Nab joins variable rate drop, hikes for interest-only

AAPThe West Australian National Australia Bank has followed its peers by raising its variable rates for interest-only mortgages in a bid to slow down riskier lending. NAB will lift

interest-only rates for both owner-occupiers and investors by 0.35 percentage points from June 30 as it looks to keep interest-only lending below less than 30 per cent of new residential

mortgages, as demanded by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority. It also dropped principal and interest variable rates for owner-occupiers by 0.08 percentage points, changing its

rates mix following similar moves by ANZ and Westpac over the past two weeks. NAB said the moves were not a response to the Federal Government’s bank levy. “We need to comply with our

regulatory requirements, including APRA’s 30 per cent limit on new interest-only lending for residential mortgages, while balancing the needs of customers across our entire portfolio,” NAB

chief operating officer Antony Cahill said. NAB’s owner-occupier interest-only variable rate will rise to 5.77 per cent, with investors paying 6.25 per cent. Its standard variable rate for

owner-occupiers repaying principal and interest mortgages will fall to 5.24 per cent. Its investor principal and interest rate remains unchanged at 5.80 per cent. GET THE LATEST NEWS FROM

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