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Compare prinicipal and interest loans
Find home loans from a wide range of Australian lenders that suit your needs, whether you're investing, refinancing or looking to buy your first home. Compare interest rates, mortgage repayments, fees and more.
UBank OO 3 Year Fixed
special
Limited time only. Apply by April 29 2021. Application to be settled within 90 days in order to be eligible. ~ Ends in 2 months
Fix the interest rate on your owner occupier home loan for up to three years and pay no ongoing fees.
Advertised Rate 1.99% Intro 12 months | Comparison Rate* 2.47% | Company  | Repayment $1,343 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | The 12-month interest rate discount could give you more breathing room in your household budget, or make a head start on paying off your home sooner. | Winner of Best refinance home loan, Best variable, RateCity Gold Awards 2021 More details | ||
Product | Advertised Rate 2.09% Fixed - 3 years | Comparison Rate* 2.43% | Company  | Repayment $1,285 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 70% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | Owner occupiers with deposits of 30% or more can lock in a low fixed rate for three years, with no ongoing fees. More details | ||
Advertised Rate 2.34% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.34% | Company  | Repayment $1,322 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | With a discounted variable interest rate and no upfront or ongoing fees, you may be able to minimise the cost of your owner-occupied home loan. More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.48% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.50% | Company | Repayment $1,343 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | A competitive rate from a non-bank designed to help Aussie homeowners take control of their home loan repayments. More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.14% Fixed - 3 years | Comparison Rate* 3.83% | Company  | Repayment $1,292 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 95% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.44% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.45% | Company  | Repayment $1,337 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Product | Advertised Rate 2.29% Fixed - 3 years | Comparison Rate* 3.13% | Company  | Repayment $1,314 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 95% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | ||
Advertised Rate 2.29% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.23% | Company  | Repayment $1,314 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.04% Fixed - 3 years | Comparison Rate* 2.73% | Company  | Repayment $1,277 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.09% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.12% | Company  | Repayment $1,285 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 70% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Product | Advertised Rate 2.19% Fixed - 3 years | Comparison Rate* 2.68% | Company  | Repayment $1,299 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | ||
Product | Advertised Rate 2.44% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.49% | Company  | Repayment $1,337 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 70% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | ||
Product | Advertised Rate 1.89% Fixed - 2 years | Comparison Rate* 2.94% | Company  | Repayment $1,256 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | ||
Product | Advertised Rate 2.59% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.64% | Company | Repayment $1,359 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | ||
Advertised Rate 1.99% Fixed - 4 years | Comparison Rate* 2.90% | Company  | Repayment $1,270 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.59% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.63% | Company  | Repayment $1,359 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.09% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.13% | Company  | Repayment $1,285 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Product | Advertised Rate 2.19% Fixed - 3 years | Comparison Rate* 2.40% | Company | Repayment $1,299 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | ||
Advertised Rate 2.14% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.16% | Company  | Repayment $1,292 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 60% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details | |||
Advertised Rate 2.24% Variable | Comparison Rate* 2.26% | Company | Repayment $1,307 monthly | Features Redraw facility Offset Account Borrow up to 80% Extra Repayments Interest Only Owner Occupied | Go to site | More details |
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Principal and interest loans
When you want to buy a home, you need to get a handle on the financial options that may be available to you. If you're already an owner-occupier, you could have equity in your home that will mean a profit when you sell it, paying off the principal loan but leaving you enough money to put down a deposit for another property. If you're looking to get onto the first rung of the housing ladder you'll need a deposit that could be quite substantial. The deposit percentage of the sale price will depend on which lender you choose, so it's worth shopping around to get a deal that suits your financial situation.
What are principal and interest loans?
When you take out a loan for a property, you receive a lump sum to buy it. This goes to the seller, who will pick up the costs of the estate agent and their solicitor, whereas you will have to pick up the costs of a surveyor and your own solicitor. You could consider asking a lender to add these costs into the overall loan if you are a little short of ready money because you've put down a deposit. Remember, you will be charged interest on paying those fees as well as for the principal loan.
How do principal and interest loans compare to other similar products?
Buying a house is probably going to be the biggest purchase you will make in your lifetime, however many times you do it, and mortgage companies work to offer you better rates than if you went to a bank or tried to take out a large loan from somewhere else that would charge much higher rates. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't talk to banks – it's you who will decide on what the best and most affordable offer is. Finance companies want your business, so take the time to explore offers and deals.
How do repayments work for loans?
