Home loan guides
43 guides · live figures as at 2 Nov 2026
Short, practical guides for people who are about to take out, negotiate or refinance a home loan. Where a guide quotes a current rate, it comes from RateSonar's own record of advertised rates and shows the day it was recorded.
Getting a loan
From your first conversation to settlement day.
Things to know when negotiating a new home loan
How to negotiate a home loan rate in Australia: advertised vs comparison rate, fees, offset, LMI, fixed vs variable, break costs, cashback, and the live RateSonar pages to quote.
Questions to ask a mortgage broker
The questions to ask an Australian mortgage broker: how they are paid, which lenders they use, best interest duty, fees and how to check their licence. Based on Moneysmart guidance.
Mortgage pre-approval: what it is and how long it lasts
What mortgage pre-approval is in Australia, how long Moneysmart says it lasts, what can change it, why it is not a guarantee, and how to use it when you bid on a property.
How lenders assess serviceability and how much you can borrow
How Australian lenders test whether you can afford a home loan: income, living expenses, debts, the rate buffer, with a worked example at RateSonar's median rate plus 3 points.
The HEM benchmark explained
What the Household Expenditure Measure (HEM) is, how it differs from your declared expenses in a home loan application, and what ASIC and the courts have said about using it.
The APRA serviceability buffer
What APRA's mortgage serviceability buffer is, that it was raised to 3 percentage points in October 2021 and confirmed on 28 May 2026, and what it does to borrowing power.
How your credit score affects your home loan
What a credit report shows lenders, how to get yours free, why enquiries matter before you apply, and how to fix errors, using Moneysmart's guidance.
Low-doc home loans for the self-employed
What a low-doc home loan is, how it differs from a full-doc loan, the records self-employed borrowers should keep, and what to ask. Official sources only, no invented rates.
How a HECS-HELP debt affects your borrowing power
How compulsory HELP repayments work under the ATO's current thresholds, a worked repayment example, how lenders may treat them, and what to ask. No borrowing power calculation.
Guarantor home loans
How a guarantor home loan works, limited vs unlimited guarantees, the risks to the guarantor, getting legal advice and how it differs from the 5% Deposit Scheme.
Construction loans, progress payments and how interest is charged
How a construction loan is drawn in stages, why interest follows the drawn balance, a worked example with RateSonar figures, and the questions to ask your lender and builder.
Bridging loans, buying before you sell
What a bridging loan is, how peak debt and end debt work in a round-number example, the interest cost per $100,000, the risks and the alternatives to ask your lender about.
First home buyers and upfront costs
Deposits, schemes, insurance, duty and fees.
First home buyer schemes in Australia
What the Australian Government 5% Deposit Scheme offers first home buyers, where to check state grants and stamp duty, and how to compare lenders. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
The First Home Super Saver Scheme
How the First Home Super Saver (FHSS) Scheme works, the yearly and total limits, who is eligible, how to request a determination and a release, and how it differs from the 5% Deposit Scheme.
What LVR means for your home loan
What loan-to-value ratio (LVR) means in Australia, how to work it out, why 80% matters for lenders mortgage insurance and rates, and what the RBA data shows about higher-LVR loans.
Lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) explained
What lenders mortgage insurance is, who it protects, when it applies above 80% LVR, and the ways to avoid or reduce it, using Moneysmart and firsthomebuyers.gov.au wording.
Stamp duty by state and territory: where to check
Where to check stamp duty (transfer duty) in every Australian state and territory, what each revenue office calls it, which concessions to look for, and how to estimate yours.
Home loan fees explained
The fees that can come with an Australian home loan, from application and valuation to discharge and break costs, what the comparison rate includes, and a checklist to take to a lender.
Rates and loan types
How rates are set, what the types mean and who charges what.
Why home loan rates move: the RBA cash rate and what lenders pass on
How the RBA cash rate feeds into Australian home loan rates, why lenders do not always move in step, and how to see who changed their rate and when using RateSonar's live change feed.
Fixed vs variable home loan rates in 2026
Fixed or variable? How each works, what Australian lenders advertise for each as at today, what the RBA's data shows, the trade-offs and how to test your repayments.
