Home Loans Articles

How to get a holiday home to call your own

If owning a home is the great Australian dream, surely owning a holiday home is the dream on steroids.

How to capitalise on a holiday home

If owning a home is the great Australian dream, surely owning a holiday home is the dream on steroids.

Five ways to save as a first-home buyer

Buying your first home is an experience fraught with excitement, anticipation and fear, in constantly changing doses. The main anxiety-inducing aspect of the process is the cost. But don't despair: here are five ways to save when you are buying your first home and taking on a mortgage.

Cut your home loan debt with extra repayments

Conquering your debt is no easy feat and when you sign up for a home loan, it can feel like you will never get to the end of those home loan repayments. However, if you can tighten those purse strings and find a little extra to put into your repayments you could save a huge amount of money and cut years off your loan.

Five ways to save $1000s when buying property

It doesn't matter which way you look at it, buying a home is an expensive exercise. Thankfully, the benefits can outweigh the negatives – you gain security, the satisfaction of designing your home exactly to your taste, and you stop wasting money on rent.

Save a packet with a package

If you're trying to get a better deal on your mortgage, and improve your finances generally, it may be worth considering a package home loan, which bundles your mortgage together with other financial products, such as credit cards and everyday transaction accounts.

Are low rate home loans really the best?

You won't have any trouble locating a low interest rate home loan today. The Australian financial market is very competitive and it's never been easier to compare home loans online. But is lowest the best? You need to learn to make the most of low interest rates.

The costs of home loan insurance

These days it feels like we need insurance for everything. It's one of those things, we often don't realise we need until it's too late. Lender's Mortgage Insurance on the other hand, is not an optional insurance but instead a compulsory insurance some lenders enforce onto borrowers whom they consider a higher risk customer.

How to locate the best home loan rates

Getting the top home loan rate for your home loan can be a tiring task – researching different lenders, talking to them and comparing interest rates can be a real time killer. But it doesn’t have to be so hard, particularly when you can easily compare home loans from the comfort of your lounge room.

Has your lender passed on the savings?

Even if they didn't back a winning horse in the race that stops a nation, Australian homeowners still scored a victory on Melbourne Cup Day, with news that the Reserve Bank dropped the official cash interest rate by 0.25 percent, to 4.50 percent.

Top real estate bargains in Australia

Ever wondered where the best real estate bargains can be found in the country? You probably guessed it; they aren't in our big cities! In fact, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney all ranked in the top 10 most unaffordable metropolitan cities of the world, according to Demograhia's latest International Housing Affordability Survey.

First home buyer's guide for singles

Buying a home can be laborious, stressful and confusing. This is never truer than when you have to do it alone, without the extra emotional and financial support provided by a partner.

Pay off your home loan in record time

Unless you're one of the country's richest people, you will need a bit of help from a bank to buy your home. A mortgage, however, doesn't have to rule your life forever - there are smart ways to ensure you pay it off in record time.

Moving house? Take your home loan with you

Most home loans are set for 25 or 30-year periods, but you would be hard-pressed to find someone who lives in the same house for the entire lifespan of their mortgage.

Home ownership harder for Gen Y?

One of the defining trends of our time may be loss of the Australian dream of owning a home, according to new studies. But before we despair, we should understand why the younger generation has the bad luck, and what would-be Gen Y home owners can do to improve their chances of getting a foot on the property ladder.

Home loan rate battle, how low can they go?

Spring is notorious for being a busy time for house hunters and therefore home loan applicants. So it's little wonder that the banks are competing heavily for mortgage business at the moment.

How to make money from real estate

Real estate investors will be familiar with the debate about whether to choose a 'principal and interest' (P&I) or 'interest only' repayment when signing up for an investment mortgage. Ultimately, the choice depends on your personal circumstances and preferences.

Fixed or variable? Crunch the numbers

With lenders engaging in serious competition on the fixed rate home loan front, it is timely to consider how this type of loan stacks up against the traditional variable home loan.