Most home loan repayments are made up of a mix of paying interest on the principal loan and making a contribution to paying off that principal. At the end of the loan term, you will be the owner of the property outright. The loan could take many years to pay off, which is what you would expect, but it depends on your circumstances and what stage you're at on the property ladder. You can choose a variable interest rate, where your payments could increase or decrease according to interest rate movements, or a fixed rate where you know exactly what you pay every month. You could also choose to split between fixed and variable – a split rate. Interest only repayments may be offered, but you won't pay anything off the principal loan with this, so you need to consider how you will repay that at the end.
What are the risks and rewards involved?
If, for whatever reason, you fail to keep up payments, your home could be repossessed; however, if you make your mortgage payments as you should you will eventually be the proud owner of a property worth much more than you originally paid for it.
Nick Bendel
Property Personal Finance Writer
A property and personal finance writer, Nick Bendel covers property, loans, credit cards, superannuation, and other bank products. Nick has previously written for The Adviser, Mortgage Business, Lifehacker, Business Insider, Yahoo Finance, and InvestorDaily, and loves getting elbow-deep in the latest ABS, APRA and RBA data.
Today's top home loans
Frequently asked questions
What is 'principal and interest'?
‘Principal and interest’ loans are the most common type of home loans on the market. The principal part of the loan is the initial sum lent to the customer and the interest is the money paid on top of this, at the agreed interest rate, until the end of the loan.
By reducing the principal amount, the total of interest charged will also become smaller until eventually the debt is paid off in full.
What's the difference between Real Time Ratings and comparison rates?
A comparison rate calculates the cost of a $150,000 loan over 25 years. While a comparison rate is a good industry benchmark, it doesn’t consider your specific lending requirements.
Real Time RatingsTM factors in essential information like your loan size, your loan-to-value ratio (LVR), whether you want an offset account and whether you are an investor or an owner-occupier.
What is the average annual percentage rate?
Also known as the comparison rate, or sometimes the ‘true rate’ of a loan, the average annual percentage rate (AAPR) is used to indicate the overall cost of a loan after considering all the fees, charges and other factors, such as introductory offers and honeymoon rates.
The AAPR is calculated based on a standardised loan amount and loan term, and doesn’t include any extra non-standard charges.
What is a comparison rate?
The comparison rate is a more inclusive way of comparing home loans that factors in not only on the interest rate but also the majority of upfront and ongoing charges that add to the total cost of a home loan.
The rate is calculated using an industry-wide formula based on a $150,000 loan over a 25-year period and includes things like revert rates after an introductory or fixed rate period, application fees and monthly account keeping fees.
In Australia, all lenders are required by law to publish the comparison rate alongside their advertised rate so people can compare products easily.
What is an interest-only loan? How do I work out interest-only loan repayments?
An ‘interest-only’ loan is a loan where the borrower is only required to pay back the interest on the loan. Typically, banks will only let lenders do this for a fixed period of time – often five years – however some lenders will be happy to extend this.
Interest-only loans are popular with investors who aren’t keen on putting a lot of capital into their investment property. It is also a handy feature for people who need to reduce their mortgage repayments for a short period of time while they are travelling overseas, or taking time off to look after a new family member, for example.
While moving on to interest-only will make your monthly repayments cheaper, ultimately, you will end up paying your bank thousands of dollars extra in interest to make up for the time where you weren’t paying off the principal.
How can I calculate interest on my home loan?
You can calculate the total interest you will pay over the life of your loan by using a mortgage calculator. The calculator will estimate your repayments based on the amount you want to borrow, the interest rate, the length of your loan, whether you are an owner-occupier or an investor and whether you plan to pay ‘principal and interest’ or ‘interest-only’.
If you are buying a new home, the calculator will also help you work out how much you’ll need to pay in stamp duty and other related costs.
How do I apply for a home improvement loan?
When you want to renovate your home, you may need to take out a loan to cover the costs. You could apply for a home improvement loan, which is a personal loan that you use to cover the costs of your home renovations. There is no difference between applying for this type of home improvement loan and applying for a standard personal loan. It would be best to check and compare the features, fees and details of the loan before applying.
Besides taking out a home improvement loan, you could also:
- Use the equity in your house: Equity is the difference between your property’s value and the amount you still owe on your home loan. You may be able to access this equity by refinancing your home loan and then using it to finance your home improvement. Speak with your lender or a mortgage broker about accessing your equity.
- Utilise the redraw facility of your home loan: Check whether the existing home loan has a redraw facility. A redraw facility allows you to access additional funds you’ve repaid into your home loan. Some lenders offer this on variable rate home loans but not on fixed. If this option is available to you, contact your lender to discuss how to access it.
