Some of the top-rated home loans for investors and refinancers in November 2023

After 13 hikes to the national cash rate since May 2022, it’s perhaps unsurprising that many Australian homeowners are struggling to manage their mortgages, to the point where one in three mortgage holders are food insecure. Borrowers who hold equity in their property may be able to refinance at a more affordable rate, with some lower-rate home loan deals for refinancers also having a low Loan to Value Ratio (LVR) as part of the eligibility criteria.

What is the RBA going to do next? It’s not yet certain. Economists from Australia’s big banks are broadly forecasting that the cash rate should stay on hold until late 2024 or 2025, when the RBA may choose to cut the cash rate. However, this is dependent upon Australia’s inflation rate falling into the RBA’s target band in a timely manner, with some economists noting that the RBA board may be maintaining a ‘hiking bias’ for the time being.

Investors hoping to avoid increasing costs if the RBA raises the cash rate again, or if their lender hikes their own interest rates out of cycle from the RBA, could consider fixing the interest rate on their home loan, locking in a set repayment amount for limited time. However, this also runs the risk of being stuck paying a higher rate if interest rates do fall during the fixed-rate period.

While it’s important to compare home loan deals from the big banks and major mortgage holders, it’s also often a good idea to consider mortgage offers from their smaller competitors. As well as these newer lenders, you could consider offers from older lenders operating under new names, such as the freshly renamed Tiimely Home, formerly known as Tic:Toc.