A mortgage is one of life’s biggest financial outlays for most Australians. Regardless of your life stage – purchasing your first property or expanding your portfolio – you’ll have a wealth of options when choosing a loan. Lenders have plenty of terms, rates, and structures, and getting through them can become a nightmare. Here’s when a mortgage broker comes in useful. They take care of everything for you, choosing a loan product that will best suit your financial objectives, processing

Salary sacrificing your mortgage is a great strategy to: Handle your finances Decrease your taxable income Pay off your home loan earlier Salary sacrificing – or salary packaging, as it’s sometimes referred to in Australia – is an agreement you have with your employer where you are paid part of your salary in non-cash benefits.  This strategy will be extremely helpful to people who want both tax savings and reductions in their mortgage debt balance. Below is a detailed guide

Housing affordability has grown into a major concern for most Australians. In the face of property prices in major metropolitan cities still on the rise, it remains very important to examine the factors that impinge on affordability and find ways of making house buying more accessible. The following guide will let you know: What is happening with housing affordability in Australia What affects it How you can succeed in the housing market The Current State of Housing Affordability See what

When exploring ways to optimise your mortgage, an offset account often comes up as a powerful tool. But what exactly is an offset account, and how does it affect your monthly repayments? Let’s dive into how it works and why it could be a game-changer for homeowners. What is the Benefit of Having an Offset Account? An offset account is just a transaction account that sits beside your home loan. The balance of that account comes off of how much

Owning a home is a milestone event in life but equally fraught with a great deal of financial responsibility. Among the many ways one can protect that investment, one option is mortgage protection insurance, or MPI.  Below, we will explain: All You Need to Know About Mortgage Protection Insurance How it Works Its Various Types How It Compares to Other Insurance Options Understanding Mortgage Protection Insurance Mortgage protection insurance is a type of policy designed to cover your mortgage payments

Browsing property sites – at home or abroad – can be exciting. You may have already found your dream home (perhaps several!) and can’t wait to get started. However, buying a home is as big a financial challenge as it is an exhilarating milestone. Especially for first-time buyers. Saving for a deposit, for example, can be a real uphill battle. However, the 20% deposit figure you see everywhere isn’t the only option. It’s actually possible to get loans with less

If you’ve spent any time at all researching property and investment, you’ve probably come across the term ‘negative gearing’. It’s everywhere right now. And at first glance, it doesn’t seem to make much sense. After all, it’s an investment strategy that involves losing money, right? How can that make sense? Well, negative gearing is an extremely popular investment strategy, especially here in Australia. So while it may appear crazy, there’s actually strong logic behind it. Ultimately, it’s about tax. Investors

Getting a mortgage approved – whether at home or abroad – is a cause for celebration. It’s the first step on an exciting new chapter and, for many, one of the biggest milestones in one’s life. But that doesn’t mean it’s all clear sailing. Navigating home loans (which loan type is right for me?) can be overwhelming. As can paying one back once it’s been approved. This is where ‘mortgage stress’ enters the conversation. If you’ve ever wondered about the

Thinking about buying property in Australia? Whether it’s an investment or a second home, there are a few essentials to keep in mind to save yourself some hassle. We’re here to walk you through a guide to ensure you’re properly prepared: 1. Know the Australian Real Estate Market The Aussie real estate market is fairly unique – demand varies between major metro areas and quite rural regions. You’ll usually see the following high-demand cities with the highest price tags: Sydney 

Offset accounts let you save on mortgage interest and reduce the time it takes to pay off a home loan. If you know how to use one properly, you’re potentially saving thousands in interest payments as well as shaving years off your mortgage term. Not everyone knows how to use one, so we’ll be covering the following throughout this article: How they work. The benefits. Potential drawbacks. Practical tips for getting the most out of them. What is an Offset

Buying your first house is an exciting, albeit challenging, journey, and the mortgage process is a key step throughout this process. You’ll likely come across the term “conditional approval” along the way. Although this sounds like another layer of complexity, especially if you’re new to home buying, it simplifies your path to getting a mortgage. What Is Conditional Approval? This is a stage in the mortgage approval process where lenders review your initial application, find it promising, but still require