<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/s-p-setia">SP Setia</a> has lodged plans for a $750 million, three-tower mixed-use precinct that would complete the long-running redevelopment of Carlton's former Carlton United Breweries site.

The proposal at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/185-195-queensberry-street-carlton-vic-3053">46-78 Bouverie Street and 185-195 Queensberry Street</a> spans a 6,468 sqm site, the last remaining undeveloped parcels within the former brewery's 2007 masterplan.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">COX Architecture</a>, the development will comprise two purpose-built student accommodation towers and a third build-to-sell apartment tower above a shared commercial podium and basement.

Across the three towers, SP Setia is proposing 606 build-to-sell apartments and 1,499 student accommodation units containing 2,009 beds.

The apartments will sit in the tallest tower, which will rise nearly 200m and 55 storeys. It will become&nbsp;one of the more substantial new build-to-sell apartment projects at the northern edge of Melbourne's CBD.

The apartment mix is weighted toward smaller inner-city product, with 188 studios, 206 one-bedroom apartments, 192 two-bedroom apartments and 20 three-bedroom apartments

<img alt="First look: SP Setia plans three-tower finale for Carlton’s former CUB precinct" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8271bc87-1b0a-41b7-ac73-a425ee375261" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/3_2.png?VersionId=G4lw23o90B1boX4k4dj7rdz2ZEajS9wy" />

Part of the precinct will be a large-scale&nbsp;3,684 sqm supermarket and a further 2,198 sqm of speciality retail, creating close to 5,900 sqm of new commercial space within the precinct.

But one of the biggest components of the proposal is what sits between the buildings.

Around 4,650 sqm, or roughly 72 per cent of the site, will be publicly accessible open space, incorporating plazas, pedestrian connections, landscaped laneways and retail spill-out areas.

The ground plane is intended to finally complete pedestrian connections envisaged when the CUB masterplan was first approved nearly two decades ago, stitching together Victoria Street, Queensberry Street, Bouverie Street and Swanston Street through the former brewery precinct.

Urbis said the development would "complete the CUB precinct", with the public realm providing important north-south and east-west connections through what is currently the final undeveloped portion of the masterplanned site.

SP Setia is also exploring a new linear park within the Bouverie Street road reserve, with the concept to be developed further with the City of Melbourne through the planning process.

The proposal is being pursued through the Victorian Government's Development Facilitation Program under Clause 53.23 for significant residential development with affordable housing.

The planning report acknowledges the proposed heights exceed those contemplated under the original Comprehensive Development Plan and masterplan, but argues the built-form context has changed considerably over the past two decades.

Urbis said the three towers would instead create a stepped transition between Carlton and the Hoddle Grid, rising progressively from the 94.1-metre Tower One along the Queensberry Street edge to the 199.44-metre Tower Three closer to the established CBD-scale buildings to the south.

<img alt="SP Setia" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e885a07a-592c-40fc-bf82-e6dbaf32da54" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-21%20at%208.52.24%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=7s_ErUkSKAdY1mAWp3GRZgMNCGtwhk5m" />

SP Setia plans to deliver the development across three stages.

Stage One would deliver the basement, podium and retail areas for the entire precinct alongside the first student tower. Tower Two would follow in Stage Two, before the 606-apartment Tower Three is delivered as the final stage.

If approved and delivered, the project would close out a redevelopment process that has been underway since the former brewery masterplan was approved in 2007, adding more than 2,600 student beds and apartments to a precinct already home to Swanston Central, the Barak Building, RMIT Design Hub and several large student accommodation developments.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Joel Robinson

SP Setia plans three-tower finale for Carlton’s former CUB precinct

Melbourne developer Lowe Living is seeking to add to its growing bayside apartment pipeline, filing plans for a boutique eight-residence development in tightly held Middle Park.

Lowe Living, which has built much of its development portfolio across Melbourne's affluent bayside and south-east suburbs, is behind the plans for the 730 sqm site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/123-125-erskine-street-middle-park-vic-3206">123-125 Erskine Street</a>, just off Armstrong Street and within the Armstrong Street Neighbourhood Activity Centre.

The developer is seeking approval for a five-storey residential building above two basement levels, with just eight large-format apartments and 18 car spaces.

“This is a deliberately very different proposition for us,"&nbsp;Tim Lowe, Co-Founder of Lowe Living, said.

"Eight residences is exceptionally boutique, but that's precisely what this site calls for.

“There is a strong community in Middle Park and the surrounding suburbs who have spent decades building a life here. They no longer want the maintenance of a large period home, but they aren't prepared to compromise on space, quality or location. We think there is a real opportunity to capture that hyper local market. A site like this rarely comes to market.”

<img alt="Lowe " data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="875fe572-0f14-4d90-9e11-55b28dd07731" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-21%20at%208.42.49%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=GDNQRv9BfpR9r1zkZ5UDyUM4ZvpIksut" />

The low-density proposal has been designed by Cera Stribley and is being progressed through the Victorian Government's Great Design Fast Track pathway, having already secured eligibility from the Minister for Planning.

The Office of the Victorian Government Architect supported its eligibility after finding the proposal demonstrated consistency with the program's seven design principles, while the project's financial feasibility has also been independently confirmed by Invest Victoria.

The project is targeting the downsizer market, with the planning documents describing the homes as larger-format residences and noting the two penthouses could otherwise have been configured as four separate apartments.

<img alt="Lowe 2" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="60ab0987-2da6-4175-adac-315dcf6053c6" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-21%20at%208.43.15%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=bOCPH0B2MFwlmaRW.TTCF9TzyifgVoQI" />

The site has dual frontage to Erskine Street and Canterbury Place and currently comprises a collection of commercial buildings used as offices, including a former heritage bakehouse, a former stable, a later gabled addition and a central courtyard.

It sits within the Commercial 1 Zone and the Armstrong Street Commercial Precinct heritage overlay, with the existing property classified as a contributory heritage place.

Heritage has subsequently played a significant role in Cera Stribley's design.

The front section of the former bakehouse facing Erskine Street will be retained, including its return walls, street-facing hipped roof and chimneys, while the Erskine Street façade and part of the western return wall of the former stable will also be incorporated into the new development.

Levels four and five will be set back five metres from the retained stable façade, while bricks removed through demolition are proposed to be salvaged and reused within the new building where possible.

