Large numbers of borrowers will soon be coming to the end of their fixed-rate period, with Commonwealth Bank alone revealing that $44 billion of fixed loans will expire this year, according to Canstar.

Some media reports have suggested that borrowers in that situation should be worried, because their new variable interest rate is likely to be higher than their current fixed rate. However, there are four reasons not to panic:

• When you took out your home loan, the lender wouldn’t have approved your application unless it believed you could still repay your loan if interest rates increased
• While no one likes paying higher interest rates, they'll continue to be low by historical standards even if they rise by 2 percentage points over the next couple of years
• If you budget for higher interest rates now, you'll be prepared when they do increase
• When your fixed-rate period comes to an end, you can ask your broker to refinance you to another lender offering a comparable loan with a lower interest rate