- Apply for a construction loan: A construction loan is typically used when constructing a new property but can also be used as a home renovation loan. You may find that a construction loan is a suitable option as it enables you to draw funds as your renovation project progresses. You can compare construction home loans online or speak to a mortgage broker about taking out such a loan.
- Look into government grants: Check whether there are any government grants offered when you need the funds and whether you qualify. Initiatives like the HomeBuilder Grant were offered by the Federal Government for a limited period until April 2021. They could help fund your renovations either in full or just partially.
Does the Home Loan Rate Promise apply to discounted interest rate offers, such as honeymoon rates?
No. Temporary discounts to home loan interest rates will expire after a limited time, so they aren’t valid for comparing home loans as part of the Home Loan Rate Promise.
However, if your home loan has been discounted from the lender’s standard rate on a permanent basis, you can check if we can find an even lower rate that could apply to you.
Who has the best home loan?
Determining who has the ‘best’ home loan really does depend on your own personal circumstances and requirements. It may be tempting to judge a loan merely on the interest rate but there can be added value in the extras on offer, such as offset and redraw facilities, that aren’t available with all low rate loans.
To determine which loan is the best for you, think about whether you would prefer the consistency of a fixed loan or the flexibility and potential benefits of a variable loan. Then determine which features will be necessary throughout the life of your loan. Thirdly, consider how much you are willing to pay in fees for the loan you want. Once you find the perfect combination of these three elements you are on your way to determining the best loan for you.
How can I apply for a first home buyers loan with Commonwealth Bank?
Getting a home loan requires planning and research. If you are considering a home loan with the Commonwealth Bank, you can find the information you need in the buying your first home section of the bank’s website.
You can see the steps you should take before applying for the loan and use the calculators to work out how much you can borrow, what your monthly repayments would be and the upfront costs you’d likely pay.
You can also book a time with a Commonwealth first home loan specialist by calling 13 2221.
CommBank publishes a property report that may help you understand the real estate market. The bank has also created a CommBank Property App that you can use to search for property. The link to download this app is available on the same webpage.
If you are eligible for the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme, CommBank will help you process your application. The scheme helps first home buyers to purchase a home with a low deposit. You can read details about this scheme here and speak with a CommBank home lending specialist to understand your options.
How do you qualify for a CBA home loan with casual employment?
Qualifying for a home loan without a full-time job may be challenging, but it can be done. The first step is to understand how a CBA home loan is assessed when you have casual employment.
Most lenders will assess your expenses and savings while checking your loan eligibility, checking on factors crucial to home loan approval, such as if your bills are paid on time and what your credit score presently looks like.
Your income can be one of the most critical factors to determine your final approved home loan amount. As such, you’ll need to provide payslip copies to lenders to assist them in assessing your income during the loan tenure, regardless of your employment status, full-time, part-time, or otherwise.
Casual employees will want to be casually employed for at least 12 months to be eligible for a home loan. Alternatively, you want to have worked as a permanent casual worker (working for a fixed number of hours per week) for at least one month, or you should have been in your current job for a minimum of three months (if the hours are irregular) to be eligible for the loan.
What is the average length of a home loan?
Most Aussie lenders offer home loans with a 30-year term, meaning that you should pay back the full loan amount and the interest you owe on the amount in 30 years.
However, home loans can also have a shorter or longer term. They may be as low as ten years or up to 45 years, depending on the product and lender.
It’s worth remembering that a longer loan term usually means you’ll end up paying a lot more interest in total, but your scheduled repayments may be more manageable. In contrast, you could opt for a shorter loan term if you are comfortable making large repayments in exchange for paying less interest over the term of the loan.
Does Westpac offer loan maternity leave options?
Having a baby or planning for one can bring about a lot of changes in your life, including to the hip pocket. You may need to re-do the budget to make sure you can afford the upcoming expenses, especially if one partner is taking parental leave to look after the little one.
Some families find it difficult to meet their home loan repayment obligations during this period. Flexible options, such as the Westpac home loan maternity leave offerings, have been put together to help reduce the pressure of repayments during parental leave.
Westpac offers a couple of choices, depending on your circumstances:
- Parental Leave Mortgage Repayment Reduction: You could get your home loan repayments reduced for up to 12 months for home loans with a term longer than a year.
- Mortgage Repayment Pause: You can pause repayments while on maternity leave, provided you’ve made additional repayments earlier.
When applying for a home loan while pregnant, Westpac has said it will recognise paid maternity leave and back-to-work salaries. All you need is a letter from your employer verifying your return-to-work date and the nature of your employment. Your partner’s income, government entitlements, savings and investments will may help your application.