<img alt="Lowe 3" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e97927a9-a2de-4a0f-83b6-65451238abfa" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-21%20at%208.43.06%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=VR44AChLrX9q1XPB9GvVQV.ALXXbe4gC" />

Rather than presenting as a single five-storey building to Erskine Street, Cera Stribley has broken the development into a series of distinct forms.

A three-storey infill element will sit between the retained bakehouse and stable façades, with the upper levels recessed behind the heritage fabric. Canterbury Place will similarly feature two three-storey podium forms, separated by a central pedestrian accessway, before the upper two levels step back from the street.

A pedestrian through-link will run through the centre of the project between Erskine Street and Canterbury Place, creating entrances from both sides of the site and introducing landscaping and communal areas through the ground plane.

Landscape architect Acre has designed planting across the ground level, private terraces and upper levels, including a feature canopy tree at level three and integrated planting and arbours across the level four terraces. Five existing Erskine Street trees are proposed to be retained.

Sustainability is also a significant component of the Great Design Fast Track application. The apartments are targeting an average eight-star NatHERS rating, with no residence below 6.5 stars, while the project has achieved a 75 per cent BESS score. Seven of the eight apartments are designed for cross-ventilation, with the remaining residence using mechanically assisted natural ventilation.

The plans also incorporate an 8kWp rooftop solar system, a 5,000-litre rainwater tank and infrastructure allowing future electric vehicle charging for every residence.

Lowe has a strong portfolio across Melbourne's blue-chip suburbs. They recently launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/jardin-house-by-lowe-living-camberwell-335-camberwell-road-camberwell-vic-3124">Jardin House by Lowe Living</a> in Camberwell, their first development in the Stonnington LGA.

Lowe Living unveils Middle Park apartment development

Article summary

<ul data-end="888" data-start="289">
	<li data-end="442" data-section-id="8tsh6o" data-start="289">DVB Projects is preparing to launch its second Gold Coast apartment development, with demolition now underway at 137 Old Burleigh Road, Broadbeach.</li>
	<li data-end="573" data-section-id="1nyxl3e" data-start="443">The 34-level tower will comprise just 49 ultra-luxury residences, including half-floor, full-floor and penthouse apartments.</li>
	<li data-end="717" data-section-id="oiyimj" data-start="574">The launch follows strong demand at DVB's nearby Sea Glass project, which is more than 50 per cent sold and currently under construction.</li>
	<li data-end="888" data-section-id="epk9o9" data-start="718">The development adds to the transformation of Old Burleigh Road, with premium beachfront apartment projects continuing to reshape the tightly held Broadbeach strip.</li>
</ul>

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/dvb-projects">DVB Projects</a> is preparing to launch its second Gold Coast apartment development, with demolition now underway on the Broadbeach site as the Sydney developer moves closer to bringing the ultra-luxury project to market.

The 34-level tower at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/137-old-burleigh-road-broadbeach-qld-4218">137 Old Burleigh Road</a> will comprise just 49 residences, ranging from half-floor apartments through to full-floor homes and a penthouse. The launch follows the strong sales performance of DVB's nearby Sea Glass development. More than half of the apartments at Sea Glass, on the other side of Broadbeach, have been snapped up, well ahead of its late 2027 completion

<img alt="DVB Projects to commence demolition on $320m Broadbeach luxury tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2944b4be-c84e-4b54-8dc1-c712e76704c0" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/E02_Exterior_Street%20Level%20Entrance.jpg?VersionId=YoNig7pRdrE3HCue7sUj78LzJteeQf3H" />

The start of demolition at 137 Old Burleigh Road signals DVB Projects’ underlying confidence in the Gold Coast’s luxury beachside apartment sector.

“We see the Gold Coast as one of the most compelling lifestyle markets in Australia, particularly at the premium end where demand continues to deepen,” said Dean Brown, Managing Director of DVB.&nbsp;

“This project has been carefully designed to respond to that demand - delivering large-format residences with a level of quality, privacy and amenity that is still relatively rare in the apartment market on the beachside."

Brown says the site itself is "exceptional."

"Old Burleigh Road is one of the most tightly held beachfront strips, and opportunities to deliver a project of this scale and calibre in this location are extremely limited.”

<img alt="DVB Projects to commence demolition on $320m Broadbeach luxury tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="398f377a-c037-455e-9250-0c5e0d84c35b" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/I12_FF%20Balcony.jpg?VersionId=NwOiRWGMubR1c8wthuEfggklcja7al9." />

The project will comprise 40 half-floor residences of approximately 260 sqm, alongside eight full-floor residences spanning around 524 sqm.

A single penthouse will crown the building, featuring a private pool, barbecue area, indoor gym and dedicated entertaining spaces.

Residents will have access to a resort-style suite of amenities, including a 20-metre pool with daybeds, a gymnasium, hot and cold plunge pools, a sauna, and private residents’ lounge and dining facilities.

<img alt="DVB Projects to commence demolition on $320m Broadbeach luxury tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1642bb0-9a66-4427-a022-dfc0988c6287" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/A02_Pool%20to%20View.jpg?VersionId=c0IXPyn_Gp_Kn3XCwzMrqIVkAdCEwVXP" />

Sales agent Todd Matheson, of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/project-marketer/pezet-matheson">Pezet Matheson</a>, which is marketing both 137 Old Burleigh Road and Sea Glass, said 137 Old Burleigh Road would address a clear gap in the market for genuine luxury products.

“There are very few opportunities on the Gold Coast where buyers can secure a residence of this size and quality in a new building,” Matheson said.

“What we’re seeing is a growing cohort of downsizers and interstate buyers who still want space - they’re not willing to compromise on living area, entertaining or finishes.

“This project has been designed with that buyer in mind. It offers the scale of a home, combined with the convenience and security of apartment living, in one of the coast’s most desirable positions.”

<img alt="DVB Projects to commence demolition on $320m Broadbeach luxury tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="59aae0ca-5639-4320-8aca-d0bf60f48e43" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/E01_Exterior%20Hero.jpg?VersionId=DS8Zfy2WtgUEtdfe0TEUuf1W1GfcZq8S" />

Located on a 1,156 sqm site one block from the beachfront, the development will replace an ageing walk-up building and is expected to contribute to the ongoing transformation of the Old Burleigh Road strip into one of the Gold Coast’s most prestigious residential corridors.

