News Archive for November 2021

With the cost of living continuing to rise you may find yourself needing to break out your credit card more frequently. Many credit card providers have spent the past months reducing their offers for bonus rewards points or shrinking their balance transfer options, so if these things are important to you, it's now more important than ever to find the card that suits you best.

Foreign buyers – those that are non-permanent residents and non-citizens – can purchase residential property in Australia, but will need approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) to ensure their investment works in favour of the national interest.

Stake has officially opened its doors to Australian investors looking to trade on the ASX with the launch of its new ‘Stake AUS’ option this morning.

With restrictions lifted and trading resuming across Australia, Commonwealth Bank is offering a zero interest loan to help businesses regain their footing as they approach the Christmas period.

OneTwo is one of the newest lenders in the country and is on a mission to reward borrowers for their loyalty. The lender has launched its own automatic rate-reducing home loan, where you receive discounts the more you pay off your mortgage.

It’s no secret that a car is something that will cost you the moment you drive out of the dealership (have you seen the price of petrol lately?). From regular costs like car loan repayments, fuel and tolls to you more-occasionals like tyres, rego and insurance and roadside assist - it all adds up. That’s where the latest stats from the Australian Automobile Association come in handy, as they break down the Australia-wide average of different car costs.  According to the report, the average total transport cost for Aussies over the third quarter (Q3) of 2021 was $367.63 per week. That’s $6.99 greater than in the second quarter (Q2) of this year and makes up on average 15% of Australians’ total income. And, if you look at it from an annual cost perspective, it adds up to be $19,117 per year. While public transport is considered in the national total transport cost, it only makes up 6% of yearly transport costs overall, meaning the rest goes towards personal transportation costs (those associated with owning a vehicle) such as car loan repayments, fuel and repairs.

There’s no way to skirt around it – housing affordability in Australia has been declining for decades, with both homeowners and renters facing greater housing stress.

Many people dream of one day owning a home, but the task is easier said than done. To get into the Australian property market, most people need a home loan and to do that you need an initial deposit.

All in this week’s best banking news recap: editor’s pick.

After retreating during the early stages of the pandemic, it appears that investor interest in the property market has come roaring back. At least, that’s the picture painted by the latest home loan data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

In the past few years shopping events including Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Click Frenzy have encouraged people around the world to shop, shop, shop and shop some more.

Rates of domestic and family violence in Australia have risen in line with pandemic lockdowns. Researchers from the Queensland University of Technology Centre for Justice surveyed 362 domestic family violence (DFV) agencies in 2020 and found almost two thirds had seen an increase in people seeking assistance.

Unlike a home loan, which is designed for the purchase of a ‘home’, personal loans are more than a one trick pony. In fact, there are a range of situations where different types of personal loans could come in handy - such as:

Australian homeowners are continuing to pay a high price for their loyalty, with the latest figures from the Reserve Bank revealing that interest rates on existing home loans are currently 39 basis points higher, on average, than they are on new loans.

The Commonwealth Bank says it will save international money transfer (IMT) customers more money by absorbing fees charged by correspondent banks.

While the holiday season can be a merry time, some also dread its arrival. With family tensions potentially already running high, the financial pressure of gift-giving can add to holiday stress.

According to a recent survey of 2,000 Australians done by NAB, 42% of recent home buyers moved to improve their new working from home lifestyles.

A new release from the ACCC has shown that more than 8.5 million Aussie customers are connected to NBN broadband services, with over three-quarters of those customers on fast speed tiers providing download speeds of 50mbps or above.

When the head of the nation’s biggest bank, CommBank, publicly admits that profits are being ‘shredded’ due to intense competition from rival lenders with ‘cut price’ mortgages, it’s time for big bank home loan customers to take stock.

In 2021 alone, Australians have lost over $236 million to scams, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) says.

Buying property in Australia has become a growing obstacle for many first time home buyers. That’s why so many Aussies now consider buying with a family member, CommBank research shows.

Got an itch to hit the open road on two wheels this summer? Or maybe you’ve been dabbling with the idea of scooting to work? Whatever the reason, when it comes to financing the purchase of a motorcycle (or motorised scooter) it's best to know what options are out there - because the truth is it may not be as straightforward as getting a car loan.   According to recent stats from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), 86,239 new motorcycles, scooters and off highway vehicles were sold between January and September of this year, an increase of 6,616 year on year.   “This steady growth of 8.3 per cent over the same period in 2020 shows us that there is strong demand from buyers who want to use a motorcycle as their first choice for the daily commute and for recreation,” FCAI chief executive, Tony Weber said.Plus with the FCAI’s ‘Ride Your Motorcycle Week’ around the corner (29 November to 5 December), Weber is hoping that more Aussies will hit the road soon.  “When you’re on the bike, there’s nothing else like it,” Weber said. “But life gets in the way. Ride Your Motorcycle Week is just a little extra push to get your bike serviced ahead of riding season, take the bike to work or take the long way home, take the day off and reconnect or just go and have an adventure. This is the week to start doing it.”

