Homeowners should ensure they are not caught short by the expected upward movement in interest rates, according to Australia’s largest independent mortgage broker.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said even though the Reserve bank of Australia (RBA) has kept official rates on hold at 3.0 per cent for several months, most forecasters believe rates will rise up to two per cent over the next 18 months.

Mr Kolenda said there were many steps mortgage holders can take to limit the shock of variable rates returning to their traditional medium level of about 7.8 per cent.

He said home owners should be budgeting for rates to rise again quickly when the economy turns around.
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Australia’s largest independent mortgage broker has called for brokers to be given greater freedom to switch between aggregators.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said some broker teams wishing to move between aggregators were being prevented from doing so because of the loss of trail commissions.

“We have found many brokers are handcuffed to their current aggregator by the trail component,” Mr Kolenda said.

“If they decide to leave they could lose hundreds of thousands of dollars and this is a common situation throughout the industry.”
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By Jill Fraser for Lending Central

To kick off Launching Central’s new profile series, in which familiar names in the industry reveal what really makes them tick, Loan Market Group Executive Director, John Kolenda opens up about what dealing with resentment, mentoring and conflict resolution means to him.

Kolenda’s run in with his former boss, John Symond ended up in the Supreme Court in April 2005.

Aussie Home Loans took action against Kolenda, its former state manager for Victoria, who had left the company in June the previous year to set up rival home mortgage company, X Inc with ex-Aussie colleagues Jennifer Nielsen and Dean Rushton.

The contentious issue was the restraint imposed on Kolenda by Aussie concerning the poaching of staff for a period of 12 months. The Court ruled in Kolenda’s favour, stating that the restraint was “excessive”.
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Investors are preparing to storm the Australian property market, according to a national survey.

An online poll conducted by leading mortgage broker Loan Market Group found 82 per cent of respondents were looking to invest in property over the next 12 months.

The survey of more than 800 people found 34 per cent were looking for a suitable investment property now with interest rates still at near 50 year lows.

Twenty seven per cent of respondents said they would be waiting until the expanded First Home Owner’s Grant is phased out at the end of 2009, while 21 per cent said they were considering an investment property but wanted to be more secure about their job.
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Major banks are likely to increase their variable home mortgage rates regardless of any movement in official rates by the Reserve Bank of Australia, according to a leading mortgage broker.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said despite the RBA leaving the cash rate on hold at 3.0 per cent for the past three months, major lenders were considering a lift in their rates independent of any RBA decision.

Mr Kolenda said the Commonwealth Bank of Australia had already broken ranks recently by raising its variable rate by 0.10 per cent due to increased funding costs.

“While predictions remain of a further easing in the cash rate by the RBA due to rising unemployment, there is evidence the major banks will no longer be moving in line with these changes and a strong likelihood banks will not pass on part or all of any future RBA rate cuts,” he said.
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Most Australians believe the boosted First Home Owners Grant contributed to inflated property prices, a national survey has found.

An online poll conducted by leading mortgage broker Loan Market Group found 66 per cent of respondents thought the expanded grant scheme had pushed prices up in some markets.

But 35 per cent of those who said the grant had inflated prices believed it had only impacted on the lower end of the property market and 31 per cent said it had not stopped them from buying real estate.
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Home owners are not being panicked into switching to fixed rate loans, despite the nation’s largest home lender recently raising its standard variable mortgage rate, a broker says.

Earlier this month, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia raised its variable rate by 10 basis points, blaming higher funding costs.

Loan Group executive director John Kolenda said the company’s brokers had received few inquiries about fixed rates despite the increase.

“The lack of demand to switch to fixed rates indicated the majority of home owners believed they would be better off sticking to variable rates while the economy remained in decline,” Mr Kolenda said.
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Australia’s largest independent mortgage broker, Loan Market Group, has launched a new edition of a book offering a practical guide to obtaining property finance.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said ‘The Ultimate Guide To Home Finance’ was designed to help everyone from first home buyers to investors.

Mr Kolenda said an increase in property market activity due to the boosted First Home Buyers Grant and near record low interest rates coupled with changes in bank lending criteria had resulted in demand for the home loans guide.

“We are ordering a second print run of the book to keep pace with the inquiries from potential investors, those looking to refinance and first home buyers who have been encouraged to buy property by the generous government concessions,” he said.
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People considering a switch to a fixed rate home loan should act quickly because banks have started to raise fixed rates substantially, according to Australia’s largest independent mortgage broker.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said the Commonwealth Bank of Australia had this week increased its three year fixed rate by half a percentage point to 6.69 per cent.

Mr Kolenda said other major banks had also increased fixed rates by between 0.10 per cent and 0.50 per cent.

He said Loan Market Group had been advising customers for more than two months that fixed rates were on the way up.
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Australia’s largest independent mortgage broker Loan Market Group has applauded the decision in tonight’s Federal Budget to extend the boosted First Home Buyers Grant for another six months.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said the decision to extend the expanded grant scheme would provide some certainty for first time buyers, the residential real estate sector and the housing industry.

Mr Kolenda said doubling the First Home Buyers Grant to $14,000 for established homes and $21,000 for newly built properties last October had helped underpin the residential property market during the global economic crisis.
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The Federal Government should follow Victoria’s lead and offer more incentives in next week’s Budget for first home buyers, according to Australia’s largest independent mortgage broker Loan Market Group.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said the Victorian Government should be commended for boosting the amount offered to people buying new homes from $5,000 to $11,000 in metropolitan areas and from $8,000 to $15,500 in the regions.

Mr Kolenda said the Federal Government’s decision to double the First Home Buyers Grant to $14,000 for established homes and $21,000 for newly built properties had supported the Australian property market during the global economic crisis.

He said Loan Market Group would like the Government to extend the boosted grant in its present form for another six months beyond its scheduled June 30 expiry.
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Leading mortgage broker Loan Market Group has called for more measures in the May 12 Budget to boost the property market after the Reserve Bank of Australia today left official interest rates on hold at 3.0 per cent.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said the residential real estate sector faced uncertain times with the expanded First Home Buyers Grant scheduled to end on June 30.

Mr Kolenda said the boosted grant and the big reductions in home mortgage rates over the past six months had maintained some buoyancy in the residential real estate sector despite established house prices dropping 6.7 per cent in the year to March, 2009.
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By Jill Fraser for Lending Central

The MFAA’s upcoming round table discussion between aggregators and lenders, which has been called to address industry issues, has been declared a charade.

Citing a lack of broker representation at the meeting Australian Institute of Professional Brokers (AIPB) co-founder, Maria Rigoni maintains that aggregators are not independent enough to represent brokers.

Referring to next Tuesday’s summit as a “get together that makes it look like we’re doing something for brokers” Rigoni says yet again brokers are being excluded from a significant industry decision-making process.

The crisis in service to brokers and the subsequent departure of growing numbers of brokers from the industry will be one of the main items on the agenda but Rigoni’s request to be included was declined.
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Mortgage broker Loan Market Group has warned the Australian residential property sector faces a major setback if the Federal Government ends the boosted First Home Owners Grant.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd today indicated the expanded scheme would end as scheduled on June 30 despite widespread calls for it to be extended.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said the decision last October to increase the grant had resulted in the real estate market being one of the few parts of the national economy that was still active.
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Leading mortgage broker Loan Market Group will open a new branch in one of New Zealand’s fastest growing regions.

The new Loan Market office will be located in the seaside town of Orewa on the North Auckland Peninsula.

Loan Market Group Executive Director John Kolenda said the group was seeking opportunities to expand its presence in New Zealand.
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