Is now the right time for you to refinance your home?

Refinancing your home could significantly reduce your monthly mortgage payments. Answer these six questions to find out if now's the right time to consider switching your home loan.

The secret’s out: one of the simplest ways to save on your monthly budget is to shave your home loan interest rate by refinancing, and moving your loan to another lender.

It could save you significantly – a 0.25% decrease on a 25-year home loan of $750,000 could save you $100 per month – and $30,000 over the life of the loan.

But, before you start hunting down the best home loan deals, make sure now is really the right time to refinance – and that you’re doing it for the right reasons. Take a look at the below checklist to consider your best next steps.

1. Are you currently on a variable rate loan, or at the end of your fixed loan period?

Breaking a fixed rate loan can incur fees – it may be better to wait.

2. Do you have more than 20% equity in your home and is your income likely to stay the same (or rise)?

The more equity you have, the more your loan to value ratio (LVR) may have improved. LVR is the amount of your loan, as a percentage against the value of your property, and as it goes down your chance of a better rate goes up.

Not sure how to work out your equity?

Subtract the amount you owe on your home loan from your current estimated property value, and then divide it by your property value. Multiply the answer by 100 to get the percentage.

For example, if you owe $500,000 on your home loan but your property is now worth around $750,000, your equity is (750-500)/750 X 100 = 33.3%.

3. Are you able to keep making your current monthly home loan payment?

If you refinance to get a lower monthly repayment, but keep paying more, you could pay your home loan off much sooner.

4. Are you keen to achieve your savings goals?

By putting the money you save from a lower interest rate into an offset account, you’ll get closer to that family holiday, renovation or school fee fund.

Macquarie offers up to 10 offset accounts on each home loan facility - so you can structure your savings in ways that work for you. Your offsets all work together to reduce the home loan balance you pay interest on, saving you money on repayments.

5. Are you happy to move all your accounts to one bank?

You stand to save more, and spend smarter, with a home loan package. With Macquarie’s offset package, you get access to a mobile banking app, which features saving and budgeting tools, as well as a transaction account with no monthly account fees, no international transaction fees and no ATM fees*.

6. Are you paying at least 0.5% more than the best interest rate you’ve seen available?

Every dollar helps, but saving at least 0.5% will probably make it worth your time and any fees involved in the process.

Explore your options with the Macquarie Refinancing Calculator.

Key takeaways

• Refinancing could be an option if you have 20% or more equity in your property.
• Maintaining your monthly payment amount after refinancing can help you pay off your home loan quicker.
• Offset accounts can help reduce your interest payments even further.

For a confidential, no-obligation conversation about refinancing your home loan, call one of our helpful home loan specialists on 13 62 27.

But even if now isn’t the right time to refinance for you, think about your other bank accounts.

• Is your credit card working hard enough to reward you?
• Does your transaction account help you budget?
• Are you paying too much in monthly account, ATM, international transaction or branch fees?

Choosing the right bank can make a big difference to the lifestyle choices you make every day – and to building your wealth in the future.