21/10/2022
Tips to Reduce Your Repayments - a few ways to lower your repayments and give yourself a little bit of breathing space.
Refinance to a lower rate:
This option is the most common and cost-effective, and some lenders are still offering large cash incentives to entice would-be refinances, some as high as $4,000. That’s a full month of mortgage repayments for the average Australian, and getting a lower rate will also reduce the repayments overall. Just make sure that when you’re comparing rates, the lender you’re looking at has already factored in the latest rate rise in their offer (we already do this on your behalf)
Refinance over a 30-year term:
If you’re considering doing this, it’s extremely important you’re aware of the extra interest costs associated with doing so. An $800k mortgage over 25 years would attract repayments of close to $4,400 per month based on a rate of 4.39%, whereas the same loan over a 30-year term would be around $4,000 per month, a $400 per month reduction. Conversely, the total interest payable over 25 years would be around $519k, compared to a 30-year term of $640k. We’d recommend you treat this as a short-term solution and try to make additional repayments as soon as you can to get back on track to the original term.
Consolidate debts:
Personal and car loans, credit and store cards, and even HECS, all will be making a difference to your bottom line. Refinancing these debts over a longer period of time and/or at a lower rate will reduce the repayments, although you also need to be aware of the additional interest incurred as a result. For example, a car loan of $50k at 6% with a balloon payment of $20k over 3 years would incur repayments of around $1,000 per month, but if you refinance over 30 years on a rate of 4.39%, it would reduce to $250 per month. The difference alone will be close to the amount required to cover the repayment increase from the recent rate rises, although the interest over 30 years would be around $40k, compared with the car loan of $6,455. We’d once again strongly recommend you treat this as a short-term solution only and try to pay the loan off as quickly as you can.
HECS is the forgotten one, as it “seamlessly” comes out of your pay, although for someone on a $100k p.a. salary, the repayments would be close to $580 per month. If the balance was $30k and you refinance over 30 years, you can reduce this to about $150 per month, but the interest would be higher as it’s over a longer term. One thing to keep in mind though is that whilst interest rates increase, so does the index rate of your HECS debt.
(Source : Peasy 5/10/22)