Media releases
New measures to support home ownership
12 February 2025
Westpac welcomes changes to home lending regulations announced today addressing housing supply and affordability.
Westpac CEO Anthony Miller says targeted intervention will help to improve Australia’s housing supply.
“Long-term and chronic structural obstacles have made the cost and risk of building new homes unattractive for many builders and developers,” Mr Miller said.
“The clarification on pre-sale requirements will offer greater certainty to move quickly on developments and construction, while changing the treatment of HELP loans in serviceability assessments will assist aspiring home buyers.”
In a submission to the Senate Economics References Committee Westpac sought greater flexibility with risk treatment in property construction to prevent scenarios where regulatory barriers may impede the bank's ability to provide lending within risk appetite.
Westpac's submission is available to view here (PDF 340KB).
Westpac will implement changes once revised guidance is received from regulators.
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