Most Australians would rather sit in gridlocked traffic than deal with the complexity of shopping for a home loan. It can be convoluted, confusing and down-right frustrating – but it doesn’t have to be!
Finding and applying for a home loan can be made easier by tapping into some of the cool free tools and resources available on your smartphone.
OK, it won’t be as much fun as shopping on Amazon, but embracing online resources can make the application process quicker and easier, whether looking for a first home loan or considering switching to save cash.
Check out these three tools that can make all the difference.
1. Online application tools
Online applications can give the home buyer control, by allowing them to customise the process. Picture: Getty
St.George Bank’s new online home loan application platform isn’t like other clunky online platforms. It’s designed to give the user control, by customising and simplifying the entire process.
It simply shows how much could be borrowed, with property insights, borrowing calculations and automated property valuation, via a personalised dashboard. It also explains how much a loan could cost based on the user’s buying scenario.
Ross Miller, general manager of St.George Bank, explains. “Our research shows home buyers are still optimistic about owning a home, but the actual application process is forcing Aussies to throw it in the too hard basket – that’s why we’ve built an entirely new online application platform to help simplify the process.”
“This awesome new tool provides our lowest rate upfront, personalised for the customer based on their buying scenario, so long as the information they’ve provided to us is correct,” Ross says.
“We also give customers information on what their monthly repayments could be, and an estimate of any associated costs so they can really understand and plan around this.”
Ross says with 1.4 million of St.George’s customers now relying on digital channels to manage their banking daily, there’s a clear need for the bank to be where its customers are – and that’s in cyberspace.
2. Home loan calculators
If you’re not quite ready to apply, St.George’s free online mortgage calculator uses the estimated loan amount, monthly repayments and upfront costs to help you understand what you could afford.
realestate.com.au also has a cool online calculator where the data can be saved to a realestate.com.au profile, so when users find a property they like, they can instantly see how it might fit with their finances and impact their lifestyle.
You can also access stamp duty and loan repayment calculators online.
3. Mortgage switching calculators
Finding a better home loan deal can take all of five minutes with online refinancing tools. Picture: Getty
For those thinking about switching, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has a free online calculator to help work out if swapping will actually save money.
After entering basic details like the loan balance, interest rate, how long is left on the mortgage, fees and repayment frequency, the comparison calculator works out if it’s worth it, how long it will take to recover the cost of switching and the benefits of making higher repayments. And it only takes about five minutes.
For more information or to apply online, head to the St.George website.