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About Me

Rebecca Mitchell

Current Rating: 4.82 / 5
Finance Broker
Awesome Lending Solutions
www.awesomelendingsolutions.com.au
Gordon, New South Wales
0412 481983
🔹Co Founder of Awesome Lending Solutions
🔹Been in the finance industry for over 20 years

My Activity

answered
Q: With the Federal Parliament, today securing personal income tax cuts is it now time for Parliament to do the same for company and business tax cuts. Let's rally Business Australia and share your thoughts?
A: I totally think that it is about time to cut company & business tax. Less tax = more employment & training opportunities = longer lasting economy
answered
Q: Less than 24 hours before the race that stops a nation

So who's everyone tipping?
A: Humidor each way
answered
Q: Comment: Come on Australian Home Loan borrowers, we need to reverse these headlines

• 85% of Australian mortgage holders don’t know their home loan rate
• Most Australian home loan customers are paying way more than needed on their mortgage

Let’s be more proactive to find out the interest rate on our home loans and call your lender today to get a better rate. If you’re not sure how simply ask a question or call your mortgage or finance broker to help.

Could one call save you thousands?
A: Yes it seems to me there are three types of people,

Type one is super proactive to the point of being a little annoying, who are regularly checking lenders and comparison websites for the best rate. These people call at least once a month to discuss their interest rate and check they still have the right product. This would be the 15% who do know what their interest rate is.

Then in the second 85% who don’t know their rate, there are two types. The first group trust their mortgage broker or financial planner to keep in touch with them on regular basis and probably don’t know their current rate but would have had it checked in the last twelve month.

To me, there then appears to be a third group, who if feel make up about 50% of all mortgage holders. The borrower has no idea what rate they are on and probably haven’t thought about their loan since the day they took it out. They can tell you how much they pay month to month, but often have no idea of the balance of their loan or the rate they are paying. The only time these people seem to think about changing lenders is when rates go up and the repayments become a little uncomfortable. For many though if that discomfort never comes they will barely even look at their statements. The best example we have is many years ago when a client earning more per month than the balance of his loan and still paying $495 per year for an annual package and an interest rate nearly 3% higher than it should have been. The only reason he found any of this out is that he came to us to see if he could purchase an investment property and we asked for his last home loan statement. He promptly paid off his home loan the next day.

Lenders work for Lenders – they want to make as much profit of a client as possible. They are not going to tell you about a cheaper loan that makes them less money.

Only Mortgage brokers and Financial Planner are working for the borrower

Kind Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
Awesome Lending Solutions
blog post
5 Hurdles Between the Professional Woman and Her Loan
5 Hurdles Between the Professional Woman and Her Loan
At Awesome Lending Solutions, we have seen a big change in the market conditions, with the recent changes to the investment market and rates stil ...
blog post
6 Common Excuses That Keep You From Investing (And How to Banish Them!)
 6 Common Excuses That Keep You From Investing (& How to Banish Them!)
“Why put off till tomorrow what you can do today.”
Constantly at family gatherings, or han ...
answered
Q: For the loan to purchase our home we borrowed about 90% and had to pay mortgage insurance. If we refinance does it mean we have to pay it again?
A: Hi Mark,

Great question. The general rule of thumb is that if you want to take the borrowing back up to 90% & refinance with another lender you will be expected to pay the mortgage insurance again.

Can I ask what the purpose of refinancing would be?
If it's just to release the equity that you have acquired in the property since purchasing then perhaps you can stay with the same lender & just release the equity. You would still need to pay mortgage insurance but it would be just on the additional equity.

If you are looking to refinance to improve the rate then maybe a chat to your existing lender might help & see what they can offer.

I hope the above is of assistance.

Happy to talk further offline if you wish.

Have an awesome day.
Rebecca A Mitchell
Awesome Lending Solutions
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Q: Looking to borrow about $670,000 and a broker has quoted options of 1.3% off one of the banks standard rate and rate from a non bank called loanave. There doesn’t seem much difference between the loan but the rate is 0.26% lower - is it a safe decision to go with the non bank?
A: Hi Jas,
Great question, I can imagine with all the different choices out there it would be a little hard to know whether you should just stick to the main players or take a chance on one of the smaller guys.

I guess one of the things that I would consider if it was me trying to make the choice I would not focus on the rate alone, whilst that is an attractive feature, I would look at the service proposition that they are offering. Will you be able to speak to the same loan writer/broker at any time when you have a question, no matter how small it might be.
Can you easily change the features of the loan, can it be moulded to suit you not moulding yourself to suit the loan?

