By Jason Fong

Residential fixed interest rates have been quietly dropping for a couple of months, however it only makes news once the majors get on board, with some 3yr rates in the high 6% range.  This is usually an indicator of what variable rates will do in the near future. Lenders are also trying to entice customers with various other incentives such as bigger interest rate discounts with one lender this week offering 1.03% discount of their standard variable rate for loans over $250k. Essentially what this means is if you have a loan over $250k and are paying more than 7% in interest, you need to call me to assess your options.

In addition to the residential rate movement, I have also seen equipment and vehicle finance slowly dropping over the last month or so with some rates starting from high 7’s which I haven’t seen for a couple years. Whilst I wouldn’t suggest refinancing your equipment or vehicle finance, if you are considering purchasing or need a balloon refinanced, then you may be pleasantly surprised by the repayments. This is something that I would draw more attention to than purely basing your decision on interest rate as the final delivery rate can fluctuate based on a number of factors, especially when you are dealing with a car yard.

In the commercial finance space, lenders are still being cautious however it is obvious they have money to lend on good deals and I am hearing this from all my contacts in the various banks.

Jason Fong - Financial Broker
5413 9300
jason@ausfinanceprof.com.au