Potential "mortgage timebomb" as APRA changes definition of an owner-occupier

Banking Day 2 October 2019

More than 100,000 mortgages potentially face rate hikes after the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority reclassified some owner-occupied mortgages as investment properties. 

Under a new statistical collection system, APRA says the definition of an "owner occupier loan" can now only include only a borrower's primary place of residence. 

Banking Day associate editor George Lekakis crunched the numbers and says banks could be forced to increase their capital requirements given the additional exposure to more risky investor mortgages. 

He tells ABC's Peter Ryan that Westpac is the most exposed of the major banks.