Home loan rates and OCR pass-through

The story so far

From late September 2025, banks cut fixed home loan rates, with BNZ lowering its one-year rate to 4.49 per cent and ANZ, Westpac and Kiwibank following.^{30 Sep 2025; 1, 2, 6 Oct 2025} The Reserve Bank then cut the official cash rate by 50 basis points to 2.5 per cent, and some banks lowered variable rates in response.^{8, 9 Oct 2025} Several banks kept trimming fixed rates through October, and by 1 November Westpac and BNZ were offering five-year fixed rates of 4.99 per cent, a level not seen since 2021.^{20, 29 Oct 2025; 2 Nov 2025} A further 25 basis point cut to 2.25 per cent in late November was not passed on to fixed rates by the major banks, and Finance Minister Nicola Willis urged banks to pass on the cuts.^{27, 28 Nov 2025} From December the trend reversed, as Westpac, ANZ and other banks raised some fixed rates because wholesale costs were rising, and the Reserve Bank Governor warned this could dampen the economy.^{10, 15, 18 Dec 2025}

Latest

ANZ reported more customers were switching from floating to fixed terms as rates rose.^{18 Dec 2025}

Key moments

1. 30 Sep 2025BNZ cuts one-year fixed home loan rate to 4.49 per cent.
2. 8 Oct 2025Reserve Bank cuts official cash rate by 50 basis points to 2.5 per cent.
3. 2 Nov 2025Westpac and BNZ offer five-year fixed rates of 4.99 per cent, lowest since 2021.
4. 27 Nov 2025Official cash rate cut to 2.25 per cent; Willis urges banks to pass on cuts.
5. 28 Nov 2025Major banks do not cut fixed mortgage rates after the latest OCR reduction.
6. 10 Dec 2025Westpac raises some two to five-year fixed mortgage rates, citing rising wholesale costs.
7. 15 Dec 2025Reserve Bank Governor says financial conditions have tightened more than intended.
8. 18 Dec 2025ASB, BNZ, Westpac and ANZ raise some longer-term fixed home loan rates.

Written from the stories below; each sentence links to its sources.