A real estate boss says new lending restrictions being hinted at for the Auckland housing market could increase competition among property buyers in Hawke's Bay.
The Reserve Bank has indicated it is looking at the possibility of introducing new lending restrictions or tightening existing ones such as those on loan-to-value ratios (LVRs) in the Auckland market.
Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler said imbalances in the housing market were increasing with house price inflation lifting again in Auckland, after cooling in late 2015 and early 2016 following new restrictions in investor loan-to-value ratios and Government measures introduced in October.
Leaders real-estate agency managing director Elanor MacDonald said she wouldn't be surprised if the tightened restrictions resulted in more Aucklanders moving to Hawke's Bay. There were already a number of Aucklanders looking at housing in the region, she said.
Mr Wheeler said debt-to-income restrictions could be one of the potential responses to rising house prices. The restriction was used in the UK, where most buyers could not get a mortgage higher than 4.5 times their annual income.