Westpac has put the final nail in the coffin of the ultra low interest rate era by removing the last remaining Big Four interest rate under 2%.
The bank has hiked its 1.99% introductory offer for a variable rate, with the new variable for customers with an LVR of less than 70% now sitting at 2.19%. For those with a higher than 70% LVR, the rate is now 2.29%.
Standard variable rates at Westpac have not changed, with only the introductory offer being revised upwards. Their standard variable is still the cheapest among the Big Four, though it is only on offer to outside customers and not internal refinancers.
NAB are still offering a 1.99% one-year fixed rate, but in terms of major products within the broker channel, Westpac had been the last holdout beneath the symbolic barrier.
There are still rates beginning with a 1 available in the non-bank and alternative lenders sector, with Reduce Home Loans currently the lowest on the market at 1.77% variable, followed by Homestar Finance and Pacific Mortgage Group at 1.79%.
All of the Big Four have raised their rates multiple times in the last month, with Westpac now onto their fourth change. Previously, they had hiked their fixed rates and kept their introductory offer on variable.
The RBA decision spiked a spiral of interest rate rises after they officially abandoned plans to hold the rate steady until 2024, instead leaving an open-ended schedule for revising the cash rate upwards.