What happens when your fixed rate expires
What happens when a fixed home loan rate ends in Australia: the revert rate, your options (negotiate, re-fix, refinance), and how to compare the revert rate with the market.
Split home loans, part fixed and part variable
How a split home loan works, a worked example using advertised fixed and variable rates, where offsets and extra repayments fit, and questions for choosing the ratio.
The comparison rate explained
What an Australian home loan comparison rate is, how it is calculated, what it leaves out and how to use it with the advertised rate. With live examples from RateSonar's rate data.
Investor vs owner-occupier home loan rates
How far investor home loan rates sit above owner-occupier rates in RateSonar's data, what the RBA and APRA say about why, and what changing a loan's purpose means.
Interest-only home loans
How interest-only home loans work, a worked $600,000 example of the repayment step-up after five years, the rate premium in RateSonar's data and what to ask first.
Honeymoon and introductory home loan rates
What a honeymoon or introductory home loan rate is, what the rate reverts to, why the comparison rate matters, a worked first-year saving and the questions to ask.
Package home loans and annual fees, when they pay off
How to work out whether a package home loan's annual fee is worth the rate discount, with break-even arithmetic, an illustrative example and the fees to ask about.
Big four banks vs smaller lenders: what RateSonar's rate data shows
The big four's lowest advertised variable home loan rates set against every other lender on RateSonar's board, with the middle of each group, the gap, and what the data cannot tell you.
Paying less on the loan you have
Negotiating, switching, offsetting and using your equity.
How to ask your bank for a lower home loan rate
A step-by-step script for asking your current lender for a lower home loan rate, with the figures to quote from RateSonar and what to do if the answer is no.
The home loan loyalty tax: do existing customers pay more?
Do existing home loan customers pay more than new ones? What the RBA found in 2020, what its latest lending-rate table shows, and how to check your own rate against the market.
How to refinance a home loan, step by step
The steps to refinance an Australian home loan: ask your lender first, check equity and LMI, count the costs, compare lenders on live rates, apply, settle and relink your offset.
Home loan refinancing checklist
A practical checklist for refinancing an Australian home loan: documents to gather, costs to add up, questions for the new lender and what to do after settlement.
The real cost of switching home loan lenders
What it costs to switch an Australian home loan: discharge, application and break fees, possible LMI, and how to work out the break-even months before you move.
Mortgage discharge fees: what it costs to leave your lender
What discharge, exit and break fees mean on an Australian home loan, what the 2011 exit fee ban covers, and how to ask your lender to waive or explain a fee.
Porting your home loan when you sell and buy
What porting a home loan means, the questions to ask your lender, how fixed rate break costs and a new assessment can apply, and how to compare porting with refinancing.
How offset accounts work
How an offset account cuts home loan interest, with a worked example, offset vs redraw, the fees to check and the mistakes that cost borrowers their savings.
Extra repayments vs an offset account
Compare extra home loan repayments with an offset account using worked figures, and see how access, redraw, fixed loan caps and investment loan tax differ.
Consolidating debt into your mortgage
What rolling credit card or personal loan debt into your home loan really costs, with a worked $20,000 example, the risks to your home and the questions to ask first.
Using home equity to renovate or invest
How to work out the equity you can use, the three ways to access it (top-up, split, refinance), what each $100,000 costs in interest, and the risks of borrowing against your home.
Reverse mortgages and the Home Equity Access Scheme
How reverse mortgages and the government's Home Equity Access Scheme work, how interest compounds on a worked example, the questions to ask and the alternatives.
Hardship and savings
Help when repayments are tight, and where your cash can sit.
Struggling with mortgage repayments: your hardship options
What to do if you cannot keep up home loan repayments: asking your lender for hardship help, what it must do and how long it has, free help, complaints, and selling or refinancing.
Savings accounts: bonus rates vs base rates explained
What a savings account's base rate and bonus rate mean, the conditions that earn a bonus, a worked example with round numbers, and what happens when an introductory rate ends.
Term deposits: how they work and what breaking one early costs
How term deposits work, when interest is paid, what notice and early withdrawal can cost, how auto-rollover works, and how laddering spreads maturity dates.