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Featured articleBuying a house to live in is the number one Kiwi strategy for getting ahead. Not only do you get a place to call your own, you have a stake in the New Zealand property market. Many people firmly believe that property values double every 10 years and data reveals it’s a reality for much
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Featured articleWhen you’re thinking about buying your first home or moving up to your next home, it helps to get your head around the acronyms and jargon that lie ahead. If someone’s using these abbreviations without first explaining what they mean, be sure to ask. There are no silly questions when it comes to making good
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The journey from scanning the real estate pages to signing up for a mortgage has many steps. We’ll walk you through the process, so there are no surprises. The more you know before you get in touch with a lender, the better. Step 1: Have a casual chat with your lender or broker Getting your
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Buying your first home has become more and more challenging, particularly for Kiwis who may not have the option of significant financial support from family. To help address this, the New Zealand government provides several schemes designed to help people into home ownership for the first time. This guide provides a helpful overview of the
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In Budget 2022, the government eased some of the criteria for the First Home Grant, First Home Loan and Kāinga Whenua schemes administered by Kāinga Ora. The changes were made to help more first home buyers (existing or new-build) by better reflecting market prices for homes in some areas, as well as the needs of
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When a home loan lender is checking you out as a potential borrower, they’ll take a long, hard look at your credit score, which is a number between 0 and 1000. Lenders refer to your credit score because they need to ensure the loan they provide will be repaid. Having a high number could make
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Going shopping for a home – either your first or your next – is always an exciting time. The secret to making it a positive experience is having a realistic picture of how much you can afford to pay, so that you can view properties that fall within your budget. To get the clearest view
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Whether you’re a first home buyer, looking for your next place or building a home, one of the most important rules is to know what you can realistically afford. And what you can afford isn’t the same as what you could pay if you really squeeze every last drop out of your income. It means
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For some years now, New Zealand’s main banks and other mortgage lenders have been known to offer a cashback reward to eligible customers when they draw down (start) a new mortgage. It’s typically a lump sum cash payment of $1,000 to $3,000 – or even significantly more, depending on how much you’re borrowing. In this
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One way to reduce some of the stress of finding and owning your first home, or moving up to your next home, is to plan ahead for the extra costs involved. That way there’ll be less chance of nasty surprises that blow your budget and ruin the fun. Everyone has their eye on mortgage repayments,
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Owning your own home, or intending to, has been a New Zealand tradition for generations. But that doesn’t mean it’s still the best option for you today. People used to smoke on aircraft, we were once encouraged to save a tree by using plastic instead of paper and bars had to close at 6pm. Things
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One of the simplest ways to see what your regular mortgage repayments would be is to use our mortgage repayments calculator. You can also use it to check the effect of increasing or decreasing your regular repayments, or making a lump sum repayment at some point during the term of your mortgage. And if you’re
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When it comes to getting a new home loan or refinancing a property, many high-income households face a choice of working with a personal banker through private banking or engaging a mortgage broker. If you have a personal banker (also known as a private banker), your initial instinct may be to contact them regarding your
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Getting a mortgage is a big deal. Where do you go to find the best lender for your circumstances? What criteria will you have to meet? When and how do you apply? There are so many questions to navigate. Fortunately, mortgage brokers have many of the answers. A mortgage broker is an expert when it
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