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Straight Answers · Refinancing
What's an LVR tier, and can I get revalued to drop into a lower one?
Bayley Clarke · Mortgage broker on the road · Last checked 3 September 2026 · 3 min read
The short answer
The banks move interest rates based on LVR tiers, loan to value ratio percentages. A typical mortgage is 80% of what your property is worth. 70% is the next tier, then 60% and 50%. Above 80% you've got 90% and 95%, with extra fees and higher rates.
Say you borrowed at 80%, spent 50 grand on renovations, and the property gets revalued so the loan is now 70% of what it's worth. Then yes, we can look to get you repriced on the new tier. The margin is sometimes small, but it's better in your pocket than theirs.
The ninety second version. The rest of this page is the detail underneath it.
The ladder
LVR is your loan divided by what the property is worth. Owe $480k on a place worth $600k and you're at 80%, which is the standard mortgage. The banks then price in bands. At each tier there are different interest rates available, as well as different fees and charges that come into the mix.
Above 80% you'll typically have additional fees and charges as well as higher rates, because that's where lenders mortgage insurance or a lender's own fee in lieu of it kicks in. Below 80%, at 60% versus 80% your rate may be slightly lower, because you're seen as slightly lower risk. Your property is worth more than the bank has at stake.
How a revaluation moves you down
Say you borrow money originally at an 80% loan, and you've spent 50 grand on renovations, and you get the property revalued. Now your loan is 70% of what the new property is worth. Growth does the same thing without the renovation: a $600k place that's now worth $690k puts a $480k loan at 70%.
If you're borrowing at an LVR tier, then yes, we can look to get you repriced based on your updated LVR tier to drop the rate. Some banks will do that off a desktop valuation with no cost. Others want a full valuation before they'll move you, and a few don't reprice existing customers on LVR at all, which makes it a refinance conversation instead.
What it's actually worth
Sometimes the rate difference isn't crazy. Between tiers under 80% it's often a small margin. On a $480k loan even a small margin is a few hundred dollars a year, and if the revaluation is free, that's free money.
The bigger win is coming down from above 80%. Getting from 90% to under 80% doesn't just change the rate, it takes you out of the LMI band, which can open up the reduced buffer refinance paths that all sit under 80%. However, it's better in your pocket than theirs either way.
The honest bit: the valuation decides it, and you don't control the valuation
Renovations don't add value dollar for dollar. Spend $50k on a kitchen and the valuer might give you $30k. Spend it on a pool and they might give you nothing. Growth in your suburb is what moves LVR most reliably.
Before you ask for a revaluation, I'll check what the desktop number says. If it's short, wait. A bad valuation on file doesn't help anyone.
Think your LVR has dropped?
A 30 minute call. I'll check what your place is likely worth today, work out which tier you'd land in, and tell you whether a reprice or a refinance gets you the better deal.
No cost to you, ever. The bank pays me when a loan settles. · How I get paid
Next question
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