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Home Loans Articles

Learn more about how to manage your personal finances with RateCity's home loan articles, including how-to-guides on comparing home loan interest rates, fees, features and other benefits.

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

First home buyer's guide for singles

Buying a home can be laborious, stressful and confusing. This is never truer than when you have to do it alone, without the extra emotional and financial support provided by a partner.

Home Loans

31 Oct, 2011

3 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Pay off your home loan in record time

Unless you're one of the country's richest people, you will need a bit of help from a bank to buy your home. A mortgage, however, doesn't have to rule your life forever - there are smart ways to ensure you pay it off in record time.

Home Loans

19 Oct, 2011

3 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Home ownership harder for Gen Y?

One of the defining trends of our time may be loss of the Australian dream of owning a home, according to new studies. But before we despair, we should understand why the younger generation has the bad luck, and what would-be Gen Y home owners can do to improve their chances of getting a foot on the property ladder.

Home Loans

13 Oct, 2011

2 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Home loan rate battle, how low can they go?

Spring is notorious for being a busy time for house hunters and therefore home loan applicants. So it's little wonder that the banks are competing heavily for mortgage business at the moment.

Home Loans

13 Oct, 2011

3 min read

Home loan rate battle, how low can they go?

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Fixed or variable? Crunch the numbers

With lenders engaging in serious competition on the fixed rate home loan front, it is timely to consider how this type of loan stacks up against the traditional variable home loan.

Home Loans

06 Oct, 2011

3 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Getting match fit: how to prepare for a mortgage

Buying your first home can be an exciting but also nerve-racking experience. Traipsing from home inspections to auctions can be time-consuming and traumatising, bank-speak can be mind-boggling and the paper work seems endless.

Home Loans

06 Oct, 2011

3 min read

Getting match fit how to prepare for a mortgage

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Need a mortgage? Think beyond the big banks

Sometimes the question comes up: “are you better off getting a home loan from a bank or a non-bank?” The answer is that it doesn’t really matter as both are perfectly viable options. The key issue is shopping around to find the lender who provides the best mortgage for your circumstances.

Home Loans

27 Sep, 2011

3 min read

Need a mortgage? Think beyond the big banks

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

First home buyers back in the game?

First home buyers are still showing signs of caution this year making up just 15.5 percent of all borrowers on average for the 12 months to July 2011, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics numbers.

Home Loans

22 Sep, 2011

3 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

How to tailor a home loan for you

If you’re in the market for a home loan and unsatisfied with the standard offering, don’t despair – some lenders provide customised home loans.

Home Loans

14 Sep, 2011

3 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

Are you ready for the next interest rate rise?

It’s nine months since the last interest rate rise by the Reserve Bank and while opinions vary on the timing of the next upward swing, one thing is certain – interest rates cannot remain at historically low levels.

Home Loans

14 Sep, 2011

3 min read

Are you ready for the next interest rate rise?

Jodie Humphries

Personal Finance Editor

How you can compare home loans to save

The elusive “cheapest mortgage” spurs home loan hunters to scramble the market for weeks before settling on a good deal. But while it’s easy to compare interest rates, few learn what it really takes to find the cheapest mortgage until they’re paying more than they have to.

Home Loans

12 Sep, 2011

2 min read

Laine Gordon

Money Editor

The age old question: to rent or buy?

It seems like a perennial debate, but for many Australians surrounded by financial and economic uncertainty, the decision about whether to rent or buy a home has arguably never been more relevant.

Home Loans

12 Sep, 2011

3 min read