Just some food for thought :-) Feel free to contact me offline if you would like to take the discussion further.

Best of luck with your decision :-)
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Q: Can we split our home loan into 2 accounts... one as principal and interest and the other interest only. Can the interest rate be the same for both as the advice we have received is a little confusing... some say we can and other say the rates will be different?
A: Hi Shaun,

Completely understand your reasoning for wanting the two different repayment types, as it makes sense for accounting purposes & management of the loan.

First priority always to pay off non-deductable debt i.e the home loan.

Having said that as Vincent pointed out, there are some lenders out there that will offer the same rates on both. What I would suggest however if it is possible is to perhaps shift the investment portion over to the property that it relates to.

Happy to discuss further.

Kind Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
Awesome Lending Solutions
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Q: We are thinking about putting an investment property on Airbnb and would to ask if anyone had any recommendations on businesses that can help with housekeeping and property maintenance?
A: Hi Terry,

What a great idea. Where about's is the property, I don't have a property maintenance connection that I can refer but I have a home cleaning company that I can refer but they are based in Sydney.

Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
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Q: Trying buy a unit in St Kilda but finding it difficult to obtain finance as it's 41 square metres. Is 50 squares always the minimum - any advice of which banks might help?
A: Hi Michael, great question. There are a few variables to consider first of all. Have you been told that the lenders won't accept the unit because of its size or because of its location. One of the dangers that people face when buying on areas such as St Kilda is what is commonly referred to as high density. A lot of your lenders do have restrictions on the when level they will lend to in this circumstance. Having said that generally the majors will accept smaller units.

I hope this helps a little & happy to discuss offline.

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Q: With interest rates at an all time low, is now the right time to fix a percentage of my loan?
A: Hi Troy,

We use a rule of thumb with our clients when fixing which is to leave as a variable portion an amount approximating your salary for the fixed period. For example, if your salary is $60,000 per annum we would suggest leaving $180,000 as a variable portion to allow for the flexibility Kathleen mentions. Unless of course your likely to have a large inheritance or major lotto win (we all can hope) in which case you might wish to leave a larger portion as variable.

With regards to is this a good time to fix most economists from the major banks seem to indicate that at most there will be possibly two more rate reductions. This is why we are seeing fixed rates which are currently matching variable rates.

The reason many banks are not passing on the full rate reduction is the recent APRA (Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority) requirement to hold higher capital reserves (more money in the bank in case everyone turns up on the same day) as they have less to lend they need to make more profit on the money they do lend. This will probably continue to trend even if there are more rate reductions.

Keep in mind though that the banks much like a casino hate to loose & always build in a margin for the security that a fixed offers you (it's hard to beat the house)

For a first home buyer having the security of a portion of the loan where you can be certain of the repayments is obviously a great thing & we often recommend fixing, even a larger portion for this reason.

Hope this helps & happy to discuss further offline if needed.

Kind Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
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Q: when do i have to pay mortgage insurance?
A: Hi Joe,

Great question. Mortgage insurance covers the lender against the risk of you possibly defaulting. It is applicable to different people in different circumstances.

For example, a discharged​ bankrupt may always be required to pay mortgage insurance as they are seen as a bigger risk. Whereas a doctor may not be required to pay mortgage insurance until they exceed 95% value of the property as they are perceived as low risk.

Happy to discuss this further offline about your individual circumstance.

Rebecca A Mitchell
Director
Awesome Lending Solutions
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Q: Is now a good time to be looking at a fixed rate, what are the pit falls of fixed rates?
A: ​Hi Jackson,

Great question & one that I get a lot. To be honest the fixed rates are historically low so personally if it was me I would be definitely locking in some of my loan into a fixed rate. Especially if you want to have some peace of mind that you can budget for a certain amount each week, fortnight or month depending on your repayment method. I would also be leaving some of the loan as a variable loan then you can have the best of both worlds. A portion of the loan that is stable & can be budgeted for & a portion that you can either pay off quicker, park funds in offset or redraw whatever the offering is with the variable portion & increase if you intend to access any equity further down the track.

I hope this helps & please feel free to contact me should you wish to discuss further offline.

Kind Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
Director
Awesome Lending Solutions
answered
Q: Will banks take my centrelinks payments into consideration as income ?
A: Hi Sharon that is a good question & one that I get a lot.

