The AFG Competition Index released today shows further evidence of a structural shift in the Australian lending market as non-major lenders again seize market share from the majors. Non-major lenders have seen their overall market share of new loans hit a record 40.97% in May 2018.
AFG General Manager – Broker & Residential, Mark Hewitt explained the results: “The major lenders’ share of new business is declining, with their overall market share continuing a five-month slide to be sitting at 59% at the end of last month.
Among the majors Westpac and its subsidiaries Bank of Melbourne, Bank SA and St George have been hardest hit, with each of their brands recording a drop in market share.
“Mortgage brokers are drivers of competition in the Australian home lending market. A consumer walking into a bank branch has a choice of a handful of products that may meet their needs. Consumers talking to an AFG mortgage broker have access to thousands of alternatives depending upon their individual circumstances. Many of those products are from the non-major lenders, and many of those lenders do not have a branch presence,” he said.
The borrowers turning to non-major lenders in greatest numbers are those seeking to fix their interest rates, with market share for the non-majors in this category steadily increasing to finish the quarter at 32.57%. “ING and Suncorp are the non-major lenders of choice for fixed products, with their share of the fixed rate market sitting at 6.08% and 5.39% respectively.
“The major lenders have been pulling back from the investor market to meet regulatory caps and as a result the non-majors are filling the gap in the market,” said Mr Hewitt. “Non-major market share among investors rose from 33.52% in February to 42.35% at the end of the quarter – an increase of 26%.
“Macquarie is proving popular with those looking to refinance, recording a market share overall of 5.63% but 8.33% in the refinancing category. Virgin Money has made rapid inroads in the short time they have been on AFG’s panel, with their share of the market in the same category rising from 0.1% to 0.86% in three months.
“First home buyers looking for a simple, low cost mortgage product have found it in AFG Home Loans with market share for AFG’s white label products rising across the quarter for this category from 4.76% in February to finish at 6.3% by the end of May.
Teachers’ Mutual Bank also recorded an increase in market share among first home buyers, lifting from 2.8% to 3.14% for the quarter.
These figures show that competition is alive and well in the Australian lending market. The continued preference by consumers for mortgage brokers and the choice they deliver over major bank branches, demonstrates that brokers are delivering the right consumer outcomes,” he concluded.
