New year, new home loan rate cuts

Let's face it - 2020 sucked for a lot of people (and 2021 is looking not much better) but those looking for a more affordable home loan were treated to a bevy of rate changes.

Two lenders have made some rate changes already, including HomeStar Finance, which cut on New Year's Day when most people were dozing off:

• Star Fixed 2 Years P&I 80%: 56 basis point cut to 1.88% p.a. (2.26% p.a. comparison rate*)

HomeStar also cut the equivalent 70% LVR loan by 46 basis points. Borrowers must apply for this 'special' rate by 31 January and have the loan settled by 30 April.

Buying a home or looking to refinance? The table below features home loans with some of the lowest interest rates on the market for owner occupiers.

Loan purpose

Refinancing

Loan amount

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Lender	Home Loan	Interest Rate	Comparison Rate*	Monthly Repayment	Repayment type	Rate Type	Offset	Redraw	Ongoing Fees	Upfront Fees	Max LVR	Lump Sum Repayment	Extra Repayments	Split Loan Option	Tags	Features	Link	Compare	Promoted Product	Disclosure
loans.com.au	loans.com.au Bare Home Loan (Basic OO P&I <90%)	5.94% p.a.	5.98% p.a.	$2,978	Principal & Interest	Variable			$0	$530	90%				Owner Occupier Variable Principal & Interest 10% Min Deposit Redraw Extra Repayments More details	Available for purchase or refinance, min 10% deposit needed to qualify. No application, ongoing monthly or annual fees. Dedicated loan specialist throughout the loan application.	Go to site	Compare	Promoted	Disclosure
Unloan	Unloan Variable Rate Home Loan LVR < 80%	5.89% p.a.	5.80% p.a.	$2,962	Principal & Interest	Variable			$0	$0	80%				Built and funded by CommBank Owner Occupier Variable Principal & Interest 20% Min Deposit Redraw More details	No application or ongoing fees. Annual rate discount Unlimited redraws & additional repayments. LVR <80% A low-rate variable home loan from a 100% online lender. Backed by the Commonwealth Bank.	Go to site	Compare	Promoted	Disclosure
Regional Australia Bank	Regional Australia Bank Home Loan Fixed (Owner Occupier, Principal and Interest, max lvr 60%) (3 years)	5.99% p.a.	6.02% p.a.	$2,995	Principal & Interest	Fixed			$0	$0	60%				Owner Occupier Fixed 3 Years Principal & Interest 40% Min Deposit Redraw More details	Competitive rates to help you save A Dedicated Relationship Manager Certainty of repayments with a fixed rate term	Go to site	Compare	Promoted	Disclosure
Homestar	Homestar Star Nova LVR <70% (Owner Occupied, Principal and Interest)	5.93% p.a.	5.93% p.a.	$2,975	Principal & Interest	Variable			$0	$395	70%				Owner Occupier Variable Principal & Interest 30% Min Deposit Redraw More details		Go to site	Compare		Disclosure
Reduce Home Loans	Reduce Home Loans EconoME Home Loan (Owner Occupier, Principal & Interest, LVR 60%)	5.99% p.a.	6.01% p.a.	$2,995	Principal & Interest	Variable			$0	$150	60%				$3000 Cashback T&Cs apply Owner Occupier Variable Principal & Interest 40% Min Deposit Redraw More details		Go to site	Compare		Disclosure

More home loans

Conversely, HomeStar also had a few home loan rate rises, presumably as special offers came to an end, including some investment home loans raised by up to 46 basis points.

Some owner occupier loans were also hiked by up to 54 basis points.

QBank was another institution to make some cuts to home loans under 2%.

• Fixed 2 Years: 2 basis point cut to 1.97% p.a. (3.54% p.a. comparison rate*)
• Fixed 4 Years: 2 basis point cut to 1.97% p.a. (3.26% p.a. comparison rate*)

These home loans are for owner occupiers paying principal and interest (P&I) with a maximum loan-to-value (LVR) of 90%, and are 'special offers', meaning they could change at any time.

QBank also tinkered with its home loans, raising others by up to 15 basis points, as new 'special offers' took effect and as old offers expired.

There are now at least 35 lenders with a home loan below the 2% advertised rate mark.