Before answer it however we need to be clear what type of Centrelink payments are you referring too & is this your main source of income.

If it's Family Allowance for example most mainstream lenders & non bank lenders will take this income into consideration.

If it's other forms of Centrelink payments then that would need TL be reviewed on a case by case basis. Having said that there are one or two lenders that will take this as the main income to service the loan.

I hope the above is if assistance & please feel free to contact me off line to discuss further.

Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
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Q: When is a good time to get back into the property market I sold for a great price and am getting a great return for my money.but I am now renting?
A: Hi Louie that is a great question & one that I hear often. Personally for me anytime you can afford to jump into the market is a great time. If you are sitting there asking yourself the question then why not take it a step further by making some general enquiries with a broker to see if there is borrowing capacity & go from there. Best of luck & feel free to contact me should you wish to discuss further offline.

Rebecca A Mitchell
Awesome Lending Solutions
answered
Q: I got pre approved for a $420,000 home loan 6 months ago and now the bank say I can only borrow $390,000. If my situation is the same how can the bank change their mind like this?
A: Great question Jackson as both Kathleen & Robert suggested the market & lenders & banks attitude towards lending has changed a lot in the last six months so it's not unheard of that a pre approval from 6 months ago is now reduced. Has your broker offers any suggestions on how to improve the servicing to get back up towards the original amount. Suck as reducing credit card limits or closing facilities that just are not being utilised.
Is this an investment or an owner occupied property? Are you planning on paying principal & interest as opposed to interest only.
Hope the able helps & happy to discuss offline further.

Regards
Rebecca A Mitchell
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Q: Should I stick to an interest only loan for an investment property?
A: Hi Adrien,

Great question I will answer by covering on why you might choose interest only or principle & interest.
I would suggest interest only where cashflow is low and the extra cash required for principal & interest would be a significant drain. It is important to remember though that by paying interest only you are not creating any capital gain and as a result you will be relying on market capital growth.
If cashflow is not an issue then paying principle & interest can be great way of creating equity in the property that can take the place of capital growth.
This is often the case with some regional properties for example, where capital growth may be lower, higher returns can help create equity that in the longer term provides a similar growth to a property with lower cashflow but higher capital growth.

So what is right for you will depend on your circumstances and the property that you ultimately choose.

I hope this helps & happy to chat off line .

Kind regards
Rebccca A Mitchell
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Q: Is cross-collateralization good or bad? e.g If I go with cross-collateralization, one of the bank is offering me consolidation of 4 of my loans which are currently with 3 banks and at a better rate. Should I take that offer?
A: Hi Shireesh,

That is a brilliant question. My short answer is no. Cross collaterilisation is not a good path to go down. In short should you wish to sell one of the properties later down the track the lender does have the option of insisting on a valuation being conducted on the remaining properties to ensue the there is still enough security value left to secure the remaining debt for example keeping the LVR (loan to value ratio) at 80% they can ask for the loan to be paid down from the remaining funds of the sale.
In order to offer you a competitive rate the lender does not need to cross collateralise the loans or properties. They can simply offer you three stand alone loans for each property. This should not affect the rate.
I hope this helps & please feel free to contact me should you wish to discuss further offline.
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Q: When you get pre-approval from a lender, how long is this usually valid for?
A: Hi Bill great question & a common one in this climate. Majority of lenders will allow a pre approval to stay in place for up to three months. There are one or two lenders that will allow the pre approval to stay in place for up to six months. Once the pre approval expire it's generally a fairly straightforward process to extend the pre approval with the lender with just some updated personal & income details. I hope this helps & please feel free to contact me offline to discuss further.
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Q: Hi what is the best most cost effective way to remove a person from a mortgage? Currently joint tenants but wish to pay out ex an agreed amount and hold onto the property? I understand there is stamp duty payable to completely remove them from the mortgage
A: Hi Leanne I happen to have down several of these recently (must be that time of the year) generally what has worked for the clients that I have assisted is to get a copy of the family court order (property settlement) provide this to the person who is arranging the new finance. This is then sent in with the mortgage by the lender to the Land Titles Office & you in turn avoid stamp duty.

