AMP Bank slashes mortgage rates
AMP Bank has slashed mortgage rates to package customers by up to 30 basis points under a new pricing schedule that takes effect this morning.The bank notified mortgage brokers yesterday afternoon of the rate reductions on a range of package deals aimed at property investors and owner-occupiers.Most of the bank's interest-only mortgage packages have attracted the deepest cuts, with the variable rate to interest-only investors borrowing more than A$750,000 slashed by 30 bps to 4.66 per cent.Rates for investors borrowing the same amount on principal and interest loan contracts have been shaved by seven bps to 4.04 per cent.AMP has also lowered rates offered to investors borrowing less than $750,000 by 30 bps to 4.85 per cent.The repricings apply only to new borrowers or existing customers requiring loan top-ups.AMP is the latest of a raft of lenders to aggressively reprice investment loans this month following the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority's decision to ease some of the lending restrictions introduced since 2014.Since the start of July lenders have been able to seek relief from the regulator's 10 per cent monthly growth cap on investment lending.Heritage Bank and Community First Credit Union are among other lenders to slice investor rates in the last week.Community First slashed its variable rate investment mortgage by 68 bps to 3.99 per cent, while Heritage shaved most of its fixed and variable rate investor mortgages by 10 basis points.Although more lenders have been active this month repricing owner-occupier mortgages, the reductions generally have not been as great.AMP has reduced interest only loans for owner-occupiers by 30 bps to 4.61 per cent and its P&I rate by 13 bps to 3.74 per cent.Goldfields Money last week sliced its standard variable rate by 26 bps to 4.49 per cent.