending being allowed to have less than 20% deposit. Not including those that qualify for the First Home Loan scheme who can purchase their first home for as little as 5% deposit if they meet all of the requirements.

Effect on Investors: The amount of deposit needed is essentially doubling for example if an investor is wanting to purchase an investment property worth $1million the amount of deposit needed has doubled from $200,000 to $400,000. This may sound like a lot but for property investors or homeowners who have owned property prior to Covid they would have been enjoying the huge capital growth from the biggest boom in NZ property history over the last 6 months.

A lot of regions in NZ are actually going up 20% in value per annum at the moment, so for the last 6 months they would have enjoyed 10% growth in there portfolio. If had $2million worth of property then their portfolio would be worth $2.2m.

That is an increase of $200,000 which is the extra deposit needed to pay a 40% deposit instead of a 20% deposit. A lot of people are actually unaware how much their properties are worth as they have not had valuations lately and are just using desktop appraisals.

So one way for investors who are wanting to purchase further properties would be to order registered valuations – be careful as each bank has their own panel, I suggest getting in touch with your mortgage adviser to discuss.

Non- bank lenders such as Resimac or select are going to become more and more favourable for investors as they are likely to be unaffected by these changes and will still only require a 20% deposit.

The other alternative for investors is to purchase new buildings as new builds are exempt from the Reserve Bank LVR Restrictions and which will mean a smaller amount of deposit needed.

Effect On Homeowners: The re-introduction of LVRs are meant to deter property investors but in my opinion I think it will have more affect to home buyers than it does investors. Post Covid homeowners were easily able to purchase homes with as little as 10% deposit.

They now essentially have to come up with double the amount of deposit. Depending on how long it takes homeowners to come up with the further 10% deposit and if the property market continues to increase at the rate it has been then it could become harder for first home buyers.

However the government has also said that they are planning on introducing further policies to help first home buyers so watch this space.

Overall I think that the Reserve bank have done the right thing by reintroducing the LVR levels however whether it has much effect on cooling down the market or not we will see. I expect it to be very busy over the next few months with homeowners and investors rushing to find property using their existing pre approvals.

09/02/2021

Congratulations on your first home Christy. We are always happy to help and guide you every step of the way! 🏠

03/02/2021

🚨GIVEAWAY🚨

Valentines Day is coming up, be in to win🌹

✔️Follow and like our Facebook and Instagram page
https://instagram.com/dixonmortgages?igshid=1p5n804r6qq3w
✔️Tag a friend
✔️Share for extra entry!

Winner will be announced Wednesday 10.02.21

21/01/2021

Median house prices Year on year Dec 2020 😱
How do you think the averages wil look this time next year?

03/11/2020

🤔 A lot of people ask me why they should use a mortgage broker so I thought I would list just a few reasons why you should.

A lot of people ask me why they should use a mortgage broker so I thought I would list just a few reasons why you should.

03/11/2020

🏡 🏦 💲
From the mortgage desk:

Interest rates: The 1 year fixed rate is still the most competitive rate at the moment. It has stayed fairly steady between banks the last couple of months however there is a bit of talk that we could expect to see 1 year fixed rates with a 1 in front of them come mid next year. Watch this space!

The 2 and 3 year rates have decreased slightly closer to the 1 year fixed rate.

Investors are also very tempted in locking in 5 year interest rates under the 3% which is a great secure option locking in your payments for the next 5 years!

Servicing: Covid -19 is still making banks look a lot closer at the source of income and how secure and regular the income is. Test servicing rates have decreased slightly mainly for over 80% LVR lenders, for high LVR lending the banks have generally increased the UMI which means you need to have a larger amount of leftover monthly income. Only some lenders are allowing high LVR boarder income.

Investors: majority of the main banks are offering 20% deposit however there are still a couple that have not budged from 30% deposit. It’s important to look at your options as being with a particular bank might slow down your purchasing ability. Being able to access that extra 10% equity can make a huge difference in your ability to purchase further properties!

Coming into spring/summer the rental market is starting to heat up with good solid rental income available for good quality properties.

Christchurch market: The market is pretty busy at the moment with a lot of enquiry from first home buyers, Investors and out of town purchasers. Banks are struggling to keep up at times so it’s important to get all your ducks in a row so when you are presenting an offer your offer is as clean as possible which will give you a much better chance of securing the property.

That’s it from me for now but if you would like any personal investment or home purchase advice please get in touch and we would love to help you!

Contact the team at Dixon Mortgages today for all your investment, mortgage or realty needs. Ph 0800 349 665 or email [email protected]

24/09/2020

Congratulations to one of our clients this week saved on refinancing their existing property saving an excess of $1000 a month on interest payments! If you or anyone else would like to save money and receive “awesome gift” 😉 get in touch with us at Dixon Mortgages!

04/08/2020

ANZ have announced a decrease in their test servicing rate for lending from 6.4% to 5.8%. This is a sign and it will be interesting to see which other banks will follow suit. Even though interest rates are at a record low the banks servicing criteria had remained unchanged, creating an ever growing gap between actually interest rates and the banks servicing rate for lending. This decrease in the test rate will allow more clients to be able to service a loan and get approval. For example based on a 400k mortgage the difference between the 6.4% test rate to the now 5.8% rate improves serviceability by $210 per month. If you have missed out on getting a mortgage because of servicing get in touch we can help! #

20/07/2020

🏡
This month Dixon Mortgages is invested on giving you handy tips and preparing you to purchase your first home! Click the link below to read more 👇🏻

9 Tips Preparing You To Purchase Your First Home This month Dixon Mortgages is invested on giving you handy tips and preparing you to purchase your first home! One debt Looks much better than multiple debts One debt looks a lot better than multiple different...

20/07/2020

Building is a great way to add equity, at the moment banks are hesitant about lending for building. Come and have a chat with us and see what we can do for you

26/06/2020

👀 📢
There is no doubt that there is going to be some great buying opportunities over the next 12 months.

To make the most of these opportunities you need to be cashed up and ready to act!

You need to have all of your ducks in a row so you have the confidence, knowing you can land the deal but also secure the finance knowing lenders lack of appetite for risk in the current market.

Read more in my latest blog by clicking the link below 👇🏻

Property Investing In A Tight Credit Market There is no doubt that there is going to be some great buying opportunities over the next 12 months. To make the most of these opportunities you need to be cashed up and ready to act! You need...