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Heritage raises variable rates

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The Adviser

The non-major bank has announced changes to select mortgage interest rates for new borrowers, effective 18 December.

Heritage Bank has announced that rates on select Home Advantage Variable mortgage products will increase by 10 basis points, effective as of Wednesday, 18 December.

New owner-occupiers taking out a Home Advantage Variable loan of between $250,000 and $699,999 and with a loan-to-value ratio (LVR) of between 80 and 90 per cent will have access to rates starting from 3.42 per cent (previously 3.32 per cent).

Owner-occupier borrowers with a loan value of $700,000 or more will see rates starting from 3.37 per cent, up from 3.27 per cent.

 
 

Those requiring a small Home Advantage Variable Owner Occupier loan (between $150,000 and $249,000) and with an LVR of between 80 and 90 per cent will have a rate starting from 3.47 per cent (up from 3.37 per cent).

Meanwhile, new investors making principal and interest (P&I) payments on their Home Advantage variable loan, with a value up to $699,999, will have access to rates starting from 3.67 per cent, up 10 basis points from 3.57 per cent.

For new investors taking a loan of over $700,000, rates will start from 3.62 per cent (previously 3.52 per cent).

New investors taking out a Home Advantage variable interest-only (IO) loan will see rates start from 3.97 per cent for loans between $250,000-$699,999, and from 3.92 per cent for loans $700,000 and more, up from 3.87 and 3.82, respectively.

According to Heritage Bank, the changes have been made in order to simplify the selection of mortgage products, by reducing their tiered rate system from three tiers to two tiers.

Further, the bank stated that the investment product interest rates have been altered to maintain consistency between owner-occupier and investment products.

Peter Lock, CEO of Heritage Bank, commented: “Finding the right home loan can be a daunting task, with the number of products and lenders available. 

“We are trying to make comparing easier for borrowers by providing consistent rates across our mortgage products.

“Buying a new home should be an exciting experience. Aligning our rates across various products is a way we can simplify the decision process around finance for borrowers to help keep buying a house an enjoyable experience.

“We believe our rates are some of the most competitive in the market and complement our great product offering.”

[Related: TMB announces fixed rate changes]

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Hannah Dowling

AUTHOR

Hannah Dowling is a journalist for The Adviser and Mortgage Business.

Prior to joining Momentum Media, Hannah worked as a content producer for a podcast catering to property investors. She also spent six years working in the real estate sector at a local agency. 

Email Hannah at: hannah.dowling@momentummedia.com.au

 

Comments (6)

  • Never used Heritage, but always keeping an eye across my panel of lenders, so thought I'd have a look at the Heritage website...
    Mr Lock said:
    “We are trying to make comparing easier for borrowers by providing consistent rates across our mortgage products."
    Why then does it take a minimum of 3 clicks to find your interest rate sheet?
    When I click 'Loans' and select 'All Home Loans', why do you only promote the cheapest interest rate for the Home Advantage Package, which is only applicable for loans greater than $700,000 with an LVR of 80%?
    My guess is that the majority of your customers do not have a loan amount greater than $700,000, and the majority of potential customers also aren't looking for a loan amount that is greater than $700,000, therefore the only reason why you are promoting this pricing is to try and fool the consumer into believing you have low interest rates.

    If Heritage was serious about making it easier for borrowers to compare the interest rates, they would have a tab at the top of their home page, next to 'Banking', 'Loans' etc. that stated 'Interest Rates'

    And a tip on how to get rid of the confusion, would be to drop the loan amount brackets. In my opinion, pricing loans according to price brackets potentially would encourage a customer to take out a higher loan amount, which goes against the findings of the Banking Royal Commission, for example:

    If a customer who earns $200,000 per year and has sold their current home and has a $700,000 deposit decides to buy a $900,000 property + 5% buying costs = $945,000. If they use all their deposit, they only need a $245,000 loan and on the Heritage Home Advantage Package they would receive a rate of 3.27%.
    However, if the customer wanted the better rate, they could apply for a $720,000 loan at 80% LVR and attract the interest rate of 3.17%, then after settlement dump all the remaining cash into the loan, saving interest on a daily basis.

    Why does Heritage, and many other lenders, penalise those who have a low loan amount by charging a higher interest rate?

    Pro Broker
    1
    • Why then does it take a minimum of 3 clicks to find your interest rate sheet? is this the best you can come up with?

      ARE YOU FEELING WELL? NOT A BIG 4 PR STUNT PAID BROKER?

      Have a look at the majors home loan interest rate display and you will find garbage compare to what Heritage and most other lenders display.
      0
      • Hi pr,
        Thanks for your concern about my health...
        For the record, I haven't had accreditation with CBA, ANZ & WBC for 8+ years and only use NAB for regional postcode properties, which has resulted in 4 loans over the past 4 years, so I can confirm that I am not a 'BIG 4 PR STUNT PAID BROKER'.
        My preferred lender Pro-Pack is 3.06% with a loan amount >$150,000... doesn't get easier than that, however, ALL lenders are guilty of either hiding their interest rates within their websites and/or (like you say), have a rate sheet that is 'garbage' and far from consumer friendly, which works in our favour (Mortgage Brokers), to decipher, what I would categorise as misleading, or at a minimum meaningless information to a lay person.

        As Mortgage Brokers, we all know the first thing a potential client wants to know is, 'what is the interest rate?', and if all lenders recognised this, why don't they all confidently display their interest rates?
        So when Peter Lock says, 'We are trying to make comparing easier for borrowers', but then I look at their website (not as a consumer but an informed Mortgage Broker), I believe there is a huge disparity between his words and the delivery...
        As for Heritage Bank, I hope they attract thousands of customers away from the Big 4 Banks, who shouldn't be allowed to sell their own products after the finding from the Banking Royal Commission...
        Hope you enjoy your weekend pr...

        Pro Broker
        0
  • Obviously he didn't check what the other banks offer. Laughable comment from the CEO!
    0
    • Don't be mean ... they are one of the lenders that have transparent interest rates unlike the major banks
      2
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