The cooling off period is the period of time between when you have had your offer to purchase a property accepted and the time you actually exchange contracts. When your offer is accepted you will be asked to pay a holding deposit of around 0.25% of the purchase price. This will take the property “off the market” for the duration of the cooling off period. This holding deposit is usually not refundable. The cooling off period is usually 5 – 10 days and is negotiable between your solicitor and the solicitor for the vendor. During this period your solicitor will conduct any searches they need to and Shire First Mortgages will organise for unconditional approval of your finance.

 

Your 10% deposit (less any holding deposit you have already paid) is payable at the end of the cooling off period when your finance has been unconditionally approved and your solicitor has conducted all of the necessary searches.

 

The best way to determine if you are eligible for the First Home Owner’s Grant is to check the details on the Office of State Revenue website http://www.osr.nsw.gov.au

 

The amount you can borrow will depend on your individual circumstances . Each lender has different criteria and some will lend more than others. Your Shire First Mortgages loan consultant will be able to assist you in working out the best lender for your circumstances. For a rough guide have a look at our calculators “How much can I borrow”

 

All banks and lenders will look favourably on your ability to save. The rationale is that if you are able to commit to a regular savings pattern then you will be more likely to be able to commit to making regular loan repayments. Most but not all banks will require you to have a minimum of 5% of the purchase price in genuine savings saved over a period of 3 – 6 months. Genuine savings do not include things such as sale of your car, a gift or inheritance or any other type of lump sum deposit. Some banks do not require genuine savings. Ask one of our loan consultants for more information.

How long is a piece of string? No seriously, once we have all of your information it should not take any more than a few days for an answer from the bank. The actual process will vary depending on the type of loan we are arranging for you. For example, a pre approval will usually be quicker than a full approval because the bank does not have to do a valuation. At any given time different banks will also provide different service levels. It is our job to know who is processing quickly and which bank has delays. This way if your matter is urgent we can ensure it doesn’t get sent to a bank which is taking 2 weeks to pick up a file. At your loan interview your Shire First loan consultant will go through our calling and service commitment flowchart with you giving you detailed information on the timeframes involved in your loan.

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A pre approval is an indication from the bank or lender that you meet the qualifying criteria for a loan subject to finding a property up to a maximum value. Applying for a pre approval is like applying for a loan. You must provide evidence of income and savings.  A pre approval will give you the confidence to be able to make an offer on a home confident that someone has assessed your loan application and it meets the bank’s guidelines. A word of caution, beware of “instant” or “30 second” online pre approvals where no one has looked at your documentation . This type of approval is just a guide and cannot be relied upon.

 

A conditional approval means the bank or lender has assessed your application and has approved the loan subject to certain conditions being satisfied. These conditions are usually things such as the valuation being completed by the bank’s valuer or the application being approved by the bank’s mortgage insurance company. Formal approval means that all outstanding conditions have been satisfied and the loan is fully approved.

 

In most cases where you borrow more than 80% of the value of the property you will be required to pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance as a one off premium. If your loan is a low doc loan then you will be required to pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance if you borrow more than 60% of the value of the property. Some lenders have special offers from time to time which allow you to borrow a little more without paying LMI. It is best to check with your Shire First Mortgages loan consultant.

In the short term no but over the course of a 30 year loan then paying weekly repayments will help you save on interest and pay your loan off faster. An important point to remember is how the weekly repayments are calculated. To ensure you pay off your loan faster work out your repayments as follows. Take your monthly repayment and divide it by 4 to get a weekly figure. This way you will actually end up paying an extra 4 weeks repayment each year putting you well on your way to making big interest savings.

Some loan products offer you the ability to stop making repayments for a short period of time. This is known as a repayment holiday. Repayment holidays are usually used for things such as when you have recently had a baby. It is important to remember that although you are not making repayments, interest is still accruing on your loan and being capitalised on or added to the balance and you will need to catch up the repayments at some stage.

Each bank is different. Most repayments start one month after your loan has settled. In some cases if you have chosen to make repayments on a weekly or fortnightly basis then repayments will start one week or one fortnight after your loan has settled. It is best to check with your Shire First Mortgages loan consultant as to what is happening with your loan.

Your first step is to ensure it is within your price range. Shire First Mortgages can help by providing you with a comprehensiveRP Data Comparative Analysis Property Report which will give you an indicative valuation for the property and help you determine at what price you can make an offer. As long as that price is the same as or less than your pre approval then you should make an offer to the agent. Always make your offer in writing to show that you are serious.

Congratulations! The hard work of finding a property is now behind you. When your offer is accepted you will probably be asked to pay a 0.25% deposit to secure the property for a period of 5 – 10 days. This is known as the cooling off period. As soon as your offer is accepted you need to let your solicitor or conveyance know so they can get a copy of the contract from the real estate agent or vendor and start going through the contract and ordering searches. You will also need to let Shire First Mortgages know. We will obtain a copy of the contract from the real estate agent or your solicitor and then complete the paperwork necessary to obtain your formal loan approval. In most cases the lender will order a valuation over the property. This process will be completed within the cooling off period. Once the formal loan approval is received you will be asked to exchange contracts and pay the balance of your 5% or 10% deposit.

The first thing you need to do is to ensure it has been paid and that it is noted as having been paid. Having a default does not automatically disqualify you from getting a loan but it does make things harder as many lenders will not accept your application. If you feel the default has been lodged unjustly then there are organisations which can assist you in trying to remove the default. It is best to speak to your Shire First Mortgages loan consultant about your situation and they will be able to advise you further.

Interest rates are set by the individual banks and lenders according to the economic climate of the day. As a rough guide rates tend to follow trends set by the Reserve Bank of Australia.

The best loan is the one which provides you with the benefits you need at a good rate. Each loan is different and every loan will not suit every person.

The cheapest interest rate will vary from day to day. Your Shire First Mortgages consultant will be able to work with you to determine the best loan for you.The interest rate is important but is not the only consideration when looking at loans.

In most cases we do not charge for a basic loan writing service as we are paid by the lender. However in some cases where the loan amount is small or additional paperwork is needed we do charge you a small fee. Please see our Schedule of Fees and Charges for more information.

 

Unfortunately, applying for a loan and completing lots of paperwork seem to go hand in hand. The amount of paperwork is influenced by the need of the lender and Shire First Mortgages to fully comply with National Consumer Credit Protection legislation and to ensure responsible lending guidelines are followed.

 

When you take out a mortgage the bank uses your home as security. In almost all instances the bank will arrange for a valuation of the property to be carried out by an independent valuer. They do this to ensure they have an accurate value of the property's worth and also to ensure the property is in good order and will make acceptable security,