6 tips to save you thousands with the best home loan

Finding the best home loan is specific to you and can come down to a number of things.

With thousands of home loan products on the market it's not as easy as just picking the one best home loan (as nice as that would be).

Although a lot of borrowers focus on finding the lowest interest rate, these can be attached to some very basic loans that don't work for everybody.

What might be the best home loan for you wouldn't necessarily be the best home loan for your neighbour.

Let's dive into what can help you find the best home loan.

Find your best home loan

1. Figure out your property goals

Finding the best home loan will depend on what type of property you're buying. For a home to live in, the best home loan for you will be an owner occupier loan. If you're going to rent out the property, you'll need an investment home loan.

Look at your short-term vs long-term plans. If you're planning on living in the property for many years to come, you might want a home loan that helps you pay off the loan much faster. If you're only planning on living in the home for a year or two before upgrading, that might not be so much of a concern.

2. Take stock of your current life situation

Most home loans are 30 years. By the time you've paid off your loan you might be in a very different position than you are right now.

So it's not necessarily about finding a home loan for that whole time, because you can (and probably should) refinance as your situation and your needs change.

Take a look at what you need from your loan for the next couple of years. Will your income remain stable during that time or will you need a more flexible loan to accommodate any changes? You might want to look at home loans which allow extra repayments so you can get ahead.

3. Features

The lowest interest rate home loans will often be very basic loans with no features. But paying a little bit more to get access to features like an offset account can save you thousands of dollars and help you pay off the loan early.

Other features you might want to look out for include being able to split your loan, making unlimited extra repayments with redraw access, and a choice of repayment frequencies.

Compare home loans now

4. Extras

Beyond the standard features, some home loans come with added benefits. Home loan packages can be a good way to take advantage of multiple financial products, by bundling in your loan with products like an offset account and/or a credit card.

If you're comparing similar products that might suit you, you might also choose a home loan that comes with a cashback or other benefit like rewards points or gradual rate deductions.

5. Loan details

Consider how much you need to borrow, as products will have minimum and maximum borrowing amounts. The amount you borrow may change the interest rate you get too.

The same goes for the loan term. Although most loan terms are 30 years, you may be comfortable with higher monthly repayments to pay it off sooner. Or you may want to look for a 40 year loan term, which are becoming more common.

6. Compare

By comparing products in the market you'll be in a better position to know what a good home loan looks like. This will help you find the best one! Compare rates to make sure you're getting a good value product, but don't forget to check fees, features and loan criteria too.

Speaking to a mortgage broker about your needs, goals and circumstances will also help.

Compare the best home loans

6 of 113 results

Finder Score	Interest Rate p.a.	Comparison Rate p.a.	Fees	Custom Badges	Monthly Payment
Finder score 9.6 Excellent Unloan Variable Home Loan Finder Award	Finder score 9.6 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.19%	Comparison Rate 5.10%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupierNo LMI	Monthly Payment	This loan comes with no application fee, no ongoing fees and no exit fees. The best news? Borrowers get a 0.01% rate discount for every year they hold the loan.	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.1 Excellent Westpac Flexi First Option Home Loan – Online Variable Rate	Finder score 9.1 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.24%	Comparison Rate 5.25%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest30% min. equityOwner-occupier	Monthly Payment	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9 Excellent Greater Bank Great Rate Discount Variable Home Loan	Finder score 9 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.19%	Comparison Rate 5.20%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest-10% min. equityOwner-occupierCashbackLMI	Monthly Payment	Cashback: Eligible borrowers applying online can get up to $3,000 cashback. Other eligible refinancers and FHBs can get up to $2,500. First Home Buyers can use a family pledge option to borrow up to 110% with a guarantor. LVR and loan value criteria and T&Cs apply.	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.5 Excellent loans.com.au Variable Home Loan	Finder score 9.5 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.29%	Comparison Rate 5.33%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest10% min. equityOwner-occupierOffset accountLMI	Monthly Payment	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Thinking about refinancing? Speak with the experts at LendUs for competitive refinance loans with upfront and monthly cash back offered. Enquire Now
Finder score 9.9 Excellent Suncorp Bank Home Package Plus Fixed	Finder score 9.9 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.39%	Comparison Rate 5.85%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest 2Y Fixed20% min. equityOwner-occupierNo LMI	Monthly Payment	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.3 Excellent Macquarie Bank Offset Home Loan Package	Finder score 9.3 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.39%	Comparison Rate 5.65%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $248 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupierOffset accountNo LMI	Monthly Payment	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading

Showing 6 of 40 results

What is Finder Score?

The Finder Score crunches 7,000 home loans across 120+ lenders. It takes into account the product's interest rate, fees and features, as well as the type of loan eg investor, variable, fixed rate - this gives you a simple score out of 10.

To provide a Score, we compare like-for-like loans. So if you're comparing the best home loans for cashback, you can see how each home loan stacks up against other home loans with the same borrower type, rate type and repayment type. We also take into consideration the amount of cashback offered when calculating the Score so you can tell if it's really worth it.

Read the full breakdown

Thank you for your feedback!

Written by

Rebecca Pike

Editor, Money

Rebecca Pike is Finder’s money editor, with over 7 years of experience in mortgages and personal finance. A frequent TV and radio commentator, she frequently appears on Sunrise and 7News, Today and 9News, as well as Sky News, Channel 10 and across radio and print. Rebecca previously served as Editor of Mortgage Professional Australia. She has a Master’s degree in Journalism as well as ASIC-recognised certifications in Tier 1 Generic Knowledge and Tier 2 General Advice Deposit Products, which comply with ASIC guidelines. See full bio

Rebecca's expertise

Rebecca has written 271 Finder guides across topics including:

Home loans
Personal Loans
Car Loans
Cost of living
Budgeting

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Getting the right home loan can save you thousands. 6 tips to find the best home loan for you.