Very Competitive Home loan rates. I am with them for the last couple of months. So far so good.
They are a bit slow with processing home loan application. But pass on the RBA Cash rate benefits straight away. The previous variable rate for Owner-occupier was 2.79. Now they are reducing it to 2.54. Plus free offset account with Variable Home loan rates.
Not Sure about the Investment/construction home loan rates. Please check their website or contact freedom staff for more details.
2.99% is more than 2.54%
If you borrow $500,000 paying 0.45% extra in interest over 5 years is $7,140 extra. So getting cashback of $2,000 still doesn't make it a good deal.
O lord why 5 years :(
Wow fixed at higher than many banks are doing variable rates and for 5 years. With all the repayment restrictions that come with fixed rates too.
Banks don't offer fixed rates for the benefit of the consumer. They have more data than customers ever will, and set their fixed rates in a way to ensure that the consumer loses.
This is why the banks make so much money off of the mugs that are the Australian public.
Bruh!
This was done some months ago now, offering as a comparison only. Only repayment restriction really is no more than an extra $30k paid in over the fixed period.
Fixed at 5 years @2.99 was insurance against any wild variable swing. He figured that "if" things went way down, he still got a low rate which will switch to variable down the track if that looks good then. PS: at the time, variables were higher than 2.99%, btw. The yearly fees (if 30 years) = 11,850 + 2k = 13,850. Or, 20 + 2K = 9,900, 10 years, $5,950 savings + a loan repayment based on 2K less from the start.
To each, their own. No one knows, for certain, how things will go.
Forget about interest rate changes, what if life changes and he wants to sell within 5 years? What do his break fees look like?
Every situation is different. Right now, he's pretty much able to work wherever he wants and can command a good wage (front/back/every end software developer). A part of this was so he, his sister, & I could live together paying his mortgage, vs. renting. The further thinking is if he did decide to take another job/position/whatever, she & I would be able to swing the mortgage ourselves. Actually, the house cost so little, one of us would be okay. So, it becomes an investment property/ABB, at worst. Incredible location, for the $, btw.
I fixed in a 3.99% rate for 5 years. I was 21 years old back then. Got until late 2022 :( RIP me
@mcdev omg
Might be worth noting that he's a first home buyer and this deal is only applicable to such buyers.
Worst idea to fix your home loan for even one year. Forget about 5 year.
I am with Freedomelend last 3 months. OP - How do you know they will pass on the full discount to existing customers? So far all good with freedomlend. Very slow painful process to change loans and that is par for the course no matter who you change to. Their web banking is clunky but works. No phone apps but you can logon via web browser on phone. 100% offset account that has no monthly charges. WIN WIN. Worth the effort in the end.
If you have been with them last 3 months, did they pass on the last rate cut?
I am switching to freedomlend soon.
Will they pass the full rate cut to their existing (investment) borrowers? seems the cut is only for their new customers.
Rates start off great, and over time they slowly stop being market leading.
After a few years with Freedomlend my home loan rate is is 3.01% and investment 3.56%. They wont/cant match the new customer rates.
If you're looking for a new loan/refinance I don't think you can go past Athena. With their automatic rate match for existing customers (to keep them the same as new). and loyalty discount. Looks very tempting! - has anyone had any experiences with them?
The only problem with Athena is the lack of offset.
Where is Freedom Lend in the scale of generous lenders?
Given the same financial situation, a generous lender will lend you more.
I don't think the 'scale of generous lenders' exists yet. Maybe you could start one.
Which group are you in, Freedom Lend?
Stingy lenders
Big banks have similar lending calculators to each other, with small variances between them.
"Sorry, you can only borrow upto 400k, so we cannot refinance your 1m loan"
OK lenders
Non-bank lenders have a significantly improved borrowing power assessment.
Borrowing capacity improved by 10~40% over stingy lenders
"We can refinance your 1m loan, but you need to reduce the balance to 700k first"
Generous lenders
Aggressive non-bank lenders.
Much greater borrowing capacities.
"Sure, we can refinance your 1m loan without problem"
Why is everyone against fixing? What if rates go up?
Fixing your loan is not to save money. It should only ever be about having certainty in your repayments.
The banks are much smarter than us.
If for some reason you still feel like you will save money on fixed, at least go 50/50 so you can have an offset in the variable part.
Homeloan shouldn't be like marriage.
If you don't like a lender, you should be able to jump ship to another without penalty.
I’m not. Have used fixed loans in the past multiple times to hedge risk where rapid changes in interest rates would have placed financial stress higher than I wanted at the time. With a mixed loan of fixed component and variable component I maximised offset capacity and extra payments while sleeping sound each night.
With the right approach fixed can be an excellent option. In the current economic climate though, RBA has flagged negative rates as a real possibility and I do not see the national data improving with recent/current events. Variable for the near term could be a relatively low risk play.
Correct. As I said, no one knows what will happen. If variable suddenly (political whim) jumps to 6-8%, variables will be in deep sh*t. Gov'ts do really crazy things. On the other hand, they may try the already debunked 0-neg interest, out of sheer corruption, and wanting to move every citizen into their corrupt banker-mates banks.
Time will tell.
Current market sentiment suggests rates will go down.
Banks have very smart people who make forecasts. If they think rates will go down, banks will make fixed rate loans more attractive to entice borrowers.
Looking at the latest deals, I'd be inclined to believe this is the case.
Which group are you in, Freedom Lend?
"You can have upto 100k of cashout with refinance. If more than 100k, you need to provide documentation to prove the usage"
"You can have upto 200k of cashout with refinance. If more than 200k, you need to provide documentation to prove the usage"
"You can have unlimited cashout with refinance, as long as your serviceability allows and the limit does not exceed 80% of the property"
FYI, I've been with Freedomlend for nearly 2 years and they don't seem to pass on full rates cuts to existing customers.
Case in point, my current variable rate is 2.91% and I've just asked if they can match the new customer rate.
Strange. i called them yesterday. they told me my new rate will be effective from 1st of April. Your home loan is fixed or Variable?
?
my current variable rate
Did they pass the rate cuts to you on the 1st? I have to wait till 20th for rates to be passed on
Owner occupied ?
Yes.
very strange. You should call their customer support and ask.
My son just financed with Suncorp. They gave a $2000 upfront off the total amount financed + waived all yearly maintenance fees ($395 yr) for the life of the loan (30 yrs) + did the rebate.
He started with a 5 year fixed-rate of 2.99%.
Just letting folks know what's out there as a comparison.