Beyond hikes, NAB ’s digital brand ubank shifted some variable rates by five basis points in the wake of Wednesday’s inflation figures.
The RBA’s preferred inflation read - trimmed mean - rose 3.3% over the year to December - higher than the central bank’s 2% to 3% target.
It led many economists, including those at ANZ and Westpac , to rethink predictions of a February hold, with many more now anticipating a 25 basis point hike to the cash rate.
The RBA monetary policy board will meet on Monday and announce its decision on Tuesday.
Meantime, many home loan lenders appear to be getting ahead of a movement, lifting fixed rates by as much as 50 basis points this week.
CommBank ’s Bankwest hikes fixed home loan rates
The Western Australian institution lifted much of its fixed rate line up on Wednesday morning, hiking rates on some products by 40 basis points.
Bankwest ’s Fixed Rate Home Loan product advertises rates starting at 5.59% p.a. (6.57% p.a. comparison rate*) for owner-occupiers fixing for one year or 5.79% p.a. (8.61% p.a. comparison rate*) for property investors.
Bankwest offers two fixed rate products: a basic fixed option and its Complete packaged loan option.
The packaged option waives the $12 monthly fee and any fees for offset accounts, which are capped at 40% offsets during a fixed term, and offers a fee-free credit card, but demands a $395 annual fee.
Here are the rates on the table for Bankwest’s non-packaged fixed rate product for owner-occupiers with loan-to-value ratios (LVRs) of 80% or less or investors with LVRs of 90% or less:
| Fixed period | Borrower | Change | Rate | Comp rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
One year |
Owner-occupier |
None |
5.59% |
6.57% |
|
Investor |
None |
5.79% |
7.38% |
|
|
Two years |
Owner-occupier |
+40bp |
5.74% |
6.53% |
|
Investor |
+40bp |
5.99% |
7.29% |
|
|
Three years |
Owner-occupier |
+40bp |
5.99% |
6.56% |
|
Investor |
+40bp |
6.19% |
7.24% |
|
|
Four years |
Owner-occupier |
+40bp |
6.09% |
6.58% |
|
Investor |
+40bp |
6.29% |
7.20% |
|
|
Five years |
Owner-occupier |
+40bp |
6.19% |
6.61% |
|
Investor |
+40bp |
6.39% |
7.19% |
NAB’s ubank shakes up variable home loan rates
Ubank has broken ways with the herd this week, making one of few variable rate movements seen in recent weeks.
The digital lender dropped its lowest variable rate by five basis points to 5.34% p.a. (5.36% p.a. comparison rate*) on its Neat home loan product for owner-occupiers with LVRs of 70% or less.
That rate is also available to the same borrower profile on its Flex home loan, which offers optional offset accounts, and advertises comparison rates* from 5.59% p.a.
But it wasn’t all good news for variable rate borrowers at ubank.
The lender also lifted rates by as much as five basis points for borrowers with LVRs above 80%.
Other mortgage rate moves
Those weren’t the only home loan changes that happened this week:
- Great Southern Bank hiked its fixed rates by 25bps
- Beyond Bank lifted fixed rates by up to 50bps
- Community First Bank & Illawarra Credit Union lifted some fixed rates by 10bps
- Gateway Bank dropped rates on multiple products by up to 163bps
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Lender Home Loan Interest Rate Comparison Rate* Monthly Repayment Repayment type Rate Type Offset Redraw Ongoing Fees Upfront Fees Max LVR Lump Sum Repayment Extra Repayments Split Loan Option Tags Features Link Compare Promoted Product Disclosure
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Image created on Canva using elements from Bahnfrend via Wikimedia Commons
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