ANZ and Macquarie Bank cut fixed home loan rates on Friday, breaking from a market that has been moving higher for months. Macquarie slashed its three-year fixed rate by 0.50 percentage points to 6.09 per cent, while ANZ trimmed its two-year fixed rate by 0.10 percentage points to 6.29 per cent.
For borrowers comparing fixed-rate mortgages, the timing matters because the June Reserve Bank meeting is just over a week away and lenders are still split on where rates go next. Sally Tindall said borrowers looking for certainty should shop around before locking in, and she warned them to read the fine print because the appeal of fixing is often certainty, not chasing the absolute lowest number.
The cuts stand out because they came after a long run of increases. Canstar said more than 80 banks have hiked rates since January, after 83 lenders were offering a fixed rate under 6 per cent at the start of the year. By Friday, only two lenders still had a fixed rate below that mark, even as more than 40 lenders offered at least one variable rate under 6 per cent.
That leaves Macquarie and ANZ ahead of some of their biggest rivals for now. Macquarie’s three-year fixed rate is now the lowest fixed rate among Australia’s five biggest lenders, and ANZ’s two-year rate is now its lowest fixed option. Westpac hiked select fixed rates on Thursday, NAB raised its fixed rates last Friday, Westpac is tipping two more cash rate hikes this year and NAB expects one more, while ANZ thinks the cash rate has already peaked. CBA is already pencilling in two cuts in May and August next year.
Canstar’s analysis also shows the trade-off facing homeowners. An owner-occupier with a $600,000 loan would be $1,798 worse off after one year by choosing the lowest fixed rate over the lowest variable rate if rates stay on hold. That is the calculation now facing borrowers weighing security against flexibility, and it is not clear whether Friday’s cuts will last long if the rest of the market keeps moving in the other direction.
