Personal loan rate cuts up to 2% just in time for Christmas spending

By Kelly Emmerton · · 2 min read
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If you’ve got your heart set on an end of year holiday or your New Year’s resolution is to finally tackle that kitchen reno, you’ll be glad to hear that there has been a spate of personal loan rate cuts recently.

Mozo data shows that ten lenders have updated their personal loan or car loan rates last month, and of those, nine decreased rates.

St.George and Latitude led the charge, with massive rate cuts of 200 basis points on fixed rate loans. The Latitude Fixed Car Loan went from 8.99% to 6.99%, while St.George’s Fixed, Unsecured Personal Loan dropped to 10.99% down from 12.99%.

“In October we started seeing some large rate cuts, particularly to car loans, and these newest reductions are a continuation of that. Depending on the loan term and amount, these changes could make a significant difference to a borrower’s bottom line,” said Mozo Data Manager Peter Marshall.

For example, on a $30,000 loan, the reduction from an 8.99% rate to 6.99% means a borrower would pay just $5,634 in interest over the life of a 5 year loan, instead of $7,356.

And by being on the lowest rate offered on a car loan at the moment, 5.34% from Community First, a borrower would pay just $4,249 on the same loan.

RELATED: 7 of the cheapest personal loans to help you hit your spending goals

Among the other lenders making changes was NRMA which reduced its Fixed Car Loan rate by 100 basis points, to 5.99% for new cars and 6.99% for used cars. Big bank Westpac also made a welcome change to its car loan offering, waiving the $250 application fee.

“It’s not a coincidence that lenders are making some pretty substantial reductions to their car loan rates at this time of year. Many car dealers have big sales at the end of the year, so banks want to be ready to snap up borrowers looking to cash in on this,” said Marshall.

“Some lenders have also cut unsecured personal loan rates, in a bid to cater to borrowers booking a holiday or needing to cover the Christmas spend.”

Whether it’s for a new set of wheels or any other spending goal you have, if you’re in the market for a low rate personal loan, make sure you check out our comparison table before taking the plunge.