Case Study: Benn
We're interviewing some of our amazing loans.com.au customers to get to know their home and car-buying stories.
We sat down with Benn, based in Brisbane, and asked him about his experiences, challenges and how he overcame them.
Background
After acquiring 3 investment properties, I decided to buy a home with my then partner as we needed a nice place to raise our little girl. However, real life didn’t go to plan. We later separated and I decided to take over the mortgage myself.
As a single-income household, I reviewed my finances. I was unhappy with the loan, interest rate and the service I got from my lender. They won us with a low introductory rate but increased it soon afterwards, very steeply. This wasn’t clearly defined in their contract. Whilst they said the rate may rise, they never said by how much. It didn’t sit well with me when it happened as it felt deceptive.
I started exploring my options, first with the major banks. I wasn’t happy. Then I found you guys. You were simple and easy to deal with, had the right products, and a real good rate. You also have a very clear process about how much you’ll charge above the reserve bank rate if it rises, so no shock, making it easy to work out future scenarios. The whole refinance was really smooth.
Challenges
- Affording loan repayments with a single income after separating from a spouse can prove to be challenging. Find a lender with real life experience who can tailor the right loan for you
- The previous lender made very steep rate increases after their introductory offer expired. This didn’t sit well with me when it happened. I wanted more transparency, which I got with loans.com.au
- It was hard to find a lender with a good variable rate, simple application process and low transfer costs, but that’s exactly what I got with loans.com.au
“I have nothing but good things to say about loans.com.au”
Solutions
- Review your loan frequently, and put in the effort to compare all the lenders, not just the big banks. If you can, even take the time to call them and talk. The best will answer every question you have
- Establish a real loan that if you had to, you could afford with a single income for a protracted period. That will alleviate any concerns if interest rate rise, someone becomes out of work or life changes
- Pick a lender with a local call centre, like loans.com.au, with real people who care. That way you can talk with someone with practical life experience who can help you tailor a real loan
How was your loans.com.au experience?
Really smooth, from start to finish. I’ve had a great experience with you. Whenever I had questions I got prompt answers so I’m happy with that. I’ve recommended you to lots of people. Your products are really easy to understand and you make the whole loan simple and easy. It’s great. I don’t have any complaints. Actually, I’ve got nothing but good things to say about loans.com.au.
I also really liked that I didn’t have to come into a branch. I dealt with loans.com.au online, by email, in the onTrack portal and by phone. When it got to signing documents, an advisor took me through everything. The only physical contact I had was proving my identity at the Post Office. The forms were really good too. You guys were very clear about what I needed to provide and there wasn’t any back and forth. I uploaded it all online without fuss. It was very practical. There wasn’t any extraneous requirements I needed to jump through to get onboard, it was a low barrier of entry, so it was pretty easy to switch.
loans.com.au customer?
If you’re a loans.com.au customer and would like to be featured, we’d love to hear from you! Send us an email at community@loans.com.au and we’ll get in touch.
loans.com.au made the whole process so simple. Dealing with you online and by phone made everything super easy.
It was never a hassle, never a problem, he always had the right answers and just made it so, so easy. It was a good experience and then I put it through. Got the approval done. Got a great rate.
"I had many questions, so I really appreciated being able to always talk with someone, whether online, by email, in the onTrack application processing portal or on the phone. You were always there for me."
"Initially I asked around with the major banks but I found out that, with self-managed super, it is quite a specialised area and most of the banks don’t offer SMSF loans. So somebody suggested to look it up online. That’s how I found loans.com.au."