Hope this helps
Rebecca A Mitchell - Awesome Lending
answered
Q: Looking for a 85% LVR I/O investment loan with LMI waived? Are they available for NON PROFESSIONALS?
A: Hi Leanne great question. There are two ways to approach this. I am making an assumption that you are looking to finance your property & you don't want to have to pay the LMI or don't have funds to pay the LMI. The first option you can take advantage of is capping the LMI into the loan amount which means that whilst you don't have to pay the LMI upfront you do pay it off in the monthly repayment of the loan. The second option is taking advantage of a couple of lenders that are offering no LMI up to 85%. These loans are for NON PROFESSIONALS as your question mentions however the product options are very limited i.e no offset/ principal & interest payments. Which means that if you are just looking for a competitive rare & paying the loan off these are good options. I hope this helps & please feel free to contact me offline to discuss further.
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Q: What's the best way to consolidate $31k credit cards no equity available but have a $20k car unfinaned?
A: Hi Leanne whilst I can't give you a 100% certain answer as I don't have full details of your personal situation i.e income & expenses (happy to discuss these details offline) I would recommend that he option that makes the most sense is to apply for a personal lona at low interest rate to consolidate all the cards into one payment. There are several lenders they are offering competitive rates on unsecured loans. I hope this helps & please feel free to contact me to discuss further in need.
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Q: If I move out of my home and rent it do I need to refinance with an investor loan or can I keep the mortgage I currently have?
A: Hi Jonah,

Whilst you don't necessarily need to refinance the loan to change the purpose from owner occupied to investment you might want to consider at minimum changing the repayments to interest only for taxation purposes.now whilst I'm not an accountant I have worked alongside accountants for several years & this is the most comment recommendation. As also mentored I would strongly suggest that you get a valuation down for CGT purposes. From a structuring point of view I would suggest refinancing the loan so the purpose is reset & makes it less murky for the accountant later. I hope this helps & feel free to contact me offline to discuss further.
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Q: Can I use some of my super towards my deposit?
A: Hi Pru,

Great question & a common question at the moment due to talk from the government.
If you are looking to purchase a home for yourself personally then at this stage you are not able to use any of your super as a deposit.
I hope this helps.
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Q: When my fixed rate loan period ends - do I just automatically switch back to variable with the same lender without having to bother with paperwork etc?
A: Hi Trevor,

This is a very common question. Generally in most cases the loan will automatically roll over to a variable loan.
The lenders or banks generally send out a letter about 4 weeks prior to the loan converting over to a variable rate. When this letter is received you need to make contact to ensure that when the loan does change over you are getting the discounted rate that you see entitled to. Also you will need to make sure that the repayment structure & type remains the same.
That being interest only or principle & interest or weekly/fortnightly/monthly.

I hope this helps out. If you would like to discuss further offline please feel free to contact me.

Rebecca A Mitchell.
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Q: Why is it more difficult to attain a personal loan over a credit card?
A: Hi Archer, that is a great question.
The thing to always keep in mind is the interest rate (greedy bank profit) versus the risk to the lender (that you will run away)
In the case of credit cards there major lenders make huge profits because most charge around 20% per year and if you pay the minimum 3% you are often looking at taking longer to pay off the debt than you will live (they have you forever)

With personal loans the lender only gets you for a few years, usually 5-7 and the competition has forced rates down close to 10%

Of course if you take a higher rate personal loan like the short term money lenders eg Nimble, Cash Converters, Wallet Wizard who’s interest rates are again, closer to 20% you will find it very easy to get a loan.

Rate 4 Risk.
Higher rate = easier loan approval
Lender makes more money = cares less

Hope the above is helpful.



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Q: What are the best options for entering the home market with a low deposit without being locked into high interest fixed loans?
A: Hi Graham,

I hope that you are enjoying your weekend & what a great question.

A common question that I hear from the customers that I deal with is exactly this. "Do I have to have a fixed rate loan because I have a low deposit" the simple answer is no. If you have a low deposit but can pass the stress tests that the lenders would apply then there is no reason you would have to fix your loan. A lot of first time buyers do choose to do this so they can budget for this commitment & get into the habit of having a loan payment each fortnight or month.
What we tend to recommend is that our clients split their loan have a portion fixed & a portion variable to have the flexibility of making extra repayments & still have the benefit of a planned payment.
What a lot of the lenders do put into place with customers who have a smaller deposit is principal & interest payments. This means that you are paying down a portion of the balance with each payment therefore allowing you to save interest & build up equity in the property.
I hope this helps & happy to discuss further.
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Q: Is there an ideal time to refinance a home loan?
A: Hi Justin,

We suggest people review their lending & finance arrangements on an annual basis to ensure they have the most appropriate loan fit for their individual circumstances.

