HOT TOPICS:   Euro crisis   |   Mortgage rate cuts  |    Budget 2012

ASB March quarter profit up 21%

25 May 12, 4:34pm, Gareth Vaughan
ASB posts 21% rise in unaudited March quarter profit to NZ$160 mln as impairments fall; Big drop in home loans with loan-to-valuation ratios over 90% explained

BNZ's high LVR mortgages up again

24 May 12, 4:57pm, Gareth Vaughan
BNZ grows residential mortgages with loan-to-valuation ratios above 80% in March quarter

ASB cuts 6, 18 mth mortgage rates

24 May 12, 4:31pm, Gareth Vaughan
ASB cutting 6 and 18 month fixed-term mortgage rates with 6-month rate down to 5.25%

Higher result for property investor

24 May 12, 11:51am, BusinessDesk
NPT lifts earnings on Christchurch insurance payout

Property investor reports flat results after major adjustment

24 May 12, 10:16am, BusinessDesk
Argosy annual earnings flat, no change in forecast dividend for 2013

Home loan easier to afford as house prices edge down: Roost

23 May 12, 5:26pm, Bernard Hickey
Home loan affordability improves in April, and the competitive mortgage market improves the outlook the latest Roost report shows

Big new property syndicator born

23 May 12, 2:23pm, Gareth Vaughan
Property syndicators KCL Group and Commercial Investment Properties combine to form entity with about NZ$800 mln of assets

HSBC, Co-op Bank latest to cut

Updated 22 May 12, 5:45pm, Gareth Vaughan
HSBC and the Co-operative Bank both cut some advertised fixed-term mortgage rates and some term deposit rates

English wants more house builds

Updated 22 May 12, 1:15pm, Alex Tarrant
Finance Minister English welcomes jump in investor confidence for rental property if it means more house building; Doesn't see bubble

Never a dull moment for the NZ$

21 May 12, 6:41pm, Bernard Hickey
HiFX's Dan Bell reviews the NZ$ slide to six month lows in line with fear about a gathering European crisis and slowing Chinese growth

Key: Low interest rates helping

Updated 18 May 12, 10:44am, Alex Tarrant
Low interest rates helping people into home ownership, Key says; One reason why govt scrapped Gateway scheme; Heatley says Crown land values very high

Strong mortgage approval run continues

17 May 12, 4:31pm, Gareth Vaughan
More than NZ$1 bln worth of mortgages approved last week for 12th week out of last 13; Strongest run since 2007

Youngsters expecting house price jumps

17 May 12, 1:33pm, Alex Tarrant
Auckland, Christchurch residents expecting average 4.1% house price rises in next two years; 18-24 yr olds expecting biggest increases, ANZ says

Big REIT hit by depreciation change

17 May 12, 11:02am, BusinessDesk
Goodman Property earnings fall 4.1% as depreciation changes double tax bill

Strong result for retirement village operator

17 May 12, 10:21am, BusinessDesk
Ryman posts record FY profit, beats guidance, on strong demand for units

ASB says 'now's the time to fix'

16 May 12, 6:31pm, Bernard Hickey
ASB economists say floating mortgage rates unlikely to fall further; sees a 'window of opportunity' to fix with low fixed rates

KIP unit value holds at NTA level

16 May 12, 2:16pm, BusinessDesk
Kiwi Income posts $89.2 mln profit, distributable income rises 4.2%

Bernard's guide to Fixing vs Floating

Updated 16 May 12, 1:51pm, Bernard Hickey
Bernard Hickey looks at whether to fix your mortgage or go floating, and what the experts are saying. Your view?

Chch saves construction from decline

16 May 12, 1:01pm, David Chaston
Readymix concrete data shows most regions' construction sectors using less concrete; Christchurch the main exception

Co-op Bank cuts mortgage rates

Updated 15 May 12, 4:45pm, Gareth Vaughan
The Co-operative Bank joins fixed-term mortgage rate cutting party with cuts to 6 month and 1-4 year rates

'House prices to rise at moderate rate': survey

15 May 12, 7:18am, BusinessDesk
House price expectations jump in face of low rates: ASB's Housing Confidence Survey

ASB cuts 1, 2 & 3 yr mortgage rates

14 May 12, 5:29pm, Gareth Vaughan
ASB, last of the big banks to move in current round of mortgage cuts, reduces 1, 2 and 3 year mortgage rates; Has lowest advertised 2 and 3 year rates

Never a dull moment for the NZ$

Updated 11 May 12, 4:33pm, Bernard Hickey
HiFX's Dan Bell reviews the NZ$'s further slide as investor nerves grow over the European debt crisis and weaker global growth; JP Morgan's shock trading loss isn't helping either

Most agents see house prices rising

11 May 12, 2:39pm, Bernard Hickey
REINZ-BNZ survey shows record high net 64% of real estate agents see house prices rising as first home buyer and investor interest surges, 'but no boom'

House values rising again, QV says

10 May 12, 12:48pm, Bernard Hickey
Quotable Value reports house values up 0.4% in last 3 months and 3.1% up from a year ago. Your view?