Why it's about to get harder to borrow for a mortgage

Earlier this month, The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, or APRA for short, wrote to home loan lenders across the country to recommend strengthening mortgage lending assessments. The reason for this? The explosive and rapid increase in housing prices due to extended lockdowns and low-interest rates, and a rapid growth in bank lending to buy them. Households are borrowing more money than ever to reach the extraordinary prices needed to secure a home. But is this the right move? Who does it help and who does it hurt? And will it be enough to restrain a market that doesn’t show signs of slowing down any time soon. Or are there more changes yet to come? Join Kat Clay, Grattan's Head of Digital Communications, in conversation with Brendan Coates, on how to rein in property prices in Australia, and whether we should.