With the holiday season upon us, many have the time to consider their employment options. The holiday break brings hopes for a fresh outlook and a new employer as one of their new year’s resolutions.

 

Here are some interesting facts about employment statistics and job hopping:

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Through tears and triumphs, ‘the race that stops a nation (TM)’ has cemented its position as a revered sporting, social and cultural event that continues to play a significant role in defining Australia’s national identity.

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1. Pay it off quickly

The longer you take to pay off your home, the more you are going to pay. There are many strategies to reduce your loan, but most of them come down to one thing: Pay your loan off as fast as you can.

For example, if your loan amount is $300,000 at 5.46% per cent for 25 years, your monthly repayment will be about $1,835. This equates to a total repayment of around $550,500 over the 25 year term of your loan and the total interest paid would be approximately $250,000 (nearly as much as your initial amount borrowed).

If you pay the loan out over 10 years rather than 25, your monthly payment will be $3,250 a month (ouch!) But the total amount you will repay over the term of the loan will be only $390,000 – saving you a whopping $160,500.

* Call us to help you calculate how quickly you might be able to pay off your home loan.

2. Pay more frequently

Most people are aware that if you pay your home loan fortnightly instead of monthly you can make a huge impact on repaying your loan. Simply divide your monthly payment in two and then pay fortnightly instead of monthly. It will make thousands of dollars difference in your total repayments and cut years off your loan. Most people don’t even notice the difference.

The reason this works is because there are 26 fortnights in a year and only 12 months. Making payments on a fortnightly basis means that you will be making 13 monthly payments every year. You will be surprised at the difference it makes.

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Why you should do it and what can happen if you don’t…

Case Study

Samantha and Luke had been married for a few years and were both bringing in a comparable wage.

They were equally contributing to their living expenses, including their mortgage and utilities. Luke paid the mortgage and Samantha paid the utilities, groceries and everyday living expenses (including a car loan).

In March 2011 Samantha found out she was pregnant – and they were both very excited! The following months rolled on very quickly and in November their beautiful baby boy arrived.

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Over the last four years the number of investment property loans in Australia has grown by 37% compared to an increase of only 4% in the number of owner occupied loans. These are the latest findings from the Roy Morgan Research Consumer Single Source survey of approximately 45,000 people per annum.

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