Effective today, Westpac is decreasing rates on its Fixed Option Home Loan and its Fixed Rate Investment Property Loan with principal and interest repayments.

The fine print

For Fixed Option Home Loans with principal and interest repayments:

- three-year fixed rate will drop by 10 basis points to 3.79 per cent (4.89 per cent comparison rate)

- four-year fixed rates will drop by 20 basis points to 4.09 per cent (4.92 per cent comparison rate)

- five-year fixed rates will drop by 10 basis points to 4.09 per cent (4.87 per cent comparison rate)

For Fixed Rate Investment Property Loan with principal and interest repayments:

- two-year fixed rates will drop by 6 basis points to 3.89 per cent (5.42 per cent comparison rate)

- three-year fixed rates will drop by 20 basis points to 3.99 per cent (5.33 per cent comparison rate)

- five-year fixed rates will drop by 10 basis points to 4.39 per cent (5.30 per cent comparison rate)

More moves on the cards

Westpac’s announcement follows rate cuts from CBA, which were announced earlier this week.

They also follow a broader trend of rate hikes and drops independent of whether the Reserve Bank is adjusting the official cash rate.

“Where borrowers are concerned, it is no longer reasonable to assume that changes in the cash rate, or lack thereof, will drive home loan interest rates,” Susan Mitchell, chief executive officer at Mortgage Choice, said recently.

“At a standing committee on economics in February, RBA governor [Philip] Lowe highlighted the importance of borrowers seeking a better deal on their home loan, drawing attention to the discounts on headline interest rates that lenders are willing to give borrowers,” she said.

“Interest rates are constantly changing, and the rates you see advertised can be significantly higher than the rate you could secure.”