A great example of this is the client we helped in the past who was paying $395 per annum for a professional package to receive a discount on their interest rate that was only saving them $150 a year due to their low loan balance.

We have also come across clients whose fixed rate expired & the bank rolled them into a standard variable rate loan with an interest rate 1.30% higher than we were able to negotiate.

Hope this helps. Feel free to touch base if you would like to discuss further.



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Q: I was going to buy an investment apartment off the plan but my bank will only let me borrow 80%. Is there a way in which I could borrow 90%?
A: Hi Alison,

The first question is when will the off the plan be completed. As most lenders will only issue a pre approval for between 3-6 months with the exception of CBA who will issue a pre approval for 12 months however they will only lend up to 80%. A lot of the second tier & non bank lenders will lend up to 90% with pre approvals ranging from 3-6 months.

Hope this helps & please feel free to contact me if I can help in anyway.
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Q: The markets are a bit bumpy at the moment – should I be looking to changing my loan to a fixed rate?
A: Hi John,

That is a great question. Unfortunately it's not an easy one to answer with 100% certainty.
In my personal opinion though it's unlikely that the RBA is going to increase rates in the near future. The thing that we do have to be mindful off is that the banks & lenders are starting to move independently of what the RBA are doing. To allow some certainty for our clients we are recommending that they fix a portion of the loan. Therefore for you the stability of being able to budget for a certain part of your repayment but still benefit should the rates move in downward direction.
I hope this helps & please feel free to contact me should you wish to discuss further I would be happy to help.
Rebecca Awesome Lending Solutions
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Q: I've been told I can use a deposit bond instead of cashing in some investments to buy a property, is that possible?
A: Hi Alison
In short yes this is true. Some real estates may not accept them as some vendors don't like them. If it's a brand new Propety that you are purchasing you would need to find out of the developer will accept this instead of actual cash.
Bear in mind that when the Propety is due to settle you will need to have those funds available to pay back the deposit bond issuer.
Hope this helps & please feel free to contact me if I can be of any further assistance
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Q: If I'm buying my first property do I still have to pay mortgage insurance if I have less than 20% deposit?
A: That's a great question Jacob. No...... For some professions a lot of lenders have professional packages where he mortgage insurance is not applicable up to 90% LVR which means a 10% deposit.
Please feel free to contact if you would to discuss this at length.
Have a great weekend.
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Q: How do interest only periods work, if I've been putting money into an offset account, when the interest only period is over do they just charge you principle and interest on the difference between what's in your offset account and the loan amount?
A: Hi Zoe,

Firstly you should contact your mortgage broker or bank to discuss your new repayments as each lender is different.

For example some lenders will use the original 30 year term for P & I calculations while others will base it on the remaining term.
Money in the offset may affect the loan repayments with some lenders also.

Without knowing the lender the you have your mortgage with its a hit like trying to ask the speed limit on a road that hasn't even been built yet.
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Q: I'm thinking of buying a holiday house. Is there a way to make it a negatively geared investment property?
A: Hi Bethany,

The income of the property after all expenses such as rates interest on the loan to purchase it & depreciation costs versus the rental income are what will determine if it is a negatively geared investment property. Assuming that you are renting it out & not living in it yourself.

Hope this helps.
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Q: Are banks still able to penalise you for paying out the loan early?
A: Hi John,

Deferred establishments fees as they used to be called no longer exist & have been abolished for a while now.

If you have a fixed rate however that still has time left then you will be up for fees for breaking the fixed term before it expires. This fee is extremely hrs to calculate & you are best speaking to your lender to get a pay out figure so you can have some idea of what you might be up for if you have a fixed loan.

Lenders do still charge what is called a discharge fee which can range from $250-$500. This will be noted in your loan offer.

Hope this helps & please feel free to contact me to discuss further.
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Q: I have a personal car loan and interest free store cards, shall we consolidate with our home loan? Or continue to pay all separately?
A: Hi Paul ,

This is a question we get a lot. Most defiantly consolidate them into your home loan if you have the equity available. This would make much easier to manage repayments & you might even start saving money. Most people I see are paying upwards of 9% on personal loans & 12% on credit cards & store cards are even worse. As opposed to 4% on average for your home loan .
I hope this helps & please contact me if I can assist in anyway.
Have a great weekend.
Rebecca from Awesome
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Q: 4 months ago we purchased an existing home, which we want to do some work to. When is the earliest we can request a refinance with our Bank?
A: Hi Nathan,

It depends on the type of work you are taking about. If it is structural you will need to supply building plans & quotes & this can be done as soon as you own the property.
If you are talking about more cosmetics work then you will need to wait for the Propety value to increase. Why not ask your broker or bank for a free Propety report to check your current property value.

