When requiring a loan, most borrowers will immediately start an interest rate comparison. Checking rates from different banks and lenders on finance for the loan product they are interested in. But are you confident that you are correctly and properly comparing finance rates? To find the best rate that suits their purpose and profile, borrowers need to evaluate the loan and rate, not simply compare finance interest rates.
Evaluating loan rates accurately, and with sufficient detail to make an informed financial decision, can involve delving beyond the rate figure displayed by lenders. Numerous factors affect lender rates and the impact of interest rates on loans. Understanding finance interest rates at even a basic level, may provide borrowers with the tools required to make better informed decisions around their finances.
To save the time involved in comparing rates, borrowers can utilise our expert lending services to quickly source the best rate from the right lender, for their funding requirements.
The interest rate is essentially the price paid to borrow money from lenders. When a borrower needs credit, a lender extends that credit and charges an annual fee – the interest rate.
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Additional fees and charges are typically applied to many types of loans. The rate is integral to many aspects of the loan and the total cost of the goods or purpose for the loan. It affects the monthly repayment amount and the overall acquisition cost of the goods.
The cash rate, as set by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is not an interest rate for borrowers. It is the overnight borrowing rate between banks and lenders. Lenders use this rate as a basis from which to establish their own lending rates – adding their own costs and allowing for other factors.
To arrive at the real cost of a purchase with finance, the total interest payable over the loan term should be added to the purchase price.
To ensure a loan is affordable and the cost of the purchase realistic and viable, borrowers seek the lowest interest rate available, and a rate that will result in repayments that work with business cash flow and household budgets.
Consumer loans advertise an annual rate and a Comparison Rate, as required by law. The Comparison Rate is the rate charged on a specific loan example and includes some of the fees and charges from that lender.
Finance rates can be fixed or variable. Fixed rates remain unchanged for the full term while variable rates can change with fluctuations in rates by the lender.
From the lender perspective, the interest rate represents the lender’s cost of sourcing and providing credit, their interest in a specific lending market, and their risk assessment of the borrower.
Costs, assessment criteria and other factors vary across the lender market, across the different lending sectors and products, and for borrowers with varying credit profiles.
Credit profiles play an important role in the rate offered to individuals and businesses. Lenders will display their best rate for good credit applicants. The same borrower may be offered different rates from different lenders based on variations in lender criteria. Lender criteria plays a vital role in what rate is offered.
It can be time-consuming to source sufficient quotes to properly compare interest rates. Quotes may be required to obtain rates for comparison. In requesting multiple interest rate quotes, loan applicants can risk negative impacts on their credit score.
We specialise in sourcing the lowest rates to save borrowers the time and credit score impacts involved in comparing interest rates. With more than 80+ lenders, we have the market coverage to find the right lenders and best rates. Contact us for the best interest rates.
Our guides offer quick comparisons and simple explainers to help you glide through the financing process with confidence.
Interest rates vary across the lending market at any particular time and change over time. The rates charged by banks and other lenders are influenced by numerous factors on a domestic and an international basis. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) sets the cash rate, which is an overnight borrowing rate for lenders. This rate is established based on economic indicators such as inflation, unemployment, domestic economic growth and trade, consumer confidence, and issues affecting the global economy.
Economic conditions evolve and change over time which results in fluctuations in interest rates. In addition to using the cash rate as a basis, the ’markets’ – banks and lenders, utilise their own analysts to forecast economic conditions to set their own policies and interest rates.
Using their own forecasts and intel, individual lenders establish their own policies in regard to loan assessment criteria which impacts the interest rate offered to individual borrowers. For example, the rate offered to an individual on a loan application today may be different from the rate offered in 6 months time.
Rates on personal loans are typically higher than business finance as lenders perceive businesses as lower risk. Being aware of changes in economic conditions and indicators may assist borrowers better plan for funding. Contact us to speak to a broker and find out more.
Lenders decide their own interest rates based on their costs of sourcing funding and other factors. This results in variations across the lending market.
Online finance calculators can be used to compare repayments based on different interest rates.
Online loan calculators are available to work out repayment estimates for different interest rates to make basic comparisons.
Calculators do not account for the credit profile of users or the fees charged by lenders. Lenders will offer different rates to applicants with different credit scores. The rate offered can vary from the estimate obtained with a finance calculator.
A variable interest rate is a rate that can change when the lender changes their rate for that credit product.
No. The cash rate is an overnight borrowing rate for lenders, not a consumer credit interest rate.
Business entities are typically perceived by lenders as lower risk borrowers and lower rates are applied to business compared with consumer loans.
The Comparison Rate applies to consumer loans and is the rate for a specific loan example when some lender fees have been included.
The amount borrowed may be assessed by lenders in terms of risk. If the creditworthiness of the applicant to repay that amount is assessed as higher risk, a higher rate may be offered.
When loan quotes are requested, lenders report the requests to Credit Reporting Agencies. Multiple requests for the same loan can be viewed negatively when credit profiles are reviewed by lenders. This can impact the credit profile.
