Refinancing your home loan can be a slow process. You often have to wait for your old lender to discharge your loan. This can take weeks. Fast refinancing is a way your new lender cuts your old lender out of the picture in order to get your new home loan quicker. Instead of waiting on the title to your property, a lender offering a fast refinance will release funds directly to your old loan account and have it closed immediately.
The entire process of a fast refinance can take as little as two weeks from initial application to settlement.
Which lenders offer fast refinance?
Many lenders offer a fast refinance option for qualified borrowers, a few of which you can see in the table below. Choosing one of these lenders for your refinance means you could start saving money sooner. Note that in order to speed up your refinancing process it helps to have financial and identification documents ready.
A fast refinance means you’ll be saving a significant amount in home loan interest. Moreover, lenders offering a fast refinance often don’t charge fees for the process.
In addition to saving money, you’ll save time and stress. Fast refinances mean less legwork for you. Your new lender will handle most of the work involved in getting the paperwork for your refinancing in order.
Finder survey: Why do Australians refinance their home loans?
Response
A cashback or other incentive offer
18.92%
Source: Finder survey by Pure Profile of 1112 Australians, December 2023
Learn how to refinance in under a fortnight with our free step-by-step refinancing guide
You'll receive exclusive tips from Finder's refinance experts straight to your inbox.
What do I need to provide?
To refinance your home loan as quickly as possible, you’ll want to have some documents in order before you apply for your new home loan. You’ll need details about your current home loan, including the outstanding loan amount. You’ll also need to provide three months of bank statements.
In order to qualify for a fast refinance, you’ll also want to make sure your property’s title doesn’t have any caveats or restrictions on it and doesn’t have any other debt secured by it, such as a business loan. Also, if you’re in a fixed rate loan with your old lender, it’s unlikely you’ll qualify for a fast refinance within the fixed rate term.
If your lender doesn’t offer you this option, it may be because of your specific circumstances. It could be a problem with the title on your property or the the transition between the type of loan or lender.
However, there are some things you can do to help speed up your refinancing application:
First, make sure you have all the necessary documents ready before you apply. This will save you valuable time going back and forth fielding requests for more information.
Second, if time is of the essence, let your new lender know. They may be able to prioritise your application.
Finally, don’t be afraid to contact your old lender and make sure the process is moving in a timely fashion. Let them know you’re paying attention and haven’t forgotten that every day that goes by is a day that costs you more money.
Even if you’re not eligible for a fast refinance, refinancing can still be a great option. Even if it takes a bit longer to get your new home loan, you could save many thousands of dollars in the years to come.
Adam Smith was the home loans editor at Finder. Prior to joining Finder he was the editor at Australian Broker where he had been writing about home loans since 2010.
Refinancing your home loan can get you a better interest rate, adjust your loan term and take advantage of new features, but there are some things to look out for to make sure it's the right decision for you.
Knowing just how much equity you have in your home before you start looking to refinance a home loan is crucial. If you don't have enough equity you might have to pay for LMI again or get stuck with a higher rate.
How likely would you be to recommend finder to a friend or colleague?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Very UnlikelyExtremely Likely
Required
Thank you for your feedback.
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.
Important information about this website
finder.com.au is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stands by our editorial principles
We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service. However, you should be aware that while we are an independently owned service, our comparison service does not include all providers or all products available in the market.
Some product issuers may provide products or offer services through multiple brands, associated companies or different labeling arrangements. This can make it difficult for consumers to compare alternatives or identify the companies behind the products. However, we aim to provide information to enable consumers to understand these issues.
We make money by featuring products on our site. Compensation received from the providers featured on our site can influence which products we write about as well as where and how products appear on our page, but the order or placement of these products does not influence our assessment or opinions of them, nor is it an endorsement or recommendation for them.
Products marked as 'Top Pick', 'Promoted' or 'Advertisement' are prominently displayed either as a result of a commercial advertising arrangement or to highlight a particular product, provider or feature. Finder may receive remuneration from the Provider if you click on the related link, purchase or enquire about the product. Finder's decision to show a 'promoted' product is neither a recommendation that the product is appropriate for you nor an indication that the product is the best in its category. We encourage you to use the tools and information we provide to compare your options.
Where our site links to particular products or displays 'Go to site' buttons, we may receive a commission, referral fee or payment when you click on those buttons or apply for a product. You can learn more about how we make money.
When products are grouped in a table or list, the order in which they are initially sorted may be influenced by a range of factors including price, fees and discounts; commercial partnerships; product features; and brand popularity. We provide tools so you can sort and filter these lists to highlight features that matter to you.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
