Here’s how to become a haggling pro and save $45k on your home loan
17 Oct 2017
The property market is an expensive place to be these days, but we’ve uncovered a strategy that might allow homebuyers to loosen the budgetary belt a bit: haggling.
Mozo recently went undercover for our annual Big 4 home loan mystery shop and found that scoring a discount of up to 0.82%* on your home loan may be as easy as asking for it.
“Our mystery shoppers found that the big banks were willing to give out pretty sizeable discounts to all kinds of borrowers if they were willing to haggle for it,” said Mozo’s property and home loan expert, Steve Jovcevski.
“With savings as high as $45,000 on offer for first home buyers or $86,000 for refinancers*, that’s a sign you should definitely be asking for a better deal when you approach a home loan lender.”
The first step to scoring a great deal is to start out on the right foot with an offer that suits your needs - so check out some of the top mortgage offers around in the table below, then read on for our expert tips on how to haggle like a pro.
Home Loan Comparisons - November 2017
Rates updated daily. Advertiser disclosure.
- loans.com.au
2.48% p.a. variable
2.50% p.a.
$1234
Product details Close detailsloans.com.au Smart Home Loan 80
Owner Occupier, Principal & Interest
2.48% p.a. variable
2.50% p.a.
A low-rate home loan that could save you thousands, with no ongoing fees plus unlimited extra repayments and free redraws. Mozo Experts Choice Low Cost Home Loan 2020.^ You'll need to be borrowing $1 million or less and have at least a 20% deposit required.
Smart Home Loan 80
A low-rate home loan that could save you thousands, with no ongoing fees plus unlimited extra repayments and free redraws. Mozo Experts Choice Low Cost Home Loan 2020.^ You'll need to be borrowing $1 million or less and have at least a 20% deposit required.
-
2.48% p.a. variable
-
2.50% p.a.
-
$520
-
$0.00
-
$0.00
-
yes - free
-
yes - free
-
Optional - with 0.10% additional interest
-
$520
-
80.00%
-
$50,000
-
$1,000,000
-
Variable
-
Principal & Interest
-
Owner Occupier
-
Weekly, Fortnightly, Monthly
-
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Smart Home Loan 80
-
- HSBC
2.09% p.a.
fixed 2 years2.98% p.a.
$1234
Product details Close detailsHSBC Fixed Rate Home Loan
Owner Occupier, Principal & Interest, LVR <80%
2.09% p.a.
fixed 2 years2.98% p.a.
Have the security of a fixed rate for 2 years with the option to split with one of the HSBC variable Home Loans. No ongoing monthly service fees or annual fees. Mozo Experts Choice Fixed Home Loan 2020^
Fixed Rate Home Loan
Have the security of a fixed rate for 2 years with the option to split with one of the HSBC variable Home Loans. No ongoing monthly service fees or annual fees. Mozo Experts Choice Fixed Home Loan 2020^
-
2.09% p.a.
fixed 2 years -
2.98% p.a.
-
$0
-
$0.00
-
$300.00
-
yes - free up to $10,000 p.a.
-
no
-
no
-
$0
-
80.00%
-
$50,000
-
$7,500,000
-
Fixed
-
Principal & Interest
-
Owner Occupier
-
Weekly, Fortnightly, Monthly
-
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Fixed Rate Home Loan
-
- Athena
2.34% p.a. variable
2.34% p.a.
$1234
Product details Close detailsAthena Celebrate Variable Home Loan
<60% LVR, Owner Occupier, Principal & Interest
2.34% p.a. variable
2.34% p.a.
Fast online application with no fees. Free extra repayments and redraw facility. Min 40% deposit. Crowned Best New Home Loan for 2020 by the Mozo Experts.^
Celebrate Variable Home Loan
Fast online application with no fees. Free extra repayments and redraw facility. Min 40% deposit. Crowned Best New Home Loan for 2020 by the Mozo Experts.^
-
2.34% p.a. variable
-
2.34% p.a.
