Our Products are constantly being revised to meet changing conditions and the needs of our Clients.  Please don't hesitate to call us on 1300 574 428 if you need any help with choosing the best Loan to suit your needs, or if you need any clarification about what is contained in any of our Loan Products.  We want to help you - so simply give us a ring!

OUR LENDING PRODUCTS

We have a suite of lending products designed to meet your needs and structured with maximum flexibility to meet your changing circumstances, while enabling you to pay off your loan as quickly as you can, and/or as suits your objectives. This section provides an overview of the main types of loans available through First Australian.

The Client Tools Section of this web provides description outlines of some of our main Lending Products, but these are just a guide. Please give one of our experienced staff, or Brokers a ring and we'll be happy to work with you to structure the right loan for you – to meet your immediate needs and what is likely in your situation in the future.

A description of the type of loans available is as follows:

Line of Credit Home Loans - First Australian "Flexibility Plus" Loan

This type of property secured loan provides a flexible financial management tool, which revolves around equity built up in your property and allows access to funds when needed by you. A Line of Credit loan provides creative ways to raise funds for investment, or personal use, by providing cash up to a pre-arranged limit and a simple way to save interest on any surplus funds available from time to time. Its an excellent tool for the self-employed, or those whose income varies, or comes spasmodically. Each month the loan account balance is reduced by the amount of deposits coming in and increased by the amount paid out, or withdrawn. As long as there is consistently more cash coming in than going out, these accounts can work well and are very flexible. This type of loan can be used to quickly reduce your overall debt, with a little management effort on your part and provided you consistently pay extra [over and above the interest charges] into the loan.

Variable Home Loans - First Australian "Standard Variable" Loan

The rate charged on a variable loan moves up or down in accordance with movements in interest rates, as determined by the cost of wholesale money and movements in the Cash Rate regulated by the Reserve Bank. The First Australian "Standard Variable Loan" is very flexible and has all the features of a "Line of Credit" loan.  This can be set-up as an "interest only" loan, or "principal & interest loan".  This type of loan can be used to quickly reduce your overall debt, with a little management effort on your part and provided you consistently pay extra [over and above the interest charges] into the loan.

Interest-Only Home Loans

You pay only the interest on the outstanding balance of principal during the "interest only" period of the loan.  At First Australian our "interest only" period is normally 10 years [or up to 15 years] and this can usually be extended at the end of that period.  An "interest only" loan calculates the interest on the daily balance of the loan, but requires only payment of interest on the outstanding balance of the loan each week, fortnight, or month, as suits you.  However, for accounting purpose, interest accrues to your loan account on a monthly basis. This means that your minimum payments are less, which provides more flexibility to you to determine how much, if any, principal you pay off the loan at any time.  At the end of the interest only period - you must start making Principal and Interest Repayments over the remaining term of the loan, or convert the loan to another Interest Only Loan to suit your changing circumstances.  At First Australian, we charge interest only on the daily balance of the loan and therefore our interest charges are kept to a minimum.

Off-Set Account Loans

An "Off-set Account Loan" is ideally suited for investors where the Investment Loan Balance needs to be constant, but surplus funds are held in a separate account and used to "off-set" i.e. reduce the interest charged on the loan.  The Off-set Account is used for deposits and withdrawals and any positive balance in the Off-set Account is "off-set" against the balance of the Loan Account, and thus reduces interest charged on the loan balance.

Low-doc Home Loans

A "low-doc loan" is ideally suited for investors or self-employed borrowers looking to purchase and where tax returns or financial reports are not available. To allow for the reduced documentation, a higher interest rate is charged.

Construction Loans

A First Australian "construction loan" is used where you own the land and are constructing your home, or you have purchased a "house & land package".  These loans progressively draw down the amount needed to purchase the land and progressively pay the builder as your house is built.  Once the home is completed, the loan reverts to a standard Principal & Interest Loan, or Interest Only - as best suits you - beyond the construction period. At First Australian, we provide a number of extra checks during the construction period, to help you ensure that the home being built is the one you have contracted to build.

Fixed Rate (Principal and Interest) Home Loans

A fixed rate loan is a loan that has a fixed interest rate and therefore fixed loan repayments on the portion which is fixed. The time period of these loans varies, but you can usually “lock in” your interest and repayments for between 1-5 years. Although the fixed rate period may be 3 years, the total length of the loan itself remains normally over 30 years. At the end of the fixed loan period you can decide whether to fix the loan again for another period of time at the current market rates, or convert the loan to a variable interest rate for the remaining time left of the loan. Any portion of a First Australian Loan [except during the construction period of a Construction Loan] can be fixed for up to 5 years.  A fixed rate loan fixes the interest rate charged for a period, but restricts, or prohibits any repayment of principal during that period.  This type of loan provides certainty in times of increasing interest rates, but is usually very expensive if the loan needs to be paid out, when "break costs" are incurred.  When interest rates reduce, the fixed portion remains unchanged and this can be very frustrating if you fixed at a time when rates were about to come down, as occurred during 2007 & 2008.  A fixed rate loan not only "fixes" the interest rate, but also the amount of the loan.  This means that the loan cannot be quickly repaid. Analysis of fixed rates, versus variable rates in Australia over the last 30 years favours variable rates as cheaper and much more flexible alternative over the long term.

Split Rate (Principal and Interest) home loans

A split rate loan is a loan that has one portion of the loan fixed and one portion variable. You can select how much to allocate to each.

Introductory Home Loan

The interest rate is usually low to attract borrowers. Also known as a "honeymoon rate", this rate generally lasts only for around 12 months before it rises. Rates can be fixed, or capped. Most revert to the standard rates at the end of the honeymoon period. Although Introductory Rate Home Loans may look attractive, they are generally priced as a selling point and often the overall cost of the loan is higher than simply a standard loan.  Speak to one of our experienced Team at First Australian, before committing to a loan which may look better than it actually is!

Simply a Quick Overview

This is only a quick overview of the different types of home loans available. An experienced member of the First Australian Team will sit with you and review all the available home loan products against your specific requirements to help you find the loan that best suits you.