Despite the Reserve Bank having its foot firmly on the brake pedal on cash rate hikes, lenders are still moving their mortgage rates, according to Canstar.
From Sept. 18 to 25, two lenders – Hume Bank and Reduce Home Loans – raised 11 owner-occupier and investor variable rates by an average of 0.15%, while three – Bank of us, HSBC, and Reduce Home Loans – cut 19 of theirs by an average of 0.24%. See the table below for these variable rate changes.
Source: www.canstar.com.au. Based on owner occupier and investment loans available for $500,000, 80% LVR and principal & interest and/or interest-only payments in Canstar's database. Excludes introductory and first home buyer only home loans.
“Canstar analysis shows that between Sept. 1 and Sep. 25, 11 lenders cut owner-occupier and investor variable rates while 10 increased them,” said Effie Zahos (pictured above), Canstar’s editor-at-large and money expert.
Following these changes, Canstar’s database showed that the average variable interest rate for owner-occupiers paying principal and interest is 6.67% at 80% LVR. The lowest variable rate on offer for any LVR, meanwhile, is 5.45% which is offered by Arab Bank.
This week also saw a number of fixed rates change. Four lenders – Bank of us, G&C Mutual Bank, HSBC, and Hume Bank – lifted 61 owner-occupier and investor fixed rates by an average of 0.26%, while three lenders – ANZ, G&C Mutual Bank, and Reduce Home Loans, slashed 31 of their fixed rates by an average of 0.35%. See table below for these fixed rate changes.
Source: www.canstar.com.au. Based on owner occupier and investment loans available for $500,000, 80% LVR and principal & interest and/or interest-only payments in Canstar's database. Excludes introductory and first home buyer only home loans.
“At 5.63% and 5.48%, the cheapest two- and three-year fixed rates on Canstar’s database are 1.04 and 1.19 percentage points below the average variable rate of 6.67%,” Zahos said. “While locking in now can generate immediate savings, it’s important that borrowers understand the pros and cons of fixed-rate loans.”
The Canstar analysis showed that over the past three weeks, most of the rate action has been with fixed rates.
“While 14 lenders hiked up their two-year fixed rates by an average of 0.16% during that period, 10 dropped them by an average of 0.25,” Zahos said. “It’s a similar story for three-year fixed rates: eight lenders increased them by an average of 0.26% while seven cut them by an average of 0.27%. So, there are still good deals to be found for borrowers considering locking in.”
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