With the development moving into the delivery phase, 137 Old Burleigh Road is slated to hit the market later this year.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=145141]

DVB Projects to launch second Broadbeach apartment tower as demolition commences

<a data-end="327" data-is-only-node="" data-start="250" href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/norus-projects" rel="noopener" target="_new">Norus Developments</a> has lodged plans for a new apartment development in Clayton that would add further momentum to the suburb's emerging Green Street corridor.

Plans have been lodged for the consolidated site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/1359-1365-centre-road-clayton-vic-3168">1359-1365 Centre Road</a>, where Norus is seeking approval for 218 apartments across a 12-storey apartment building designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/life-architecture-and-urban-design">Life Architecture</a>.

The proposal sits within the Clayton Major Activity Centre at the threshold of the planned Green Street corridor, a landscaped pedestrian connection intended to improve links through the precinct towards Clayton Railway Station.

The development would replace the site's existing collection of low-scale residential and commercial buildings with a single consolidated building, introducing significantly greater housing density to this part of Centre Road.

A retail tenancy is proposed at ground level to activate the Centre Road frontage, accompanied by transparent street interfaces and landscaping intended to create a more pedestrian-focused edge to the development.

<img alt="First look: Norus Developments plans landscape-led apartment project for Clayton’s emerging Green Street" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0a5a763a-d9e9-4253-af2f-88008de27ebf" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Clayton%20a.png?VersionId=S2WJJbat1XVkZwB9SnYtygirXgWHiklX" />

The building has been designed with stepped massing and upper-level setbacks to manage its transition towards surrounding residential properties. The planning report describes the approach as one that integrates the building into the landscape rather than treating landscaping as a secondary element.

"A strong landscape and public realm strategy underpins the proposal," Urbis states in the planning report.

"Public benefits include an affordable housing contribution, a new pocket park, generous landscaped setbacks, deep soil planting and integrated Water Sensitive Urban Design."

The report adds that these elements are intended to create "a permeable, pedestrian-focused ground plane that enhances walkability, supports urban cooling and reinforces the emerging Green Street character."

Biophilic and passive design principles extend through the residential levels, with planting, daylight, natural ventilation and views towards landscaped areas forming part of the amenity strategy.

Parking would be concentrated away from the public realm, with 145 car spaces proposed from the rear laneway rather than dominating the Centre Road frontage.

The proposal follows an extensive pre-application process with the City of Monash. Three formal meetings were held between the project team and Council from December 2025 to March 2026, with the scheme evolving through several concept iterations before the current design was lodged.

The project arrives as Clayton prepares for substantial change around its established activity centre and the wider Suburban Rail Loop precinct. Its position on Centre Road places the development within an existing concentration of shops, services and public transport, while the Green Street connection is intended to strengthen pedestrian access towards Clayton Railway Station.

First look: Norus plans landscape-led apartment project for Clayton’s emerging Green Street

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/gardner-vaughan-group">Gardner Vaughan Group</a> has officially commenced construction on Bronze on Chevron, celebrating the sod turning of its first-ever Gold Coast development and marking a significant milestone in the company's continued expansion across South East Queensland.&nbsp;

Following the successful delivery of premium residential developments throughout Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/bronze-on-chevron-8-mawarra-street-chevron-island-qld-4217">Bronze on Chevron</a> represents Gardner Vaughan Group's entry into the Gold Coast market. Bronze will deliver 119 one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments above two ground-level retail tenancies.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=107520 project_image_fid=367193]

The recent sod turning ceremony was attended by Deputy Mayor Mark Hammel, President of the Surfers Paradise Surf Life Saving Club, Cassandra Sedgman, project consultants, purchasers, project partners and invited guests to celebrate the commencement of construction.&nbsp;

Gardner Vaughan Group Chief Executive Officer Simon Betteridge said Bronze on Chevron represented an exciting new chapter for the business.&nbsp;

"We've spent almost four decades building homes that respond to the way people want to live, and we're excited to bring that experience to <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/chevron-island-qld-4217">Chevron Island</a>," Betteridge said.

"Bronze on Chevron is particularly significant because it marks Gardner Vaughan Group's first development on the Gold Coast following many successful projects across Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=107520 project_image_fid=367183]

Betteridge said the ground breaking is a proud moment for the&nbsp;team and their purchasers, who can now see their future homes beginning to take shape.&nbsp;

"As both developer and builder, we're able to oversee every aspect of the project from design through to construction, ensuring the quality and attention to detail Gardner Vaughan Group has become renowned for."&nbsp;

Designed by acclaimed architectural practice <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cottee-parker-architects">Cottee Parker</a>, Bronze on Chevron has been thoughtfully designed to complement Chevron Island's evolving streetscape while embracing its relaxed coastal lifestyle.

The development will offer generous residences with refined interiors, premium finishes and resort-style amenities, with completion anticipated in early 2029.&nbsp;

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=107520]

The development will offer generous residences with refined interiors, premium finishes and resort-style amenities, with completion anticipated in early 2029

Gardner Vaughan Group breaks ground on first Gold Coast development, Bronze on Chevron

National Australia Bank (NAB) has brought forward the timing of the first RBA cash rate cut by three months.

NAB is now expecting a cut in February, in line with ANZ and Westpac, having initially thought a cut wouldn't come until May.

Commonwealth Bank, the nation's largest lender, still thinks the first cut will come in December.

NAB changed its call following the August monthly inflation figures that were released at the end of September, showing it had dropped to 2.7 per cent.

"The risk has been skewed to a first cut earlier in 2025, and today’s change acknowledges the balance of risks has likely shifted sufficiently for the RBA to feel comfortable cutting a little sooner than we earlier expected," NAB noted in its latest update.

They added that the cadence of the cuts may be faster than its central profile.

"Domestic inflation pressures are cooling, but only gradually, and we continue to expect the conditions for a cut will not be in place this year.

NAB believes the easing cycle will end at 3.1 per cent by early 2026, which is five cuts from the current 4.35 per cent cash rate.&nbsp;

CBA also thinks 3.1 per cent will mark the end of the cutting cycle, while Westpac is forecasting 3.35 per cent, and ANZ is the most pessimistic at 3.6 per cent, which would be just three interest rate cuts.

