Fixed mortgage rates on the way up

Investor housing finance rates are not the only interest rates going up. Lenders have been putting up their fixed mortgage rates over the past month.

Comparison site Mozo reported that about a dozen lenders increased their fixed rates in July.

HSBC increased fixed rates across the board: one and two-year rates went up by 50 basis points, the three-year rate went up by 40 bps and four and five-year rates went up by 20 bps.

ING Direct also increased across the board, with one and two-year rates going up 15 bps, the three-year rate by 21 bps and the five-year rate by nine bps.

Suncorp added nine bps to its three-year Home Package Plus loan, Homeloans added 20 bps to its five-year rate and UBank added 20 bps to its five-year rate.

People's Choice Credit Union increased its four-year rate by ten bps and its five-year rate by 20 bps.

Fixed rates usually move in response to movements in the swap rates the banks use to hedge their exposure to rate changes when they lend fixed. But on this occasion long-term capital market rates have not been moving up.