Mortgage brokers face a fresh round of pricing changes to explain to clients after ANZ hiked fixed mortgage rates by up to 0.40 percentage points, just 19 days after its last move. The big four bank no longer has a fixed rate under 6%, with its lowest owner‑occupier fixed rate now 6.34% for a one‑year term.
Across the curve, ANZ’s one‑year fixed rate has risen from 5.99% to 6.34%, while its three‑year rate has jumped from 6.14% to 6.54%. The five‑year now starts from 6.59%.
Westpac still holds the lowest fixed offer among the majors at 5.79% for one year, but the gap is narrowing as funding costs and expectations for further cash rate hikes rise.
“Seeing ANZ’s lowest fixed rate jump to 6.34% is a stark reminder of how quickly the interest rate tide has turned,” Canstar.com.au data insights director Sally Tindall said.
Tindall notes that with more than 50 lenders hiking fixed rates in the past fortnight, the market is clearly “pricing in further hikes to come”.
Rate tracking shows 52 lenders have lifted at least one fixed rate since the last Reserve Bank move just 15 days ago, including CBA, NAB, ANZ, Macquarie, Bendigo, ING, and BOQ. As a result, the average one‑year fixed rate is now around 0.27 percentage points higher than the average variable rate, reversing late‑2025 conditions when the two were broadly level.
“Fixed rates are typically the early warning signal for where rates are headed. When a bank ratchets them up twice in less than three weeks it’s a sign there’s a lot more turbulence ahead,” Tindall said.
She also points out that Westpac’s economists now expect three more RBA hikes over the next three meetings, a scenario brokers will need to factor into serviceability and refinancing conversations.
Canstar estimates the recent cash rate rises have already cut maximum borrowing capacity by around $25,000 for a single average‑income borrower and $49,000 for a dual‑income couple. If another hike in May takes the cash rate to 4.35%, the hit could rise to about $37,000 and $73,000 respectively.
For first‑home buyers and property investors weighing whether to lock in, Canstar’s modelling shows the answer depends on how many hikes eventuate.
On a $600,000 owner‑occupier loan over 25 years, taking one of the lowest one‑year fixed rates (averaging 5.67%) versus a sharp variable (5.56%) produces different outcomes under various cash rate paths.
If there are no further hikes, sticking with a low variable rate could save about $659 in interest over the year. But if there is just one additional 0.25 percentage point rise, fixing comes out ahead by roughly $586 over the same period, with even larger savings if two or three hikes occur.
Tindall warns that some borrowers “could now be thinking about flipping over to fixed”, but urges a measured approach: “take a clear-headed approach, weigh up the risks on both sides, keeping in mind the extra conditions and restrictions that come with locking in your rate.” For brokers, that means stress‑testing different rate paths and helping clients balance certainty against flexibility in a fast‑moving market.
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