Cryptocurrency is getting a lot of attention at the moment. I'm not exactly sure why but my guess is some people like Elon Musk and Matt Damon can talk about anything and it'd suddenly be more popular.

All in this week’s best banking news recap: editor’s pick.

Millions of regional and suburban Australians will be in line for an NBN upgrade if the Labor government wins the next federal election, leader Anthony Albanese has pitched. The $2.4 billion investment from Labor would see fibre-to-the-premises connections installed in more than 1.5 million regional and suburban premises.

Well Home Loans has taken pole position as the mortgage lender with the lowest variable home loan rate (80% LVR) being tracked in the Mozo database following a rate cut last Friday.

While having your own car can be a liberating experience, all the paperwork that comes with it can also be very confusing. Picking an insurance policy can be especially overwhelming.

Thinking of getting a pet soon? Well if you are, you’ve probably written down some ideas to find the one. Much like picking a name for a newborn child, finding the name of your tiny companion is tricky.

If you’re someone who makes regular international payments for business reasons, you’ll know that fluctuating foreign exchange rates and money transfer fees are an unavoidable aspect of doing global banking.

TPG Telecom has expanded the reach of its 5G broadband network, tripling its coverage and allowing the expansion of its 5G core services that do not rely on existing 4G infrastructure.

New research from Mambu has revealed that Australians have the highest uptake of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services.

We’re heading into the final months of 2021, and it’s time to start thinking about Christmas shopping. Luckily, this year, you don’t need to spend a fortune on presents. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are around the corner to help save money and get a head start on your Christmas list.

ING has made a number of changes to its home loan suite today, cutting variable rates by as many as 25 basis points while also hiking fixed rates across 2, 3, 4, and 5-year terms.

After months of restrictions across Australia, people are spending more on travel and entertainment. There was 6.6% more spending in October compared to the month prior, said CBA.

The latest round of RBA payments data has revealed new trends in consumer spending, with ATM use dropping and Paypal use increasing.

Elon Musk is donating $330k (US$250k) to a University of Sydney team developing technology that makes use of renewable energy to permanently remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Mozo Experts Choice Awards 2021 Credit Card Provider of the Year, American Express has partnered with PayPal to launch PayPal with Points, allowing Amex customers to shop online and pay using Membership Points via Paypal.

Right now the second hand car market is booming.

Anyone looking to refinance or move up the property ladder has a smorgasbord of options available to them nowadays, but one major bank lender is going out of its way to stand out from the pack. HSBC has cut the variable rate on its popular Home Value Loan to an ultra-low 1.97% (1.98% comparison rate*) for borrowers with 30% deposit or equity.

ANZ has become the latest big four bank to reduce a variable mortgage rate in recent weeks, announcing a 23 basis point cut to one of its basic home loans this morning.

The New South Wales government announced further reductions to compulsory third party (CTP) car insurance premiums at the weekend, highlighting the impact of 2017 CTP reforms.

Business lender ScotPac will waive the first three months of interest on loans to small and medium-sized businesses as part of its new Bounce Back Fund.

All in this week’s best banking news recap: editor’s pick.

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has announced that future property buyers will have to prove that they can repay their mortgage if rates rise by 3%.

Quick facts and figures:

Hearing the words ‘interest-free’ is enough to grab the attention of many business owners across the country. And business lender, Moula will do just that with the announcement of its new payment platform, Moula Pay.

Telstra will open its 5G fixed wireless broadband service to more customers as it finishes trials, though the company announced it will set a limit on the number of services it offers per postcode to avoid congestion on the network.

New research from think tank Per Capita estimates that the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has contributed more than $52 billion to the Australian economy in 2020 and 2021 alone.

Commonwealth Bank is to become the first Australian bank to offer cryptocurrency services to its customers. The big four bank announced today that CBA customers will soon be able to buy, sell and hold crypto assets through the CommBank app.

Supply side shocks have pushed inflation within the Reserve Bank’s target range for the first time in six years, forcing RBA governor Philip Lowe to abandon a key element of his pandemic response plan.

Getting rewarded for your spending is a money hack that savvy credit card users swear by,  and for many of us there’s nothing better than getting rewarded with cold hard cashback.

As we enter the final month of Spring, it’s time to take a look at our November 2021 personal loans market update.

As of this November NRMA Insurance is expanding its insurance offerings to both South Australia and Western Australia.

Interest in low-rate home loans is surging as the post-pandemic property market heats up, lenders cut rates to jaw-dropping new lows and savvy borrowers looking to save money on their home loan refinance in record numbers.

In good news for those interested in Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite broadband, the service has completed its beta testing stage and is now fully operational.

Over the last few months, more than a few term deposit providers have been increasing rates. In October alone Mozo’s research team counted 51 interest rate increases from 10 term deposit providers tracked in our database.**

A pinch and a punch for the first day of the month - it’s November, folks! And lucky for you, we’ve got just the thing to help you get prepped for the Silly Season, which is just right around the corner.