Hi all,
I’m currently with BOQ with a super low fixed rate 1.89% maturing in July.
Their current offer is variable at 5.24%, fixed 3 years at 5.44%
Keeping things with BOQ would be an easy option as they already have all my docs and I know the branch owner.
Refinancing with another lender means another application process nightmare
Keen to know your thoughts
I am in the same situation.. my fixed rate expiring in June.
Go with a broker, we are getting rid of our bank..
Cashback and a lower rate, easy decision.
Whats the LVR ?
go onto a variable as retes will go down agn
Just asking general questions of others:
What will you do if you can't afford the increased rate?
If this is your primary residence and are unable to afford the increase, what options are available to you to assist with keeping the house?
interest only loan
Get a second job.
No offence. Genuinely curious to know, why people are suggesting to avoid a broker and find a deal themselves? Brokers on ozbargain offer portion of their commission and work out the best deal for you.
By the way I used to lend money as a bank employee and envied brokers because they had so many choices.
Yeah keen to know too!
If a broker sets up your loan and you call up to a get a better rate, all banks say "we cant do anything..consult your broker".
When you DIY, they negotiate with you direct. CBA got within 0.01 of HSBC, and gave me $1000 to stay for 100 more days minimum (after I asked for discharge paper work).
And brokers job is to make sure you don’t have to make that call in the first place. So you must have been with a wrong one.
Because like every other financial product, the mathematically best way to approach them is churning. Two points to note:
1) Going via a broker means you are somewhat handcuffed to them and the lender for the first two years trying to chase the commission they pay you (for example With Cashback pay 50% after year 1, 50% after year 2). During this time you can be reasonably certain that the lender will relatively increase your interest rate such that it's no longer competitive. It's why lenders like Athena, Tic Toc and Unloan have consistently competitve rates (not part of the broker network) whilst traditional lenders (broker network) run temporary specials to attract new customers before jacking up the rates and then when you call after 2 years they can 'magically' reduce your rates again.
2) Churning mortgages, say every 6 months, allows you to receive a lot of lender cashback. It's mathematically better. Contrary to some stories, brokers do not obtain special pricing - that's been outlawed over a decade ago but the myths continue. I'm a mortgage broker and you can get the same rate I can. OK sure, I can login to a system and click a button to request a rate, then click another button to escalate it whereas you need to make phone calls.
Hi @tomclancy, appreciate a detailed response. I agree that if you are churning every 6 months you can beat a broker. That’s in today’s market where cahsbacks exist but we know that these might not exist forever. Also, can’t imagine many people doing that on a regular basis. I got surprised when is saw a 45 to 3 ratio in votes.
By the way Athena does deal with brokers. So you can get the broker cashback and still get their promise of same rate for new and old customers.
Op for your case, the boq branch manager will offer the best rate he can BOQ. But broker can find you a better rate than that and you get cashback on top.
Also check reviews, I blew a fuse when I joined Quodos. They took 2 hours to answer the phone. I left a review and so did others. Loan customers were not responded to in some cases
unloan has 4.99%