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The former CEO of the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia has suggested that the recent rise in fixed-rate mortgages is a “normal characteristic” of the market.
Siobhan Hayden, the former chief executive officer of the MFAA and now adviser at HashChing, said that lenders’ recent decisions to make “small, moderate corrections” to their fixed rates is “a normal response to changes in funding costs”.
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“Lenders need to constantly recalibrate their risk and pricing structures for these products, and I don’t think there’s anything untoward happening,” Ms Hayden added.
She pointed out that in January this year, wholesale funding costs rose for the big banks due to global financial market turbulence, which in turn had a direct impact on rates offered to customers.
“In May, we saw a slight correction in the global debt markets which improved rates,” she elaborated. “Recent changes to fixed rate loans is a direct result of international funding turbulence and market uncertainty. Australian lenders source a large proportion of their wholesale funding internationally and these funds are subject to cyclical and market change.”
Ms Hayden said that the changes to fixed rates this year demonstrate that the costs involved with providing fixed rates over the coming years is slightly increasing.
“Is this rise based solely on Donald Trump being elected? I would say no. The source of funding is based on a level of uncertainty, and there are multiple drivers of that. Trump may well be just one of the components that is driving the uncertainty,” she said.
“It’s at times like these that consumers need to ensure they are receiving a competitive rate with their current lender,” she concluded.
[Related: Home loan rate cuts diverge from RBA hold]