<h2>What would a rate cut in February look like for borrowers?</h2>

According to&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn%3Du001.IVvjJ-2BPT0A8C3VxtqKc6e3bj5hBuw27WFEYqovsYs7kPsgFulYrdOzeP8gI7CybJOya3_RgrM7qq-2BfK-2FtAHeRBLv5Qrb-2Bii5fzjLeKcP4w-2FkNgJPXygpiRhVUan3WV3QEggcf617UC8Z60RjQJZAqx7PiO7FtVJQSn0D46Zc3iTVP0kAhTTzG51cPpa5hrqz1OkSA-2BiXAxUajQ686MTtiseWBIdMdknd83aB7cOVgXlVTeHCGf3-2BcMHwfvI8TYlkUovqEhn4dj0KXf2eJGpb9-2BBv20hPXdLlPP9yD7DvFFDBM5yrTqxvcCiMfAsW1onD-2FcriL628eYdhNQE7bwzYrxcOYnmaYfRhGl-2FEHQ6eK2uQcLxs6Cbu6Dx0bYvpi5A6enmxMWU5TkcRYrP6Z8GbXZYtc5qSoKu6eWFBQR9K7fsjXwHMmby3D3X6Yx-2BxcDcdRruTG&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1727774368149000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2vK2ujS77CHs9VRvSSXzLC" href="https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=u001.IVvjJ-2BPT0A8C3VxtqKc6e3bj5hBuw27WFEYqovsYs7kPsgFulYrdOzeP8gI7CybJOya3_RgrM7qq-2BfK-2FtAHeRBLv5Qrb-2Bii5fzjLeKcP4w-2FkNgJPXygpiRhVUan3WV3QEggcf617UC8Z60RjQJZAqx7PiO7FtVJQSn0D46Zc3iTVP0kAhTTzG51cPpa5hrqz1OkSA-2BiXAxUajQ686MTtiseWBIdMdknd83aB7cOVgXlVTeHCGf3-2BcMHwfvI8TYlkUovqEhn4dj0KXf2eJGpb9-2BBv20hPXdLlPP9yD7DvFFDBM5yrTqxvcCiMfAsW1onD-2FcriL628eYdhNQE7bwzYrxcOYnmaYfRhGl-2FEHQ6eK2uQcLxs6Cbu6Dx0bYvpi5A6enmxMWU5TkcRYrP6Z8GbXZYtc5qSoKu6eWFBQR9K7fsjXwHMmby3D3X6Yx-2BxcDcdRruTG" target="_blank">Canstar</a>, if there is a cut in February, a borrower with a $600,000 loan today and 25 years remaining would see their monthly repayments drop by $92.&nbsp;

<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td colspan="3">
			Impact of 0.25% pt cut in February 2025
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>
			Current loan size
			</td>
			<td>
			Drop in monthly repayment
			</td>
			<td>
			New monthly repayment
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>
			$600,000
			</td>
			<td>
			-$92
			</td>
			<td>
			$3,907
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>
			$750,000
			</td>
			<td>
			-$114
			</td>
			<td>
			$4,884
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>
			$1M
			</td>
			<td>
			-$153
			</td>
			<td>
			$6,512
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td colspan="3">
			Source:&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn%3Du001.xWMOP9hChsvn-2BC9O-2FebBihXIZ4cEzbiuENdxm-2Bx3-2FYEEgYMhZlKWNj5Zzy1YZ56RuASD_RgrM7qq-2BfK-2FtAHeRBLv5Qrb-2Bii5fzjLeKcP4w-2FkNgJPXygpiRhVUan3WV3QEggcf617UC8Z60RjQJZAqx7PiO7FtVJQSn0D46Zc3iTVP0kAhTTzG51cPpa5hrqz1OkSA-2BiXAxUajQ686MTtiseWBIdMdknd83aB7cOVgXlVTeHCGf3-2BcMHwfvI8TYlkUovqEhn4dj0KXf2eJGpb9-2BBv20v2akwr6-2BqLyRrlEgkJ4J-2BCCyY0x189xEHZA4Ylf8c7ChBqNIkhmftZzoFuZKFn43pw3oJVg2o1gumrpdA-2B7MB-2FBtmL2rFCI-2FXORATQHySCLVOMg7Vywv-2BqnnQUAtDz6XkvpwxdHFXh70VwKazzhJsICilEYOvP4ju0sIfi5g6TL&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1727774368149000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2qVnp6oqATgqDUi2Frm22q" href="https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=u001.xWMOP9hChsvn-2BC9O-2FebBihXIZ4cEzbiuENdxm-2Bx3-2FYEEgYMhZlKWNj5Zzy1YZ56RuASD_RgrM7qq-2BfK-2FtAHeRBLv5Qrb-2Bii5fzjLeKcP4w-2FkNgJPXygpiRhVUan3WV3QEggcf617UC8Z60RjQJZAqx7PiO7FtVJQSn0D46Zc3iTVP0kAhTTzG51cPpa5hrqz1OkSA-2BiXAxUajQ686MTtiseWBIdMdknd83aB7cOVgXlVTeHCGf3-2BcMHwfvI8TYlkUovqEhn4dj0KXf2eJGpb9-2BBv20v2akwr6-2BqLyRrlEgkJ4J-2BCCyY0x189xEHZA4Ylf8c7ChBqNIkhmftZzoFuZKFn43pw3oJVg2o1gumrpdA-2B7MB-2FBtmL2rFCI-2FXORATQHySCLVOMg7Vywv-2BqnnQUAtDz6XkvpwxdHFXh70VwKazzhJsICilEYOvP4ju0sIfi5g6TL" target="_blank">www.canstar.com.au</a>. Starting rate is the RBA existing average owner-occupier variable rate of 6.36%. Assumes banks pass the cash rate cut on in full the month after the meeting.
			</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

Canstar Data Insights Director, Sally Tindall, says if core inflation continues to track in the right direction, or unemployment starts to accelerate significantly, we could well see a cash rate cut as early as February of next year.

“All four big banks now believe the RBA will be ready to cut the cash rate in just over four months’ time, if not before, in the case of CBA.

“However, the outlook for both inflation and unemployment is still highly uncertain. A couple of wobbly sets of inflation data could see the RBA holding for longer, particularly if unemployment remains relatively steady."

