By RNZ
Mortgage spending continues to plummet as home-buyers across the country sit on the sidelines of the slumping property market.
Equifax New Zealand’s consumer credit demand index for the three months ended March shows overall consumer credit demand fell 6.2 percent from a year ago, to its lowest point since the first Covid-19 lockdown in 2020.
Meanwhile, mortgage demand plunged by a fifth compared to a year ago.
Managing director Angus Luffman said mortgage demand fell for the seventh consecutive quarter and he expected the weaker housing market to continue well into the second half of the year.