The Adviser reports:
"Just one day after the Commonwealth Bank of Australia announced it would cut the interest on some of its fixed rate products, a number of other lenders have decided to jump on the fixed rate bandwagon.
ING DIRECT, St George and Mortgage EZY have all cut the interest on their fixed rate home loans.
Effective from 10 August, ING DIRECT will slash its one year fixed rate to 6.59 per cent, while its three and five year rates now sit at 6.69 per cent and 6.99 per cent.
ING DIRECT’s head of broker sales Mark Woolnough said increased demand for fixed rate products had encouraged the lender to renew its rate structure.
“There is an air of uncertainty among borrowers and we’ve seen an increased appetite for discounted fixed rates in the past few months as borrowers capitalise on the ability to effectively take an immediate rate cut,” he said.
“The benefit of a fixed rate is the certainty of a good, low rate for the medium term and the option to move to another competitive loan once that term expires.”
At the same time, St George also slashed up to 20 basis points from its two and three year fixed rate home loans.
From today onwards, the lender will boast a two year fixed rate of 6.69 per cent and a three year fixed rate of 6.79 per cent.
St George chief executive Rob Chapman said ongoing economic uncertainty had encouraged more borrowers to look at their fixed rate options.
“We encourage customers to consider if they have the right home loan to suit their needs. Customers have the option of splitting their home loan between fixed and variable rates, as well as a range of other flexible home loan options,” he said.
Finally, Mortgage EZY has also significantly trimmed its three year fixed rate to just 6.69 per cent."
