Compare fixed rate home loans for December

A fixed rate home loan is a loan with an interest rate that is locked in for the duration of the fixed term. This means you’ll know exactly what your repayments will be from the start and won’t have to worry about them changing until the fixed term ends.

There are some common fees that are payable upfront, and some fees payable on an ongoing basis or at loan termination with fixed rate home loans.

These include:

• Application fee
• Service fee (monthly or annual)
• Discharge fee.

If you decide to switch loans during the fixed period or pay out the loan early you might have to also pay a break fee that will be determined by your lender based on the rate you’re currently.

This is where Mozo's handy calculators come in. We can help you compare fixed rate home loans with variable rate loans or compare fixed rate terms to find the best home loan for you.

Here's a rundown of our top tools:

• Market snapshot table: A selection of advertised fixed rate deals to help you compare rates and features of banks with fixed rate loans keen for your business. You'll find this table at the top of this page.
• Repayment calculator: Mozo's home loan comparison table will help you to crunch the numbers based on your loan amount and the value of the property. You can then filter by the fixed rate term and our mortgage repayments calculator will show you how much your monthly repayments will be.
• Comparison Calculator: Can't decide between two fixed rate loans? Simply plug in the details of each loan into the calculator and it will show you which loan will be cheaper.
• Rate change calculator: Wondering how long you should fix for or when it would be cheaper to get a variable rate loan? Play around with our rate change calculator to see how much your repayments would go up on a variable rate if rates were to change.
• Reviews. Thousands of customers have reviewed their home loan on Mozo so read up to see what they say about the fees and costs of their fixed loans before you take the home loan plunge. Check out our home loan reviews here.

Once your fixed term ends, the revert rate will automatically kick in unless you negotiate an alternative with your lender. This rate is typically much higher than the rate you signed up for, and can make quite a large impact on your monthly repayments.

A fixed rate can be preferable if you want to know how much you’ll be repaying each month and don’t want to be blindsided by any rate hikes. In contrast, variable rates fluctuate over time and could require you to make constant adjustments to your monthly budget.

Fixed rates offer more predictability than variable rates when it comes to monthly repayments, but there are tradeoffs.

Fixed rates are priced according to future expectations, making them a good barometer for where interest rates are heading. For the fixed rate to be worthwhile, interest rates would need to rise beyond the lender’s expectations. This is why fixed rates are always a bit of a gamble — consumers will rarely have access to the same data lenders have, making it very difficult to beat them on pricing.

Yes. If you’re currently on a variable rate and want to switch, you can call your lender to do so or commence the process yourself via online banking or your lender’s app.

There are some aspects to a fixed rate home loan that borrowers might not appreciate. For one, many limit the amount of extra repayments you can make, or even restrict them altogether. If you come into a lump sum of money or generally have plans to pay off your loan ahead of schedule, this can be a major impediment.

Fixed rate home loans also come with some rather expensive break costs, which will apply if you want to sell your property, top up your loan, pay off your loan early, or refinance to a cheaper option.

Even if you’ve been approved for a fixed rate loan, your lender can change their rates in the time it takes to finalise your application and advance your funds. That means you might lose out on the low fixed rate that you were drawn to in the first place.

A mortgage rate lock can help by locking in the rate you were offered at the time of approval. Most lenders will charge a fee (either a flat fee or a percentage of the loan balance), but it can be worth it if you’re able to save money in the long run.