Kiwibank and ASB have joined other major banks in raising home loan interest rates in the lead-up to Christmas.
ANZ and Westpac increased their fixed rate mortgages last week for terms from six months to five years.
The BNZ is the only major bank not to lift its rates.
Director of the mortgage broking firm Loanmarket, Bruce Patten, says the banks are responding to increased costs in wholesale funding, in anticipation of the Reserve Bank raising the official cash rate next year.
Mr Patten says the banks probably wanted to warn customers before they went on holiday.
