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CBA falls into the big bank conga line with interest-only rate hikes

Nick Bendel avatar
Nick Bendel
- 3 min read
CBA falls into the big bank conga line with interest-only rate hikes

The Commonwealth Bank has followed its competitors by lifting rates for customers who opt for interest-only repayments while offering a small reward to home owners paying down their debt.

CBA owner-occupiers paying principal and interest will save $7 a month, or $84 a year, based on a $350,000 loan over 30 years, as a result of today’s announcement.

Owner-occupiers paying interest-only will pay an extra $88 a month or $1,056 a year, while investors paying interest-only will pay CBA an extra $87 a month or $1,044 a year.

RateCity.com.au CEO Paul Marshall said there is now nowhere left to hide for big four mortgage holders paying interest-only.

“The big banks have unanimously decided to hike rates for both new and existing customers despite the fact APRA’s most recent cap on interest-only was for new lending.

“If you’re an investor who wants to keep paying interest-only, your only reprieve from relatively high rates will be switching to a smaller lender.

“Right now there are still a couple of investor rates offering interest-only terms under 4 per cent, but they’re earmarked as a dying breed.

“Owner-occupiers paying down their principal will welcome the three-basis-point reduction, however the cuts aren’t exactly stacking up with the hikes.

“We would challenge the big banks to pass on more of the savings to mortgage holders who are doing the ‘right’ thing by paying off their loan.

“If borrowers feel like the big banks aren’t looking after them, they should vote with their feet and look for a more competitive home loan with a smaller lender,” Mr Marshall said.

Low-rate investor interest-only loans

LenderLoanRate
Homestar FinanceVariable Rate Investment Loan3.84%
Freedom LendVariable Investment Loan3.99%

CBA standard variable rate changes

Old rateNew rateChangeOld monthly repaymentsNew monthly repaymentsChange
Owner-occupier P&I5.25%5.22%-3 basis points$1,933$1,926-$7
Owner-occupier IO5.47%5.77%30 basis points$1,595$1.683$88
InvestorP&I5.80%5.80%None$2,054$2,054None
Investor IO5.94%6.24%30 basis points$1,733$1,820$87

(Calculations based on the average-sized Australian loan of $350,000, over 30 years.)

Big four banks – standard variable rates

Owner-occupier P&IOwner-occupier IOInvestor P&IInvestor IO
ANZ5.20%5.75%5.80%6.26%
CBA5.22%5.77%5.80%6.24%
NAB5.24%5.77%5.80%6.25%
Westpac5.24%5.83%5.79%6.30%

Disclaimer

This article is over two years old, last updated on June 27, 2017. While RateCity makes best efforts to update every important article regularly, the information in this piece may not be as relevant as it once was. Alternatively, please consider checking recent home loans articles.

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