Gary Lin - Mortgage Adviser

27/05/2026

Reserve Bank of New Zealand has kept the Official Cash Rate unchanged at 2.25% today.

The interesting thing is that 3 of 6 on the board that voted for rates rise...and have signalled the holding period is coming to an end and hikes are on the horizon.

So the OCR appears to "sure to rise" in the next announcement or in the coming months...

As Kiwibank economist Jarrod Kerr has said, it is not if, but when rates will rise, and the chance of rates drop is slim to none...

We at Lighthouse Financial are actively encouraging our clients to refix early. In some cases clients are proactively breaking interest rate fixed terms early, and fix for a longer term.

If you need any advise around your mortgages, give me a shout.

Reserve Bank holds Official Cash Rate at 2.25% as expected, but needed the Governor’s casting vote after a 3-3 split vote

21/05/2026

NZ home loan rates are on a slight rise again this week.

I have been contacting clients 60 days in advance before their current refix term expires, and encouraging them to think about locking in rates in advance now.

Most banks allow borrowers to lock in the next refix term 40 to 60 days in advance.

With rates on the rise, many clients are choosing to refix for longer. 18 months and 2 year rates are the most popular refix choices.

If you have been with your bank for more than 3 years, and you haven't received any cashback, perhaps give your bank a nudge and get some cashback retention too!

Some clients aren't happy with the cashback retention being given, and some banks are offering up to 1.25% cashback on refinance.

13/05/2026

Great evening celebrating with the team at Lighthouse Financial at the Kiwi Adviser Network annual awards night!

We came 2nd in the advisers 5+ category, which is a great achievement!

Thank you Michael Vincent & Andrew Armstrong for leading an amazing team, along with Mitch Worthington, Ian Chan, Jasmina Lohi, Vincent Connett, Ish*ta Shrivastav, and Keith Nansen 👍

Finally thank you to the amazing Warwick Slow and Sarah Johnston for your ongoing support 🙏

08/05/2026

Here's another happy client with their mortgage problem soon to be solved.

Clients VS are couples who are doctors owning their own GP practice.

They recently built a home, but are now charged low equity premium across their home and one rental property by their main bank.

Reason that a low equity premium is charged is because their Loan to Value Ratio LVR across two properties are 89%. When LVR is above 80%, banks will charge low equity premium between 0.25% to 1% above normal home loan rates.

Client VS is upset that their main bank couldn't help them, and I was initially unable to help too.

But after further discover of what they do, I found that they have shareholder equity in their GP business.

So my proposal is to raise a business loan of the amount required to bring down the home loan to meet 80% LVR, equal or less than the shareholder equity in the business.

Then either stay with the existing bank with a cashback retention, or if VS choose, refinance to another bank for more cashback, which will also offset some of the break fees to bring their home loan rates back down without the low equity premium.

The result will be that they will achieve a net savings about $15k interest rates paid, and hopefully a bit of cashback $15-20k let over as well!

Just another normal day in the office for a mortgage adviser!

06/05/2026

Unemployment expected to get worse as fuel crisis impact yet to be felt, according to Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr.

The unemployment rate eased to 5.3 percent in the quarter ended March.

Kerr said the data was "very outdated", and the full impact of the fuel crisis would be felt later this year.

"We are hearing of construction projects being post-poned, projects being cancelled..forestry crews being stood down because it's too expensive to cut-down trees..."

Surging air fares and flight cancellations are likely to dent the tourism industry.

"Businesses, when a crisis hits - they cut worker hours before they cut their jobs...that's where the slack shows up first."

My take on this is that you should get prepared.

Get your CV ready.

Look for signs of restructuring or layoff rumours.

Start applying jobs before s hits the fan.

Review your mortgage structure now.

Make sure your interest only period on your rental loans don't expire in the next 12 months.

Work out the cashflow implications if the rental loans go into principal and interest.

Interest terms coming up for renew in the next 6 months, consider ask the bank for break fee, and potentially break to refix for longer term.

If you are unsure how to protect yourself with a better mortgage structure, let's chat!

Kiwibank's chief economist says the full impact of the fuel crisis will be felt later this year.

24/04/2026

NZ mortgage rates are on the up and up...

Swap rates are definitely creeping up and up, largely due to uncertainty around fuel shortages and inflation impact to come...

This week few banks have increased their fixed mortgage rates, as well as test rates.

This not only means your mortgages coming up for refix are getting more expensive...

But also your maximum borrowing capacity is on the decline...

Current 1 year fixed interest rate is about 4.59% discounted.

Based on the swap rate jump, equivalent to 25 June 2025, the 1 year rate at the time was 5.09% advertised, and probably 4.89% discounted via your favourite mortgage adviser.

If you have any mortgage fixed rates coming up in the next 60 days, definitely start thinking and potentially locking in rates now!

21/04/2026

Annual inflation stays at 3.1% in March quarter.

Good kinda news that inflation hasn't gone up in the first 3 months...

But the oil shock from the US/Iran war hasn't flow through.

RBNZ and economists are expecting inflation in the near term to go up.

ANZ is predicting 3 OCR increases later 2026.

Interest rates are steadily increasing already.

Many of our clients are choosing to fix 2 to 3 years, in anticipation of the rate increases.

Continue uncertainty in the middle east conflict, potential economic bad times ahead, and the upcoming NZ election plays in the minds of many borrowers for months to come...

All eyes on the control of the Strait of Hormuz. It's probably more important than the conflict in Iran itself.

20/04/2026

Did you know that banks offer cashback when you refinance your home loan, or taking on a new loan?

Cashback currently is between 0.9% to 1.25% depending on the bank.

So if you have a $1mil mortgage, cashback could be up to $12,500. $2mil mortgage = $25,000.

However, there are few things to consider before refinancing your home loan.

1st is that many investors or home owners simply forget, or not ask their current bank for a cashback retention to keep your business.

2nd is that if you refinance within 3 to 4 years, depending on your bank, you might still be subject to cashback clawback from the previous cashback that the bank has given you.

3rd is that your interest rate might still be fixed, and there is generally a break fee if you refinance which triggers the current fixed rate term to be broken. If you have fixed for a few years, the break fee could out benefit the new cashback you could get!

4th is that, in the current uncertain economic & interest rate climate due to the Iran war, many clients are looking to break their fixed interest rate terms early, and fix for a longer term. Some banks & economists are forecasting interest rates to rise in later parts of 2026. Breaking early, and getting new cashback on refinance to offset some of the break fee, isn't a bad idea!

5th is that if you are refinancing, many investors are also taking the opportunity to restructure their interest only periods longer, and maximising their long term for more cashflow flexibility. However this is more an advanced mortgage lending practice for more seasoned investor, be aware that extending loan term will result in more interest cost during the life of the loan.

If you are unsure if you are in a position to refinance, or how to calculate the benefits that may apply to you? Feel free to send me a DM!

PS: note that normal bank lending criteria applies.

17/04/2026

1.25% cashback Home loan refinance special for this month!

22/01/2026

Bad news...NZ annual inflation has increased to 3.1%...

Increasing interest rates now will potentially derail the economic recovery...

All eyes on RBNZ reaction on 19 February OCR review.

Figures to the end of last year show the cost of goods rising by 3.1 percent.