Home loans dip slightly

THE number of home loans approved for owner-occupiers fell slightly in February but were better than expected, official statistics reveal.

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show the number of housing finance approvals fell 0.2 per cent in February to 54,427, beating market expectations for a 0.4 per cent fall.

Henry St John, an analyst at investment bank JP Morgan, said the fall in owner-occupier home loan numbers reflected sliding demand for new loans and stricter lending practices.

Despite the fall, the total value of loans offered to homebuyers was up 1 per cent, in seasonally adjusted terms, to $33.5 billion for the month.

The value of new home loan approvals for owner-occupiers rose 1.3 per cent, and the value of investor loans was up 0.5 per cent.

Westpac analyst Matthew Hassan said the value of investor loans was still down 6 per cent from a year ago, and owner-occupier activity was up only slightly.