And one lender, the PSIS co-operative, has actually raised its floating rate.
No. 8 Mortgages cut its floating rate by one percentage point to 6.45% but the move has only brought it into line with the four major banks whose floating rates range from 6.4% to 6.49%.
Westpac, at 6.49%, hasn't moved its floating rate since mid-February while the other major home-lending banks haven't moved since mid-March and are well above traditional levels compared with the Reserve Bank's official cash rate (OCR) which is currently 2.5%, raising considerable political ire.
PSIS raised its floating rate by 20 basis points to 5.95%, having cut it from 6.3% in early May and 6.55% in March. It is still the lowest floating rate in the market.
Traditionally, floating rate mortgages have been priced about 200 basis points above the 90-day bank bill rate, currently 2.87%, but PSIS's floating rate is more than 300 points higher and the major banks higher still.
Lenders argue their funding costs are currently much higher than normal.
Bollard and the politicians won't be happy that longer-term fixed mortgage rates continue to rise, with, most notably, Westpac raising its three-year rate 10 basis points to 6.95% and its five-year rate 30 basis points to 7.90%.
Traditionally, fixed-rate mortgages have been priced 100 or 125 basis points above the equivalent swap rate. Westpac's three-year rate is now 240 basis points above the three-year swap rate and its five-year rate is 260 points higher.
Westpac's three-year rate is now in line with National Bank and ASB Bank's and still below BNZ's and ANZ's standard three-year rates at 6.99%. Westpac's five-year rate is still the lowest of the major banks. National's is at 7.95% while BNZ and ANZ's at at 7.99% and ASB's is at 8%.
The major banks' three-year rates bottomed between 6.05% and 6.1% in March while their five-year rates bottomed between 6% (ASB) and 6.65% in February and March.
