Mortgage lending falls in April

Total lending reached $8.4 billion, down from $10.4 billion in March, according to the latest Reserve Bank data. 

The monthly total remains high by April standards – up on the $2.7 billion borrowed in April 2020 – but the significant month-on-month fall indicates the Government's housing reforms have begun to bite.

In late March, the Government announced radical reforms to subdue investor activity, with plans to phase out interest deductibility for landlords, and an extension of the bright-line test.

Investor lending accounted for much of the $2 billion drop, falling from $2.3 billion in March to $1.6 billion last month.