John Key has hit back at Labour over new Reserve Bank mortgage lending limits, saying home buyers are better off under National due to lower interest rates.

Prime Minister John Key says he is confident the property market will settle down, despite the Reserve Bank's new mortgage lending restrictions.

Up to 8000 families, couples and individuals trying to get into their first home will be stymied by the Reserve Bank's new lending restrictions, Finance Minister Bill English has acknowledged.

A Kiwibank mortgage manager has been reined in after wrongly telling a customer it was pulling low deposit pre-approvals.

Finance Minister Bill English says ASB Bank has "let down" customers by cancelling home loan approvals as a result of new lending restrictions.

ASB Bank has cancelled all pre-approvals for home loans over the 80 per cent loan to value ratio with effect from October 4.

New Zealand gained a seasonally adjusted net 2,100 migrants last month, as fewer Kiwis cross the Tasman.

Banks have already started tightening up their lending criteria for customers seeking low-deposit mortgages, despite new regulations not kicking in until next month.

A surprise decision from the Federal Reserve has pushed Wall St up to new highs.

When Lehman Brothers collapsed and the United States' financial system went from unstable to critical, New Zealand was already in recession.

There's been a big jump in the number of younger people trying to get mortgages ahead of new Reserve Bank low-deposit lending rules, says credit agency Veda.

The case for higher interest rates gained more weight today after subtle shifts in the Reserve Bank's language were interpreted as being more hawkish.