Mortgage aggregator AFG has reported a big pick-up in business during the June quarter, as borrowers looked for assistance in negotiating a volatile mortgage market.

AFG brokers lodged loan applications worth A$16.9 billion in the quarter, which was the aggregator’s biggest ever quarterly lodgement and 30 per cent higher than the same period last year.

Of 31,080 applications, 25 per cent were for investment loans, 15 per cent were for first home buyers and 32 per cent were for refinance. The proportion of first home buyers jumped to 21 per cent in the month of June.

Sixteen per cent were interest only loans – one of the lowest proportions AFG has recorded in its survey, which goes back to 2013.

AFG chief executive David Bailey said the disruption caused by COVID-19, as well as record low interest rates, prompted borrowers to seek advice about new loans and refinance.

Bailey said the market was affected by refinance incentives and government stimulus, which appear to have their biggest impact on borrowers looking to refinance and first home buyers.

Big bank share of AFG lodgements (including subsidiaries) was 66.8 per cent, which was the highest since 2017.

Bailey said: “The major banks have used their balance sheet strength to take back market share from the non-major lenders.”

ANZ and Commonwealth Bank made gains, while NAB and Westpac lost ground. Bailey said Westpac was hit by a blow-out in turnaround times.

ANZ accounted for 25.5 per cent of lodgements – a big jump from its long-term share of around 10 per cent. CBA’s share (including Bankwest) was 23.3 per cent, Westpac’s (including subsidiaries) was 10.3 per cent and NAB’s was 7.6 per cent.

Among the other lenders, Macquarie had a 6.7 per cent share, ING 3.2 per cent, Suncorp 1.9 per cent, AMP Bank 1.7 per cent and Bank Australia 1 per cent.

The average loan size was $544,084, which was up a little from previous quarters, and the average loan-to-valuation ratio was 70 per cent.