4 questions to ask before refinancing your home loan

Don't refinance without knowing you'll get a better home loan.

Lending values for the June 2025 quarter show a 20% increase in the value of loans being refinanced as borrowers hunt for lower rates. This follows 3 interest rate cuts so far this year, after rates rose several times in 2022 and 2023, bringing high mortgage stress.

Refinancing can bring huge savings, help you repay your loan faster and even give you more from your loan. But there are a few questions you should ask yourself while you're shopping around.

Refinance to your best home loan

1. How much equity have you built?

The amount of equity you have in your property will dictate the kind of loan and interest rate you're able to get.

If you started off your home loan with less than 20%, like if you used a first home buyer scheme, you risk paying lender's mortgage insurance (LMI) if you haven't built up enough equity since you took out the loan.

2. What do you want to refinance for?

Many borrowers are seeking a lower interest rate and that's a fine reason to refinance. But you might also want access to extra cash by using the equity in your property to borrow more.

By borrowing more money though, you'll reduce the amount of equity you've built up. This means you own less of your home and you risk being in debt for longer.

Compare now to refinance

3. What are the early repayment fees or new application fees?

If you're on a fixed home loan you might find you need to a fee for ending the loan early. This might be on top of a general discharge fee.

You should also look at the application fees for the new loan you're applying for. If you have to pay a high application fee as well as high exit fees, you might find yourself out of pocket even with any refinancing savings.

4. What new features come with the loan?

If you started out on a very basic home loan, you might want to consider a loan with more benefits, like an offset account.

Sometimes home loans with more features and flexibility can come with slightly higher interest rates than the very lowest on the market. But you can end up saving thousands of dollars by using something like an offset account or taking advantage of unlimited extra repayments.

How much can you save by refinancing in 2026?

We estimate that the average person could save up to $6,720 a year by switching to a lower rate:

The average Australian home loan is now $693,802 (according to the ABS) - a record high!
The average variable interest rate loan in Finder's database is 6.41%.
The lowest available variable rate on the market is 4.99%, available only for first home buyers.The lowest interest rate for refinancers is 5.14%.
Assuming a 30-year loan term, if you switched to that lower refinance rate your monthly repayments would drop from $4,345 to $3,785. That's a saving of $560 every month, or $6,720 a year.

Data is correct as of 12 January 2026. This savings example is a hypothetical estimate only. The lowest rate is for an owner-occupier loan with 80% LVR.

Market update by Rebecca Pike – Finder's senior home loans writer

Compare refinance home loans

6 of 98 results

Finder Score	Interest Rate p.a.	Comparison Rate p.a.	Fees	Features	Monthly Payment
Finder score 9.7 Excellent Unloan Variable Home Loan Finder Award	Finder score 9.7 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.19%	Comparison Rate 5.10%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupier	Monthly Payment $2,746 per month	ENDS SOON! $1000 VISA CARD REWARD 1 Click through 2 Refinance with Unloan 3 Get your reward from Finder Ends by. T&Cs apply.	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.4 Excellent Macquarie Bank Offset Home Loan Package	Finder score 9.4 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.34%	Comparison Rate 5.60%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $248 p.a.	Principal & Interest40% min. equityOwner-occupierOffset account	Monthly Payment $2,793 per month	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.2 Excellent IMB Budget Home Loan	Finder score 9.2 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.29%	Comparison Rate 5.32%	Fees Application: $449 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupierCashback	Monthly Payment $2,777 per month	Cashback: Eligible borrowers can get up to $3,000 cashback when buying or refinancing with IMB. Loan value criteria applies. T&Cs apply.	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.3 Excellent Newcastle Permanent Real Deal Home Loan	Finder score 9.3 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.24%	Comparison Rate 5.28%	Fees Application: $595 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupierCashback	Monthly Payment $2,762 per month	Cashback: Eligible purchasers and refinancers can get $2,500 or $3,000 depending on loan value, as long as LVR is 80% or lower. T&Cs apply.	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 9.4 Excellent loans.com.au Variable Bold Home Loan	Finder score 9.4 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.64%	Comparison Rate 5.68%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $0 p.a.	Principal & Interest10% min. equityOwner-occupierOffset account	Monthly Payment $2,887 per month	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading
Finder score 9.4 Excellent Macquarie Bank Offset Home Loan Package	Finder score 9.4 Excellent	Interest Rate 5.39%	Comparison Rate 5.65%	Fees Application: $0 Ongoing: $248 p.a.	Principal & Interest20% min. equityOwner-occupierOffset account	Monthly Payment $2,808 per month	Go to site View details Compare product selectionCompare	loading

Showing 6 of 32 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 293 Finder guides across topics including:

Home loans
Personal Loans
Car Loans
Cost of living
Budgeting

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Refinancing reaches record high: What you need to know about switching home loans