Remaining loan term
The length of time it will take to pay off your current home loan, based on the currently-entered mortgage balance, monthly repayment and interest rate.
What is the difference between fixed, variable and split rates?
A fixed rate home loan is a loan where the interest rate is set for a certain amount of time, usually between one and 15 years. The advantage of a fixed rate is that you know exactly how much your repayments will be for the duration of the fixed term. There are some disadvantages to fixing that you need to be aware of. Some products won’t let you make extra repayments, or offer tools such as an offset account to help you reduce your interest, while others will charge a significant break fee if you decide to terminate the loan before the fixed period finishes.
A variable rate home loan is one where the interest rate can and will change over the course of your loan. The rate is determined by your lender, not the Reserve Bank of Australia, so while the cash rate might go down, your bank may decide not to follow suit, although they do broadly follow market conditions. One of the upsides of variable rates is that they are typically more flexible than their fixed rate counterparts which means that a lot of these products will let you make extra repayments and offer features such as offset accounts.
Split rates home loans
A split loan lets you fix a portion of your loan, and leave the remainder on a variable rate so you get a bet each way on fixed and variable rates. A split loan is a good option for someone who wants the peace of mind that regular repayments can provide but still wants to retain some of the additional features variable loans typically provide such as an offset account. Of course, with most things in life, split loans are still a trade-off. If the variable rate goes down, for example, the lower interest rates will only apply to the section that you didn’t fix.
Can I take a personal loan after a home loan?
Are you struggling to pay the deposit for your dream home? A personal loan can help you pay the deposit. The question that may arise in your mind is can I take a home loan after a personal loan, or can you take a personal loan at the same time as a home loan, as it is. The answer is that, yes, provided you can meet the general eligibility criteria for both a personal loan and a home loan, your application should be approved. Those eligibility criteria may include:
- Higher-income to show repayment capability for both the loans
- Clear credit history with no delays in bill payments or defaults on debts
- Zero or minimal current outstanding debt
- Some amount of savings
- Proven rent history will be positively perceived by the lenders
A personal loan after or during a home loan may impact serviceability, however, as the numbers can seriously add up. Every loan you avail of increases your monthly installments and the amount you use to repay the personal loan will be considered to lower the money available for the repayment of your home loan.
As to whether you can get a personal loan after your home loan, the answer is a very likely "yes", though it does come with a caveat: as long as you can show sufficient income to repay both the loans on time, you should be able to get that personal loan approved. A personal loan can also help to improve your credit score showing financial discipline and responsibility, which may benefit you with more favorable terms for your home loan.
How do you determine which home loan rates/products I’m shown?
When you check your home loan rate, you’ll supply some basic information about your current loan, including the amount owing on your mortgage and your current interest rate.
We’ll compare this information to the home loan options in the RateCity database and show you which home loan products you may be eligible to apply for.
What happens to my home loan when interest rates rise?
If you are on a variable rate home loan, every so often your rate will be subject to increases and decreases. Rate changes are determined by your lender, not the Reserve Bank of Australia, however often when the RBA changes the cash rate, a number of banks will follow suit, at least to some extent. You can use RateCity cash rate to check how the latest interest rate change affected your mortgage interest rate.
When your rate rises, you will be required to pay your bank more each month in mortgage repayments. Similarly, if your interest rate is cut, then your monthly repayments will decrease. Your lender will notify you of what your new repayments will be, although you can do the calculations yourself, and compare other home loan rates using our mortgage calculator.
There is no way of conclusively predicting when interest rates will go up or down on home loans so if you prefer a more stable approach consider opting for a fixed rate loan.
What is the best interest rate for a mortgage?
The fastest way to find out what the lowest interest rates on the market are is to use a comparison website.
While a low interest rate is highly preferable, it is not the only factor that will determine whether a particular loan is right for you.
Loans with low interest rates can often include hidden catches, such as high fees or a period of low rates which jumps up after the introductory period has ended.
To work out the best value for money, have a look at a loan’s comparison rate and read the fine print to get across all the fees and charges that you could be theoretically charged over the life of the loan.
How can I pay off my home loan faster?
The quickest way to pay off your home loan is to make regular extra contributions in addition to your monthly repayments to pay down the principal as fast as possible. This in turn reduces the amount of interest paid overall and shortens the length of the loan.
Another option may be to increase the frequency of your payments to fortnightly or weekly, rather than monthly, which may then reduce the amount of interest you are charged, depending on how your lender calculates repayments.