&nbsp;

Commonwealth Bank, the nation's largest lender, still thinks the first cut will come in December.

NAB bring forward first RBA cut to February 2025

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First-home buyers who bought their first homes at the top of the last housing market cycle in 2009, when state government grants were most generous, are now struggling to refinance their loans due to weak equity positions,  according latest Australian Mortgage Industry report prepared by JP Morgan and Digital Finance Analytics.
As interest rates fall and households continue to deleverage, the report says that around 30% of first-time buyers are seeking to refinance their loans, which is "twice the amount, if not more, than other borrowers".
“Secondly, and more worryingly, of those that apply, 15% are being declined – substantially above other categories of borrowers, who are all well below 5%.
“First time buyers bought at the ‘top of the cycle’, with insufficient time between 2009 and now to generate equity in their home, particularly in light of declining house prices relative to the 2009 peak.”
“The end result is that first time buyers not only have a higher proportion of existing loans looking to refinance, but also have a higher proportion of those re-financing applications rejected," says the report.
Click to enlarge
<a title="Click to enlarge" rel="shadowbox" href="/images/stories/2012/10/jpm.gif"><img src="/images/stories/2012/10/jpmthumb.gif"></a>
Many of these buyers took advantage of boosted first-home buyer grants (which tripled to $21,000 for those buying new homes) introduced in the wake of the GFC, which the report says “buoyed housing prices throughout 2009”.


<hr class="system-pagebreak">
They also bought with small deposits, with the report highlighting that the proportion of first-h0me buyers who bought with loan-to-value (LVR) ratios of more than 90% was higher than the average for other owner-occupiers groups.
In the interim banks have lifted LVR requirements in line with tougher global banking rules, and first-home buyers have been caught out.
According to JP Morgan, the two main reasons why loan applications are rejected now are an inadequate LVR (34% of rejected applications) or insufficient income (34%).
Over late 2008 and early 2009 the report says there was a surge in the volume of first-time buyers in the six months between the announcement of incentives in November 2008 and the reduction of first-time buyer LVRs by banks in April 2009.
“This simply pulled forward demand and left a substantial equivalent hole over the following year." 
The report also forecasts the current slow pace of mortgage growth to continue, noting that “growth in the average value of each form of owner-occupied approval is now in negative territory” – the first time this has occurred since data became available in the early 1990s.
The report says not only are the volume of approvals weak, but the average value of approvals is declining.
“While this may simplistically be dismissed as a broader indication of stalled house prices, we conclude that a degree of tightness for refinancings is evident – particularly for first-time buyers.
"Housing credit growth has continued to soften since breaking below double-digit growth rates in mid-2008. In fact, the most recent three-month annualised growth rate of 3.6% for housing credit in August 2012 is the lowest level since the RBA started disclosing credit aggregates in 1976.
"Given the current outlook, we expect low rates of credit growth to continue –with risk to the downside – as opposed to watching out for a quick rebound off the back of lower interest rates."
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lschlesinger-FZcF9M3vE6

Some 2009 first-home buyers struggling to refinance mortgages due to declining values: JP Morgan

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Last week’s cash rate cut caught a few of us here at the REIQ office a little by surprise. The first Tuesday of every month, we generally make a fairly educated assessment about what will happen at the Reserve Bank meeting that day, and I am happy to say that we get it right most of the time. Not so last Tuesday, unfortunately.
I had been sure the Reserve would cut rates, but that morning I changed my mind – something I now bitterly regret, of course. While I certainly felt the wobbly nature of the economy here and overseas warranted a rate reduction, there had been strong economic reasons for a cut in the past and the Reserve had done nothing, so I figured that is what it would do again.
At approximately 2.31pm AEST I discovered that the Reserve’s assessment of the economy had in fact been similar to mine (until I changed my mind, that is) and the cash rate had been lowered by 25 basis points to 3.25% – the lowest it had been since 2009.
But while cash rate cuts may seem like a very good thing, they also signal that the economy is not quite as flash as we would like it to be. Throughout 2011, in my humble opinion, the Reserve left the cash rate far too high for far too long because on the ground it was fairly obvious that things were pretty average. The property market was very flat, the retail sector was flatter, and to top it off we’d had our summer of natural disasters, which affected thousands of Queenslanders as well as the morale of an entire state.
Now with interest rates heading towards where they should have been last year (in my humble opinion), the question is how much lower are they likely to go?  Indeed, survey results released this week indicated that more than two-thirds of first-home buyers were intending to fix their home loan rate over the next 12 months to gain some repayment certainty.
I read somewhere once that when it comes to the game of fixing the interest rate on your home loan there is usually only one winner – and it is unlikely to be you. That said, I fixed a portion of the loan on my first home five years ago. Within 12 months, due to rampant inflation, rates had shot up to more than 9%, so that fixed portion actually saved my bacon.
Unfortunately, a year after that the GFC happened and rates plummeted to historic lows, so that fixed portion soon resembled some type of greedy goblin when I paid my mortgage every month. In hindsight, I think I ended up winning some and losing some.  But with fixed rates now heading towards 5%, I am starting to consider fixing once more but alas remain annoyingly undecided.
To fix or not to fix? That is the question. Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles.
See, even Shakespeare didn’t know what to do.
Nicola McDougall is executive manager for corporate affairs for the <a href="https://www.reiq.com/" target="_blank">Real Estate Institute of Queensland</a>. This article originally appeared on the<a href="https://reiqblog.com/" target="_self"> REIQ blog</a>.
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nmcdougall-hv3JvhUJmd

