The bank becomes the first major to cut variable rates since September
ANZ cut some of its mortgage rates Monday, and now has the least expensive variable package rates among the big four banks. All four major banks still have more expensive rates than several smaller lenders, however.
While the majors have cut fixed rates recently, ANZ is the first major bank to lower variable home-loan rates since Commonwealth Bank made a variable rate cut in September.
On Monday, ANZ changed its package rate discount structure to cut some variable package home loan rates by up to 0.9 percentage points for homeowners and investors. The bank lowered the rate on its Breakfree Standard Variable loan to 2.99% for owner-occupiers paying principal and interest with a loan-to-value ratio of up to 80%. ANZ is offering the rate cuts to new borrowers by increasing the package discount applied to its standard variable rate. Existing borrowers will not see the cut.
Read next: Lenders quietly hiking four-year fixed rates
Most mortgages issued by the big four banks are package loans – they’re bundled with other financial products such as credit cards.
Westpac is in second place behind ANZ for the cheapest package rate at 3.19%. National Australia Bank is in third place with a package rate of 3.67%, and Commonwealth Bank follows at 3.85%. All of the big four banks charge a $395 annual fee on their cheapest package rates.
Ryan Smith is currently an executive editor at Key Media, where he started as a journalist in 2013. He has since he worked his way up to managing editor and is now an executive editor. He edits content for several B2B publications across the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. He also writes feature content for trade publications for the insurance and mortgage industries.LinkedIn | Email
