How much can you borrow?
Heidi Armstrong: People want to know, look how much can I borrow and why can’t I borrow as much as I want to? And look the things I am really focusing on are, people’s credit reports, how to keep them looking good, empowering people to take control of their credit report. I am also giving insights into how lenders view their credit report. I am also talking about income servicing calculations and what policies underlie different lenders policies that go into those calculations.
How important is a good credit report?
Heidi Armstrong: I think the main thing is people just don’t realise that every time they apply for a loan, a hit is made on their credit report. So all of their loan applications history is on their credit report. And I am just advising people today that lenders get a credit score. Their credit report feeds in a credit score that lenders see.
What are the main concerns property buyers have?
Heidi Armstrong: One thing they want to do is make sure that what they purchase stacks up in value. So I am being asked questions a lot about valuations. You know, are they generally stacking up okay, if you buy something at market value [like at an arm’s length transaction] that should be reflective at the market. Are there any problems with the valuations? And on the whole it’s all stacking up very well. We are seeing some softening in terms of both people who are buying in Queensland, bit of softening there. But New South Wales we are certainly seeing positive valuations come in at purchase price.