-
$0
-
$0.00
-
$0.00
-
yes - free
-
yes - free
-
no
-
$0
-
60.00%
-
$100,000
-
$2,000,000
-
Variable
-
Principal & Interest
-
Owner Occupier
-
Weekly, Fortnightly, Monthly
-
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Celebrate Variable Home Loan
-
- UBank
2.49% p.a. variable
2.49% p.a.
$1234
Product details Close detailsUBank UHomeLoan - Discount Offer
Owner Occupier, Principal & Interest
2.49% p.a. variable
2.49% p.a.
Enjoy a super low rate, $0 fees and easy application with the Mozo Experts Choice Home Lender Bank of the Year.^ Free redraw with flexible repayments. Min 20% deposit.
UHomeLoan - Discount Offer
Enjoy a super low rate, $0 fees and easy application with the Mozo Experts Choice Home Lender Bank of the Year.^ Free redraw with flexible repayments. Min 20% deposit.
-
2.49% p.a. variable
-
2.49% p.a.
-
$0
-
$0.00
-
$0.00
-
yes - free
-
yes - free
-
no
-
$0
-
80.00%
-
$100,000
-
-
-
Variable
-
Principal & Interest
-
Owner Occupier
-
Weekly, Fortnightly, Monthly
-
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the UHomeLoan - Discount Offer
-
-
Hot Deal $2,000 Refinance Cash Bonus (T&Cs apply)
Suncorp2.68% p.a. variable
2.69% p.a.
$1234
Product details Close detailsSuncorpBack to Basics Special
LVR<80%, Owner Occupier, Principal & Interest
2.68% p.a. variable
2.69% p.a.
No monthly account keeping fee, no ongoing annual fee and no loan establishment fee on new lending of $150,000 or more. Get a $2,000 cash bonus when you refinance with an eligible Suncorp Bank Home Loan of $250k+. T&Cs & eligibility criteria apply.
Back to Basics Special
No monthly account keeping fee, no ongoing annual fee and no loan establishment fee on new lending of $150,000 or more. Get a $2,000 cash bonus when you refinance with an eligible Suncorp Bank Home Loan of $250k+. T&Cs & eligibility criteria apply.
-
2.68% p.a. variable
-
2.69% p.a.
-
$0
-
$0.00
-
$350.00
-
Yes - free
-
yes - free
-
no
-
$0
-
80.00%
-
$150,000
-
-
-
Variable
-
Principal & Interest
-
Owner Occupier
-
Weekly, Fortnightly, Monthly
-
Refinance from another lender to receive a $2,000 cash bonus for loans of at least $250,000 or $3,000 bonus for loans over $750,000. Available for loans with an LVR <90% and applications made by 18 December 2020 and settled by 26 March 2021.
Read our Mozo Review to learn more about the Back to Basics Special
-
^See information about the Mozo Experts Choice Home loans Awards
Mozo’s home loan haggling tips
Ready to save a bundle on your mortgage? Here are our top tips for haggling like a professional and squeezing the best deal out of your lender.
Don’t settle for the first offer. “Banks often won’t give you the best deal they can the first time you ask - they reserve the lowest rates for customers who really push for it,” said Jovcevski. So if you want to save as much as possible, it’s time to dig in your heels and really work for it.
Be prepared for price matching. Our mystery shop found that some lenders won’t come to the party unless you’re asking them to price match an offer from a competitor, so make sure you compare home loans and have a rate in mind to ask for. The upside is that if haggling doesn’t pan out, you’ve already found another low rate offer!
Bundle other products. You might have more luck securing a big discount if you bring other financial products across to your home loan lender as well. Think about bundling your home insurance, credit card, or bank account as incentive for a better mortgage deal.
Think about other bonuses. Things like frequent flyer bonus points, cashback offers or waived fees can sweeten your home loan deal almost as much as a lowered interest rate. “Don’t be scared to think outside the box when it comes to things that might sweeten the deal for you,” Jovcevski said.
*Savings and discounts based on discounts from ANZ, NAB, Westpac and CommBank between 11 - 14 September 2017. Potential annual savings calculated for first home buyer on a $300,000 home loan and refinancer on a $500,000 loan over 30 years.
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