You win some and lose some when you fix your mortgage

<html><body>
One Big Switch, the consumer discount advocacy company, has returned to its roots with a new mortgage awareness campaign targeting lenders who don’t pass on RBA cash rate cuts in full.
Called “Truth in Banking” and with the slogan "We mind the gap" it asks borrowers to enter in the details of their current mortgage including their lender, interest rate, amount owed and any fees they are charged.
A trademarked “Rate Gap calculator’ gives subscribers an indication of how much extra they have been paying to date and on a monthly basis, based on RBA cash rate movements and their lender’s response to them.
Subscribers can sign up over the next 17 days with the campaign attracting just under 3,400 participants at last count. Subscribers will then receive information about future discounting campaigns.
One Big Switch was founded by Harvard MBA graduate Paul Hunyor and former press secretary to Kevin Rudd Lachlan Harris in July 2011 with funding from venture capital fund MH Carnegie &amp; Co (MHC), founded by Mark Carnegie and advertising veteran John Singleton.
It launched with a campaign offering borrowers the opportunity to be part of a mortgage discount offering.
Around 40,000 borrowers  signed up to this campaign last year have refinanced through one of these lenders with 1,600 choosing to refinancing through non-bank lenders Resimac, FirstMac, Mortgage Ezy, Mortgage Point and IMB Building Society.
One Big Switch is seeking to sign on 25,000 mortgage holders to the new campaign, which runs until November 2.
A spokesperson for One Big Switch says the campaign is all about “transparency, creating awareness and consumer empowerment”.
"The purpose of the campaign is find 25,000 consumers to calculate the rate gap. The rate gap is the difference between RBA cash rate movements and rate movements by individual lenders.  
"Throughout the year One Big Switch members are offered discounts on many household bills, including their mortgage, but this campaign is not about discounted mortgages."
One Big Switch campaigns are being led by Christopher Zinn, former the head of communications at consumer watchdog Choice.
“The banks know exactly how their policies of not passing on the benefits of cash rate changes impacts on their bottom line in a positive way,” says Zinn.
"But the consumer, until now, has been largely oblivious of the negative effect  unless they had the will and technical skills to juggle all the numbers.
"This is one reason we have launched the ‘ We Mind the Gap’ campaign. To arm ordinary people with information they may need to make better decisions."
The latest campaign is being carried out in partnership with Channel 7 and being promoted via Channel 7 News, Sunrise and Today Tonight.
According to Strachan Taylor, head of mortgages at One Big Switch, a look back over the last 20 years reveals that banks have often not always passed RBA cash rate moves completely and immediately on.
“In fact over the last decade they have done so 55 times,” he says.
“Since 1990 the spread between the RBA cash rate and the general bank lending rate grew to 4.75% by mid-1993, and remained around 4% until late 1994, dropping to 3% in late 1994 and from mid-1995 rapidly fell to its minimum of 1.7% in 1999.”
He says the spread remained tight at around 1.8% until 2008 when the GFC hit, following which spreads once again quickly began to widen to 3.4% today.
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One Big Switch targets miserly mortgage lenders in new consumer awareness campaign

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Two-thirds of borrowers who have a mortgage with a bank believe they could be getting a better mortgage deal by refinancing with a new lender, according to research by Ernst &amp; Young.
However, many give up at the early stages of the mortgage application process or turn to a mortgage broker for help.
These were the key findings of a survey of 635 respondents across the  big four banks as well as regional banks carried out as part of Ernst &amp; Young’s customer experience series.
Research by Ratecity.com.au finds that <a href="/news">three of the four lenders to have passed on the full October rate cut are small lenders</a> led by bankmecu, which is offering a standard variable rate of 5.49% – 108 basis points lower than the lowest standard variable rate offered of the big four (NAB, 6.58%).
According to the Ernst &amp; Young survey, when applying for a mortgage, a third of customers give up at the "information gathering" stage because of "too much choice" and a lack of simple and clear information.
It also found that 60% of people who initiated the mortgage application process ended up finalising it and getting a mortgage, but the remaining 40% dropped off along the way.
“It sounds simple enough, but banks need to focus their efforts on that initial step – when customers first put their mortgage feelers out. They need to ensure the information available via all their channels is in plain English and provides real comparisons for customers, in other words it doesn’t require high levels of financial literacy to make sense of it,” says Ernst &amp; Young’s John Rolland
“We know Australians are time poor. They feel a lack of control over their lives and, as such, don’t like complex decision-making. This means they default to the simplest tools that help them in their everyday decisions.
“While choice is obviously a good thing for consumers, there is such a thing as ‘choice overload’ – even in banking when competition is a good thing.
“It’s a sign of our times that people looking for a mortgage are feeling overwhelmed by the vast array of mortgage products as well as the number of mortgage lenders, and don’t know where to start."
Another finding was that 80% of customers who embarked on the mortgage or switching process started without involving a broker or third party – significantly below the 42% share of the mortgage distribution market that brokers are estimated to hold.
This suggests that many borrowers choose to engage a mortgage broker after finding the application process to difficult or frustrating to do on their own.
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Two-thirds of borrowers open to switching lenders for better deal: Ernst & Young

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The number of owner-occupier home loan commitments rose by a better than expected 1.8% in August to 45,821 loans, according to the latest seasonally adjusted ABS figures.
That was from an upwardly revised 45,021 loan commitments in July and above economist expectations of a 1.5% monthly rise.
The increase in home loan commitments in August follows RBA cash rate cuts in May and June totalling 75 basis points.
"A modest upward trend in housing finance to owner-occupiers is now apparent. New lending trended 1.2% higher in August, a turnaround from modest trend declines over the first five months of the year," says Westpac. "A greater number of FHBs are likely to enter the market over coming months, in what is the 'spring season', encouraged by improved housing affordability underpinned by lower interest rates.  "With the RBA more concerned about downside risks to economic growth over the year ahead there will be increased focus on the strength of the housing sector upswing and the likely boost to housing construction activity. "
The number of mortgage commitments for the purchase of new dwellings rose by a strong 13.9% to 2,341 in August, according to the ABS.
The number of loan commitments for the purchase of established dwellings rose 1.3% to 38,238.
In value terms owner occupier loans rose 1.3% to $13.65 billion.
Total housing finance by value rose by 0.6%, seasonally adjusted, to $20.3 billion.
On a state-by-state basis, whereas WA was the only state to record a rise for July, strength was more widespread in August, noted Westpac.
"For August, gains were reported for NSW (3.3%), Tasmania (3.3%), Queensland (4.1%), as well as WA (1.2%). Victoria softened for a second month (-1.2% following -1.1%), representing a let down effect in the wake of state government changes to first-home buyer incentives," says  Westpac.
First-home buyers share of finance declined to 18.6% from 19.2% for July, but Westpac says this is likely to be a short-lived dip. 
Loans for investment purposes recorded a 0.8% decline for August.
Housing Industry Association (HIA) chief economist Dr Harley Dale says the 2.6% increase in total housing finance net of refinancing in August 2012 marked the sixth consectutive rise.
"That is encouraging, but the base for the recovery has to date been too narrow.
"A recovery in the number of loans to first time owner occupiers appears to be entrenching itself, but lending to the larger ‘trade-up’ owner-occupier market has been losing momentum since March.”
“On the new home front, lending for the purchase of new dwellings increased strongly in August, which is an encouraging result, although a flat month in terms of loans for construction was disappointing.”
“After posting a strong increase in June, the number of loans for the construction of owner occupied dwellings largely flat-lined in July and again in August.
"Meanwhile, lending for the construction of new investment properties has been trending down since March.
"Hopefully interest rate cuts together with policy initiatives in NSW and Queensland will see a sustained improvement emerge in these key construction lending figures,” says Dale.
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Home loan numbers rise 1.8% in August with strong bounce in new home lending: ABS

