Westpac cuts long-term mortgage rates to offer "certainty"

"We know there’s some uncertainty around at the moment, so a longer-term rate could make sense"

Westpac cuts long-term mortgage rates to offer "certainty"

Westpac has reduced three of its longer-term mortgage rates in a bid to “provide certainty” to its home loan customers.

It has reduced its three, four and five year ‘special’ rates as follows:

  • 3-year rate reduced to 3.69%
  • 4-year rate reduced to 3.79%
  • 5-year rate reduced to 3.89%

Gina Dellabarca, Westpac’s general manager of consumer banking and wealth, says the new rates should help offer some peace of mind to customers in light of the economic uncertainty sweeping the country.

Nine out of sixteen regions slipped on ASB’s latest regional economic scoreboard, with one recording no change. New Zealand’s tourism, forestry and meat industries are particularly exposed to fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, and Northland in particular has been heavily hit by the recent draught.

However, record low interest rates have ensured that home loans and house sales have remained high, and Dellabarca says these new rates should help those wanting certainty in their repayments beyond just the next few years.

 “We know there’s some uncertainty around at the moment, so a longer-term rate could make sense for people wanting to lock in their mortgage repayments beyond the next year or two,” Dellabarca said.

“Customers also have the option of splitting their mortgage between our great one-and-two-year rates and a longer-term rate.”

Westpac is also reducing its term deposit rates by 0.10% across its six month to five year range, with all changes taking effect from Monday 9th March.

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