I hope this helps
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Q: Can you give me an idea of what you think interest rates will do over the next 12 months or so and do you think is a good time to fix?
A: We feel that the property interest rate cycle is bottoming out.
As a result we are advising many clients based on their personal circumstances to fix a portion of their home loan.

I hope this helps.
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Q: I am about to sell a house and will come in front by about 200k, should I rent for a bit and see what's happening and save or should I be looking to buy straight away? I have heard of the saying buy n sell in same market although don't really know
A: Hi Michael,

You don't mention why you have sold he property? Simply selling & buying only makes sense where you have had a lifestyle change or created equity in your existing Propety via renovation for example.
If via renovation it would be OK to buy again & replicate what you did previously.

If it's due to a lifestyle change talk to local real estates about the market you are tying to get into.
Keep on mind selling buying & stamp duty can erode up to 10% of the property value.

I hope this helps.
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Q: Are redraw facilities easy to use? Can they be online or do I have to call the lender every time I want to access funds?
A: Hi Michael,

Yes redraw facilities are very easy to use. Most lenders who offer this feature do not charge for the redraw as they are available through Internet banking. Generally the only time you would be charged & would have to contact he lender would be of it was a large sum that you wanted to redraw.
An offset account also works very similar & also helps you reduce your loan repayments.
I hope this helps & happy to discuss further in need.
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Q: How can I leverage the equity in my home to start a new business and limit risk & cashflow during the startup phase?
A: Hi Daniel,

We would recommend that you withdraw sufficient equity from the home to cover all start up costs as well as sufficient funds to cover the first twelve months cashflow.

As soon as possible arrange an overdraft against the business with a different lender to your home loan.

Hope this helps & happy to discuss further at any time.

Rebecca - Awesome Lending Solutions
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Q: What is the best interest rate I could possibly expect to negotiate if I refinance my home loan?
A: Hi Laina,
That is a really good question.
The "best rate you can expect" would be determined by your credit worthiness & contributing factors such as:

1) Loan amount
2) LVR
3) Your employment
4) Fees & charges
5) Services
6) The flexibility of the loan

Your interest rate for an owner occupied property should be starting with a 3.

I hope this helps. Happy to discuss further.
Rebecca & Awesome Lending
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Q: Is a 10% deposit still required by most banks/lenders for a home loan?
A: Hi Bill that is a very good question. It depends on what the purpose of the loan will be. You say a "home" loan so if you are looking to purchase your own home that being to reside in most lenders are now only liking for 5% deposit.
If this is for an investment purchase and this will be your first purchase most lenders do still require 10% deposit. However if you already have a property & this would be a second purchase than you can get away with a 5% deposit.
I hope this helps & I'm happy to talk further about what you are looking for in a loan.
Rebecca from Awesome Lending Solutions.
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Q: Coming right out of school and heading into the job market, is now a reasonable time to start a line of credit?
A: Hi Kayla,

Congrats on entering the job market! Exciting times ahead.
The first question I guess would be what has made you consider a line of credit?

It would be my recommendation & personal suggestion to not start with a line of credit straight out of school.
If you have some expenses like moving costs for you Jon then I would suggest a credit card with a small limit
Or perhaps speak with the bank that you do your lending with to see if they can offer you a small temporary overdraft that you use for emergencies.

Hope this helps happy to discuss further.
Rebecca from Awesome
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Q: They say changing lenders is easy and you should look for a better price and service - but how often should I do this?
A: Hi Jimmy,

Good question that I get all the time.

We recommend our clients contact their broker or bank on an annual basis to review their lender requirements & negotiate their rates.

Happy to discuss further if you would like!
Rebecca from Awesome

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Q: What's the outlook of the Sydney property market in 2016?
A: Hi Michael,

Excellent question! After speaking with our Propety buying partners the indications are the Sydney Market will be patchy but as always the right Propety in the right street in the right suburb will outperform the market & provide a great source of awesome wealth creation.

