Mortgage applications eased in all geographies in Australia over the June 2017 quarter, consumer credit bureau Equifax said as it released its "credit demand index" yesterday. "This is the second consecutive quarter of easing growth in mortgage applications, and the beginning of a downward trend across all states and territories," wrote Angus Luffman, senior general manager for consumer products at Equifax, in a commentary."Any debate about whether the housing market is softening should now be put to rest, as we can clearly see that, even in the historically strong geographies on the Eastern seaboard, mortgage application demand is slowing or already in decline," Luffman said.It's a point of view yet to fully resonate with financial regulators, such as at the Reserve Bank of Australia."Conditions in established housing markets had continued to vary considerably across the country," the RBA board said in the minutes of its early July monetary policy meeting."Members recognised that it was too early for the prudential supervision measures announced by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, which were designed to help address the risks associated with high and rising levels of indebtedness, to have had their full effect."That effect may be playing out convincingly."Historically, movements in Equifax mortgage application demand data has led movements in house prices by around six to nine months," Luffman said.