Homeowners are taking advantage of long-term fixed rates and the opportunity to lock in certainty with their loan repayments as interest rates remain at record lows.

With the Reserve Bank of Australia this afternoon leaving the official cash rate on hold at 2.50%, new analysis by National Australian Bank has found almost a third of all applications for fixed rate loans in August opted for five-year terms.

Since the RBA last changed the official cash rate in August 2013, one and two-year terms have been more popular among homebuyers.

In August, one-year loans accounted for about 20% of applications and two-year loans 25%.

Fixed-rate applications accounted for almost 20% of all applications to NAB in August.

NAB is currently offering the leading packaged fixed home loan rates of the major banks across one, two, three, four and five-year terms, as well as the lowest standard variable rate of 5.88%p.a.

NAB has not been beaten on its SVR by any major bank for the past five years.

Antony Cahill, Group Executive Products and Markets, said NAB had cut fixed rates five times in 2014 and was offering some of the lowest home loan rates in more than 20 years. He said it was a great time for homeowners to pay down more of their mortgage or lock in the certainty of a great fixed rate.

“What we are now seeing is customers opting for our five-year term in greater numbers than we’ve seen before,” he said.

“This reflects that today’s customers are taking a more sophisticated approach to managing their debt.

“We know about 85 per cent of NAB home loan accounts are ahead on their mortgage repayments – and with record low interest rates they have a great opportunity to get further ahead.”

NAB is currently offering packaged fixed home loan rates of 4.79%p.a. for one-year, 4.84%p.a. for two-year, 4.94%p.a. for three-year, 4.99%p.a. for four-year, and 4.99%p.a. for its five-year term.

Find out more about NAB home loans here.