ASB tweaks its mortgage rate card lower, although the shifts are minor and may indicate the main banks are struggling to justify home loan pricing at this level

ASB has cut its fixed home loan rate card further, the second cut from them in two weeks.

There is just a hint of desperation in this move, by trumpeting just a -5 bps reduction for some key terms and claiming a market-low by the minimum amount.

Their moves mean their 5.54% one year rate beats its rivals by a mere -1 bp, and it is hard to see the point of this other than claiming the "lowest rate".

Their move also puts their eighteen month fixed rate at 5.34%, and that is also the lowest carded rate of any bank for that fixed term, and by 5 bps.

And ASB has cut -20 bps from their two year rate, taking it down to 5.29% which matches BNZ.

ASB matched these cuts with -5 and -10 bps cuts to their key term deposit rates

Wholesale rates eased slightly last week in line with global moves, but these shifts are not major and unlikely to be the basis of retail carded rate reductions. We won't get the full money market view on the US tariff ructions until Wall Street opens tomorrow.

A feature of the current home loan market is that the difference of carded rates from actual offers has nearly vanished.

The reader-reported mortgage rates are fluid but may be less frequent now, so please record them if you have them. We need you to record them in the comment section below, which helps us stay on top of this fast-changing corner of the home loan rates market.

And still negotiate. How flexible they may be will depend on the strength of your financials.

One indication of how competitive the current mortgage market is came recently in RBNZ-released data for December, where a near-record level of bank switching in home loan activity was revealed. It seems that banks are much more vulnerable to customer migration, and rate pressures (and a slow reaction to that) can have a sharp effect. We won't know who are the winners and who are the losers from this elevated switching until the next release of the RBNZ Dashboard mid February.

One useful way to make sense of the changed home loan rates is to use our full-function mortgage calculator which is below.

And if you already have a fixed term mortgage that is not up for renewal at this time, our break fee calculator may help you assess your options. Break fees will be minimal in a rising market. But they become important in a falling market, like now.

Here is the updated snapshot of the lowest advertised fixed-term mortgage rates on offer from the key retail banks at the moment. 

Fixed, below 80% LVR	6 mths	1 yr	18 mth	2 yrs	3 yrs	4 yrs	5 yrs
as at February 3, 2025	%	%	%	%	%	%	%
ANZ	5.99	5.57	5.39	5.44	5.59	6.19	6.19
current reader-reported rates	5.85	5.49	5.35	5.29	5.55	5.59	5.59
	5.99	5.54 -0.05	5.34 -0.05	5.29 -0.20	5.59	5.79	5.79
current reader-reported rates
	5.99	5.55	5.39	5.29	5.59	5.69	5.79
current reader-reported rates
	5.99	5.55		5.45	5.69	5.79	5.89
current reader-reported rates
	5.99	5.79	5.69	5.49	5.59	5.59	5.59
current reader-reported rates
Bank of China	5.95	5.55	5.35	5.39	5.49	5.49	5.49
China Construction Bank	6.24	5.79	5.59	5.59	5.59	6.40	6.40
Co-operative Bank (*=FHB only)	5.99	5.49*	5.49	5.49	5.69	5.79	5.79
Heartland Bank		5.49	5.39	5.39	5.45
ICBC	5.99	5.79	5.59	5.59	5.59	5.59	5.59
	6.09	5.79	5.49	5.49	5.59	5.79	5.79
	5.99	5.59	5.59	5.45	5.59	5.79	5.89