Happy to discuss further.
Rebecca from Awesome.
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Q: Do you think that the federal government will abolish the tax concessions that encourage negative gearing? If so, under which conditions or scenarios do you think they would do so?
A: Hi Lewis,

What a great question.
Why would the government remove negative gearing when the last time they tried the number of small investors deserted the market
If they remove negative gearing it would only be due to political pressure or the belief they could capture some lost revenue.
I believe the actual unintended consequence would simply be more people investing in property trusts as a means to invest in property. These property trusts would intern run the investments purely for a return on capital and therefore the small investor would get a lower rate of return.
Alternatively there would be a reduction in the supply of rental properties which would eventually lead to higher rental returns.
Personally I feel it would be very difficult for the government to ever get rid of negative gearing since more sophisticated investors would align positively geared assets against those which have a negative return.
I hope that helps & feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss further.
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Q: Hi there. Trying to work what makes more financial sense over a longer period ...paying out a higher interest personal loan with withdrawing cash currently sitting on my house mortgage OR leaving the $$ on the mortgage? The interest rate is 12% v 4.95%
A: Hi Renita,

I would suggest that you use the cash that you have sitting in your home loan currently to pay out the personal loan. Then once that is paid out I would arrange to have the amount of the payments that you were contributing to the personal loan back to the home loan to reimburse the funds you withdrew as soon as possible.
I hope this helps.
Happy to discuss further in need.
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Q: I'm currently working as a contractor for one company. I go through an agency who does all my payroll and I do not have to do activity statements for tax purposes. Will I have any issues getting a mortgage?
A: Hi Matt,

Hope this finds you well. Based on the scenario that you have described above on face value I can't see any issues with you being able to get a mortgage.
Generally when you are working as a contractor most lenders like to see a minimum of two years history in that field as they tend to treat you as self employed. In your situation as you go through an agency this works in your favour for stability.
Generally you would need to provide two years personal tax returns to show consistency in income which will assisting in showing your capacity to repay a loan. The fact that you would most likely be able to show payslips & I would presume a copy of the contract get you have all adds up to a positive for you.
Happy to discuss further if you would like.
Feel free to contact me.

Rebecca
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Q: How can I look at a broad range of home loans to work out which is best for me? I really want to compare more than just the interest rate ?
A: Hi Rob,
It's refreshing to hear a customer who is wanting to look beyond just interest rates but willing to look at the overall features of the loan.
As everyone else has mentioned there are a two ways you could approach this.
1) Research, research & more research. There are lots of websites the offer comparison tools.
www.mozo.com.au
www.ratecity.com.au just to name one or two.

2) Engage the services of a highly experienced broker. Most brokers theses days will offer this service free of charge.

Good luck with the research.
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Q: I'm looking at getting some advice around whether i should get a fixed or variable home loan, especially with the decline in real estate of late. Will that effect me?
A: Hi Hamish,
Will this be your first home loan or a refinance or second purchase.
The decline in the real estate market will not greatly impact your ability to get a fixed or variable loan.
I do suggest to a lot of my clients these days with the rates where they are that it is always good to have a mixed loan. So have a portion fixed for the comfort of being able to plan your cashflow & repayments for a fixed period of time & then have a portion variable to allow you to make additional payments & redraw, features which are not available on a fixed loan. Also you have the luxury that should the rates go down again your variable portion gets the benefit.
I hope this gives you some guidance. Feel free to contact me should you wish to discuss further.
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Q: I have just finished university and have come up with some business ideas in which I would like to pursue. The issue is that I have minimal finances in order to get the project off the ground. What are some of my options?
A: Hi Jack,
Great work on finishing university I bet you are pretty proud of that achievement.
Looks like you are keen to get started too.
In regards to finances there a couple of options that you can explore.
1) Naturally one of the best & easiest options is family investors. Family usually like to get in on something & would more than likely be wanting to see you achieve your dreams. Who knows where that could lead to.
2) A JV (joint venture) with some likeminded investors. Might be good to join some of the networking groups who have weekly breakfast meet ups. They would be good places to start to get some contacts
3) Perhaps a small business loan or credit card. You will need to make sure that if you do approach a lender for business finance that you have a sound business plan & ideas on investment return etc.
Best of luck Jack.
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Q: We have strong equity in our home and a smallish mortgage. We want to renovate and remortgage but without increasing the repayment amounts or duration of the loan. Can this be done?
A: Hi MJ Z
Great question. Awesome news about having strong equity.
Unfortunately there is no quick simple way of doing this without increasing your loan or the repayments.
If you increase the loan you will either have to, a) Increase your loan repayments or b) Increase the term of the loan.
This would be a good opportunity to do some research on the what rates are available to you at the money as you many find that you will be able renegotiate the rate that you are currently saving.
I hope that this helps.

