The MFAA were delighted to host Senator Andrew Bragg at an exclusive MFAA member breakfast to discuss recommendations from the Senate Inquiry into Home Ownership. Senator Bragg highlighted the need for policies addressing both supply and demand, as well as challenges faced by first home buyers, including serviceability buffers and APRA’s macro-prudential rules.
Anja Pannek’s Introduction
Good morning everyone and welcome. I would like to start by acknowledging the traditional owners of the lands on which we meet, the Wangal people, and acknowledge their elders, past and present.
I would like to welcome our members here today. Thank you all for being here.
Before we welcome Senator Andrew Bragg to present the findings of the Inquiry into Financial Regulatory and Home Ownership I would like to say a few words.
The aspiration to own a home today is intrinsically a part of being Australian, whether you are a first or a fifth generation Australian.
Everywhere you look, housing is the biggest challenge in Australia, which raises urgent questions regarding all aspects of the systems that support access to housing – both on the supply and demand side of housing.
You, our members help Australians into homes – day in and day out.
Access to finance for home ownership in Australia is overwhelmingly provided by mortgage brokers. In fact, we know from Housing Australia that 79% of First Home Buyers who access Federal Home Guarantee Schemes do so working with their mortgage broker. This compares to close to 75% of Australian borrowers that choose to work with their broker, results which we announced this week. Read more
What you, our members, are telling us is that many aspiring first homeowners literally can’t get a foot in the door – any door – and many double income homeowners are locked in mortgages they can’t refinance, even though it would help with the household budget as they struggle with their mortgage.
For this reason, we welcomed the Inquiry into Financial Regulatory and Home Ownership Inquiry, chaired by Senator Bragg and before which I appeared as a witness on behalf of our members.
One of the core pillars of our advocacy at the MFAA is ensuring regulation is fit for purpose for our members and their clients. While increasing housing supply is essential, we also are of the view that the regulatory construct within which mortgage brokers, our members, operate should not create unintended barriers to accessing credit, whilst balancing the protections consumers are afforded under law.
Our submission to the Inquiry, informed by you, our members, highlighted a number of areas to improve the regulatory framework including flexibility in the serviceability buffer, opportunities to foster innovation and importantly – every prospective first homeowner to see a mortgage broker.
When it comes to issues critical to Australia, we know it takes governments and regulators to step in to “engineer” a better outcome when markets fail to deliver equitable opportunities.
We have a long history of policy engineering for greater societal good. Superannuation provides opportunity for a suitable living standard in retirement. Medicare provides access to basic healthcare.
To that end the MFAA welcomed the recommendations made in the Inquiry report issued last week, in particular the Inquiry’s recommendation on the introduction of home ownership as part of APRA’s mandate.
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