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Online lender loans.com.au has cut the variable rate of its ‘Dream Catcher’ home loan by 19 basis points to 5.46% and says it is offering the lowest standard variable rate home loan since July 1968.
The lender references the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.loansense.com.au/historical-rates">loansense.com.au</a>, a website that tracks the movement of home loan rates dating back to 1959.
In July 1968, the average standard variable interest rate was 5.38%.
According to mortgage comparison website Ratecity.com.au, another online lender eMoney is offering a variable rate of 5.40% on its pro pack 75 loan. The lender cut the interest rate on this product by 20 basis points.
A spokesperson for loans.com.au maintains that its offering is the lowest genuine standard variable rate home loan in Australia.
He says the real story is not the loans.com.au offering, but that variable rates on average are at their lowest level since 1968.
Loans.com.au managing director Marie Mortimer says borrowers would have to go travel back in time to the Mexico Olympics to find a cheaper variable home loan interest rate.
“The last time we saw rates this low, the number one record in Australia was Sadie by Johnny Farnham, Rod Laver had just beaten Tony Roche to win Wimbledon and Lionel Rose beat Fighting Harada in Tokyo to become the world bantamweight boxing champion,” she says.
Firstmac is an Australian lender based in Brisbane that has been involved in providing home loans for 30 years. It was founded by Kim Cannon. Firstmac obtains its funding from residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) market, also known as securitisation.
Loans.com.au also announced it has cut its three-year fixed home loan rate to 5.35% (comparison rate 5.74%).
On Friday, ANZ cut its standard variable by 20 basis points to 6.6%
Here’s a guide to the lowest standard variable home loan offerings:
Lowest variable rate offerings:
<table width="470" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
Provider
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Loan name
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
Rate
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
Comparison rate*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
eMoney
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Pro Pack 75
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.40%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.73%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
Loans.com.au
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Dream Catcher
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.46%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.74%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
State Custodians
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Standard variable offset
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.64%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.81%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Lowest one-year fixed-rate offerings
<table width="470" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
Provider
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Loan name
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
Rate
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
Comparison rate*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
Greater Building Society
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Ultimate Home  Loan Package Standard Fixed 1 year
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
5.29%
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
6.04%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
Greater Building Society
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Great Rate Fixed 1 year
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
5.34%
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
5.89%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
Newcastle Permanent
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Residential Fixed 1 year
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
5.38%
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
6.2%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Lowest three-year fixed-rate offerings
<table width="470" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Provider
</td>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Loan name
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
Rate
</td>
<td width="108" valign="top">
Comparison rate*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Loans.com.au
</td>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Three-year fixed home loan
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.35%
</td>
<td width="108" valign="top">
5.74%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Newcastle Permanent
</td>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Residential Fixed 3 year
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.38%
</td>
<td width="108" valign="top">
6.04%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="133" valign="top">
ME Bank
</td>
<td width="133" valign="top">
Super Member Fixed Three years
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.39%
</td>
<td width="108" valign="top">
6.05%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Source: Ratecity.com.au
*A comparison rate includes both the interest rate and the fees and charges relating to a loan, combined into a single percentage figure.
For information on refinancing, watch our free webinar <a target="_blank" href="/news">Refinancing and the Interest Rates Riddle</a>
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Loans.com.au cuts standard variable offering to 5.46%: A guide to the lowest home loans in 44 years

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Lately I’ve been asked why banks reduce their mortgage rates less than the Reserve Bank’s cash rate reduction.
And increasingly my answer is: because the borrowers let them.
Almost two weeks ago the cash rate dropped by 0.25 percentage points, and the big banks reduced their mortgage rates by between 0.18 percentage points and 0.2 percentage points. As I write this, just four lenders passed on the full RBA cut: ING Direct, Yellow Brick Road, bankmecu and My Rate. Those rates now sit between 5.49 and 6.19%.
Compare this to the big four banks’ standard variable rate mortgages which are currently sitting between 6.58% and 6.71%.
It’s clear that one group aims to offer competitive rates while the other group is pretty far off the mark.
Yet it’s the group of lenders with the more expensive mortgages that dominates home lending. Our four largest banks account for more than 90% of all new mortgages.
Confidence is the key to this debate.
Post-GFC, most home borrowers don’t want to pick a fight with the organisation that finances their homes.
I understand the reticence. I’m also alarmed at the uncertainty created when consumers cannot see a link between the Reserve’s cash rate and their own mortgages.
I don’t totally blame the government for this. The Reserve Bank is an independent agency charged with running our monetary policy, and a Treasurer should not tinker with the bank’s operations.
Secondly, the Treasurer has made several changes that help borrowers, including banning mortgage exit fees on new home loans, one-page mortgage fact sheets to make it easier for consumers to shop around and covered bonds to give access to cheaper wholesale funding for lenders.
These changes work well on paper, but the lack of confidence among mortgage holders is still the key to the puzzle.
An online poll run by The Age this week – on the back of a Chris Zappone column – showed that 67% of responding mortgage holders would like to move to a small lender, and only 6% want to move to a big bank. The poll was answered by more than 11,000 people.
That’s a huge preference not being acted upon, but what can consumers do? There are good mortgage comparison web sites online and there are excellent mortgage calculators that show you how much you can save by moving to a lower priced lender. You can also use a mortgage broker who will offer expert navigation of the market.
The law is also on your side, in that your current lender should not be able to penalise you for leaving a variable rate mortgage and going to another, depending on when you took out the loan.
It doesn’t seem like it at times, but consumers are more powerful than they think.
Just add some confidence, and they will rule this market again.
Mark Bouris is executive chairman of <a href="https://www.ybr.com.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Yellow Brick Road</a>, a financial services company offering home loans, financial planning, accounting and tax, and insurance.
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mbouris-tauSvXGAM2