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Q: Hi there, I have just finished school and about to commence Uni. Is it worth me getting a credit card to help with moving out or should I get a small loan?
A: Hi William,
Congrats on getting into Uni. Can I ask what the reason is for moving? Is this due to location v home? If you intend to get a credit facility I would go with a very small credit card. That way this can be paid of as quick as possible especially if you don't use the limit. Do you have a part time or full time job to allow you to pay this debt off?
I would suggest if possible staying at home for as long as possible or perhaps moving in with mates or house sharing, this would involve minimum moving costs.
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Q: What are the new changes in the credit rating system? And if I have been late with my electricity bills will this affect my rating?
A: This is a great question & one that I get a lot while the credit rating agency changes the way they do things. I have to agree with Paul here as there is some advice.
One thing to always keep in mind is at the first sign of any difficulty contact the bill provider or credit provider.
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Q: If i sold an investment property at profit will taking on a new investment property loan in the same financial year help minimise my cgt?
A: Hi Linda,
Awesome news about selling your investment property.
I would have to also agree with Albert & Paul the best person to answer the CGT implications is your accountant.
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Q: I'm looking at buying a new car, but I'm not sure if I should finance it or save to buy a cheaper second hand one. Is it worth getting a personal loan for?
A: Hi Saxon,
Exciting stuff that you are looking to buy yourself a new car. The first thing that you need to work out is what your budget is & the purpose of the cR. The purpose being are you going to use this for personal use not business/work purposes.
If it's for personal use then I would suggest a second hand car. You can get some food ex demo cars at the auctions. Pickles at Milperra is a good spot. In this case perhaps just a personal or car loan would be the better option.
If this is for business or work purposes I would suggest a new car as you will be able to get a good deal on a lease or hire purchase as well as a good long term warranty.
Hope this helps.
Feel free to contact me to discuss further.
Rebecca @AwesomeLending
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Q: My friend told me you can fix some of your home loan and leave some variable so that you can pay off the principal. Is this true?
A: Hi Lou,
Your friend is absolutely correct. A lot of my clients have their loans set up this way to give them the comfort of knowing that they are paying down a portion of the home loan therefore building equity & also having the benefit of set repayments.
Was this something that you were thinking about doing for your home loan?
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Q: Hi, I am purchasing an investment property with my wife and my brother and his wife. Will the bank insist we have one loan with one bank? Is there other things i should be aware of? Cheers, Forbes.
A: Hi Forbes,

Congratulations on buying an investment property. Generally most of the lenders will insist on the one loan against the new purchase. I am assuming that you are making this enquiry as you would prefer to keep your payments separate to your brother & his wife.
What you can do to ensure that you are responsible for your portion of the loan is set up two splits against the property which will assist in you & your brother being responsible for your portion of the loan.
If you would like some more details regarding this please feel free to contact me.
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Q: I am paying 4.60% on my home loan - is that too high and what should I be paying?
A: Hi Joe,
That is an excellent question. This rate does seem a little high if this is for an owner occupied property. A lot of the lenders are offering clients rates below 4% for these types of loans.
Perhaps try approaching your existing lender to see what they are willing to negotiate for you. If you get no satisfaction from them they try contacting a finance broker. They will be more than happy to get the best rate & product for you.
Hope this helps.
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Q: Can I purchase a car through my business and claim the repayments?
A: Hi Joe,

You sure can claim the repayments through your business.
There are many leasing business options.
I hope this helps.
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Q: My sister wants to buy a car. Is she better off financing that through her mortgage than getting finance for the car separately?
A: Hi Amy C,

That is a great question. If your sister is good at making her loan repayments then it would be best getting it through her mortgage, especially if she intends to keep the car for a while. Your sister would just need to make sure that she seeks a good mortgage broker that will ensure that the additional funds are set up as a separate split on her loan & the term matches how long she intends to keep the car for.

However if your sister intends to upgrade her car regularly, like a good friend of mine. Then it is better off to get a separate car loan.

I hope this helps.







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