Refinance savings calculator
What switching lenders would actually save you.
Interest Rate Rise Calculator
Enter your loan and move the rate up or down to see what happens to your repayment. Use a negative number to model a cut.
Is that number right for your situation?
A calculator applies one formula. Lenders apply their own, and they disagree with each other. Send us what you worked out and we will tell you how it looks against real lender policy.
- More than 60 lenders compared
- No fee to you
- A real answer, not a sales call
How this is calculated
We work out the principal and interest repayment on your balance at your current rate over the years remaining, then repeat it at the changed rate, and show the difference. Both figures assume the loan runs to the end of its term with no additional repayments.
The annual figure is simply the monthly difference multiplied by twelve. Over a full loan term the total cost of a rate change is considerably larger than the annual number suggests, because it applies for every year the loan runs.
Why a small change matters more on a large loan
A quarter of a percent sounds trivial. On a large balance it is not, because the rate applies to the whole debt rather than to your repayment. The larger your balance and the longer your remaining term, the more a small move costs you.
This is also why the same rate change hits two borrowers very differently. Someone five years into a loan feels it far more than someone with three years left, even at the same rate.
What to do if the number worries you
A rate rise is not something you can control, but the rate you are on is. If your loan has been with the same lender for several years, particularly if a fixed period ended and reverted, you may be paying materially more than you need to. Start with our home loan health check, and see what switching could save with the refinance savings calculator.
An offset account reduces the interest charged without you paying anything extra, and extra repayments made before a rise cushion its effect. If repayments are already difficult, talk to us early rather than late, because options narrow once arrears begin.
Common questions
No. Lenders set their own variable rates and are not obliged to move in step with the cash rate, in either direction. Passing on rises in full and cuts only partly is a well-documented pattern, which is one reason to review your rate periodically rather than assuming it stays competitive.
Usually a few weeks. Lenders typically give notice and then apply the new rate from a set date, with your repayment adjusting at the next cycle. If you are on a fixed rate, nothing changes until the fixed period ends.
Fixing buys certainty, not savings. You are protected from rises and you forgo cuts, and fixed loans usually limit extra repayments and may not offer a full offset. Many people split the loan instead, which our split loan calculator models.
Contact your lender before you miss a payment. Hardship provisions exist and using them early is far better than entering arrears. We can also review whether another lender would place you better, though that is harder once repayments have been missed.
Paying more than you need to?
We compare over 60 lenders and will tell you plainly if your current loan is already competitive.
Related
Offset account calculator
Cut interest without paying anything extra.
Split loan calculator
Fix part of the loan and leave the rest variable.