Banks keep some of RBA's cash rate cuts because borrowers let them

<html><body>
ANZ has cut its variable mortgage rates by 20 basis points today following its monthly interest rate review.
The bank's new standard variable mortgage rate will be 6.0% per annum (6.7% per annum comparison rate). but borrowers must wait until October 19 for the reduced rate to kick in - that's 17 days after the RBA cut the cash rate and the longest wait of all for big four mortgage holders.
It is also five days longer than ANZ usually takes to pass on cash rate cuts, according to recent research by the<a href="/news"> Economic Record</a>. 
The 0.2 percentage point decrease will save customers about $10.75 per week or $560 per year for the average home loan of $280,000.
NAB (new standard variable rate of 6.58%) and Commonwealth Bank (6.6%) have already passed on their rate cuts, with Westpac borrowers having to wait until Monday for the new SVR of 6.71% to take effect.
“Recent stability in wholesale funding markets has been offset by the impact of intense competition for retail deposits as banks seek to improve their funding mix in response to market and regulatory pressures," explanied ANZ Australia chief executive Philip Chronican.
“While this increase in competition is benefiting the majority of our customers through historically high deposit rates relative to the cash rate, last week’s decision from the RBA has provided some scope to once again reduce our variable lending rates."
Variable rates for small business lending will decrease by 20 basis points from October 19.
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ANZ cuts variable rates by 20 basis points but borrowers must wait until October 19

<html><body>
Giddy-up punters, short odds are now on a Melbourne Cup Day rate cut on November 6, according to both economists polled by Bloomberg and interest rate futures markets.
The latest Bloomberg poll shows that 21 out of 26 economists polled expect the RBA to cut the cash rate in November.
In addition, swaps traders are pricing in an 80% chance of a cut on November 6.
They’re certainly a lot better odds than Dare to Dream, the three-year-old filly priced at 61 to 1. Mount Athos is the favourite at 8 to 1.
Last year French horse Dunaden won by a nostril from Red Cadeaux. Punters might also remember that the RBA cut the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.5% on Melbourne Cup Day last yer, the first rate cut since April 2009, when the cash rate fell to 3%.
A rate cut on Melbourne Cup Day this year would bring the cash rate to that historic low, and who knows, perhaps Glenn Stevens, who has been under scrutiny on several fronts, might pick the winning horse as well.
Of the five economists not tipping a rate cut in November – three are well-known foreign-based institutions – Moody’s, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs and another is also a global entity, Capital Economics, a macro-economic research firm.
The only Australian institution tipping rates to remain on hold is Ausbil Dexia, a boutique fund manager.
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Punters can more than ‘Dare to Dream’ about a Melbourne Cup Day cash rate cut: Bloomberg

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Only six out of 41 lenders have passed on the full 25 basis points October RBA cash rate cut to their borrowers, according to analysis by mortgage comparison website Ratecity.com.au
Half of them have passed on 20 basis points.
The six lenders that have passed on the full rate cut to date are: bankmecu, Gateway Credit Union, ING Direct, MyRate, UBank and Yellow Brick Road.
Bankmecu offers the lowest standard variable rate of the 41 lenders to have announced rate cuts, with a 5.49% offering, followed by non-bank lender Pacific Mortgage Corp (5.52%), NAB’s online brand UBank (5.57%) and non-bank lender State Custodians (5.64%).
The highest standard variable rate is 7.2% from Arab Bank Australia.
“On the savings front, UBank is the only institution to so far announce a rate drop to its online savings account, passing on the full 25 basis point cut. We’re expecting more institutions to drop their savings rates in the coming weeks,” says Ratecity.com.au spokesperson Michelle Hutchison. 
<table border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="332"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Company
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
SVR change
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
New SVR
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
diff/month for $300K
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Adelaide Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.01%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$38.77
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
AMP Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.17%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.70%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$33.95
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Arab Bank Australia
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
7.20%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$40.77
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Bankmecu
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.25%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.49%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$47.33
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Bank of Melbourne
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.60%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.80
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Bank SA
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.18%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.67%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$35.91
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Bankwest
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.19%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.59%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$37.79
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Bendigo Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.19%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.71%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$37.98
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
BOQ
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.71%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.98
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Coastline Credit Union
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.79%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$38.37
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Commonwealth Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.60%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.80
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
CUA
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.05%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$38.84
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Gateway Credit Union
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.25%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.19%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$48.92
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Greater Building Society
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.15%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.25%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$29.37
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Heritage Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.34%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.36
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Homeloans
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.79%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$38.37
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
HomeSide Lending
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.61%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.82
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Hume Building Society
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.20%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.11
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
ING DIRECT
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.25%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.09%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$48.70
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Macarthur Credit Union
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.15%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.40%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$29.56
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Macquarie Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.65%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.88
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
ME Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.08%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$38.90
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
MyRate
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.25%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.92%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$48.32
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
MyState
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.21%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.59%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$41.78
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
nab
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.58%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.77
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Newcastle Permanent
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.25%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.20
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Pacific Mortgage Group
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.52%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$37.87
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Police Credit
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.19%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.09
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Police Credit Union
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.24%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.18
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
RAMS Home Loans
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.55%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$39.71
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
RESI Mortgage Corp
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.20%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.09%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$38.92
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
SCU
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.15%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.44%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$29.61
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
SGE Credit Union
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.18%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.27%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$35.29
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
St George Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.17%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.69%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$33.94
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
State Custodians
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.18%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.64%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$34.27
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Suncorp Bank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.19%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.69%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$37.94
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
UBank
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.25%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.57%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$47.52
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Unicredit-WA
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.15%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
5.70%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$28.62
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Westpac
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.18%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.71%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$35.97
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="116" nowrap valign="top">
Yellow Brick Road
</td>
<td width="68" nowrap valign="top">
-0.25%
</td>
<td width="66" nowrap valign="top">
6.19%
</td>
<td width="82" nowrap valign="top">
-$48.92
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
 Source: Ratecity.com.au
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