Feel like buying a home in 2025 seems impossible? We’ve got the plan to make it happen! This week, Victoria teams up with expert mortgage broker Jaclyn Walsh to arm you with the ultimate guide to turning your property dreams into reality—and saving thousands while you’re at it.
From when to call a mortgage broker to insider hacks that could cut years off your loan and tens of thousands off the cost, this episode is bursting with tips from our industry expert. Wondering if your Uber Eats habit might hurt your chances? Or whether paying off HECs early is a good idea? Don’t worry, we’ve got answers. Whether you’re saving, planning, or just starting to dream, this is the episode to help you crush your property goals.
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Acknowledgement of Country By Natarsha Bamblett aka Queen Acknowledgements.
The advice shared on She's On The Money is general in nature and does not consider your individual circumstances. She's On The Money exists purely for educational purposes and should not be relied upon to make an investment or financial decision. If you do choose to buy a financial product, read the PDS, TMD and obtain appropriate financial advice tailored towards your needs. Victoria Devine and She's On The Money are authorised representatives of Money Sherpa PTY LTD ABN - 321649 27708, AFSL - 451289.
Hello, my name is Sanatasha Nabananga Bamblet. I'm a proud yor the Order Kerni Whoalbury and a waddery woman. And before we get started on She's on the Money podcast, I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land of which this podcast is recorded on a wondery country, acknowledging the elders, the ancestors and the next generation coming through as this podcast is about connecting, empowering, knowledge sharing and the storytelling of you to make a difference for today and lasting impact for tomorrow.
Let's get into it.
She's on the Money. She's on the Money.
Hello, and welcome to She's on the Money. That's about making your financial goals a reality. And today we're going to be tackling what's often seen as the holy grail of adulting buying house Now, I really do get it. Buying property in twenty twenty five feels like climbing a mountain that just keeps getting steeper and steeper. Between the cost of living, housing prices, and interest rates, it's so easy to feel like owning home is completely out of reach. It's easy to feel really overwhelmed and completely stuck. And let me tell you. If that's how you're feeling, my friend, you are not alone but his thing. If owning a home is your dream, I want to help you feel empowered to get there, no matter where you are starting from. I'm Victoria Devine, finance expert and owner of mortgage broking firms Zella Money, and in this episode, we're here to guide you through the steps you can take right now to put yourself in the best possible position and get you closer to turning that dream home into a reality. And to make sure that you're getting the very best advice. I've brought in an absolute powerhouse in the world of home loans, someone who's helped thousands of Australians unlock the door to their dream home. Meet my friend and coworker, Jacqueline Walsh. Welcome to the show.
Thanks for having me.
I'm so excited about this. I feel like the whole team have been like get Jack on the show for like actually years. Jack, to introduce her really quickly, is a mortgage broker with what more than fifteen years experience I would say industry. We actually got her from the dark side. We brought her from one of the big four banks over to work for Zella Money, and I feel like you have an absolute gift of simplifying all of the tricky bits for our clients. And I would say that you have a very proven track record of saving people some serious money, some serious time, and getting them into their dream homes faster. Are you going to agree or disagree with that? It's always awkward when people introduce you, right, I agree, I did. Yeah, I did do that, Victoria, I did. So tell me a little bit about you and your journey before we get into it, like do you like working in finance? Do you like being a mortgage broke? I absolutely love it.
I know that sounds so strange, but I cannot see myself doing anything else, Like you said, I've done this for fifteen years now. I think about it every day. What else would I be doing if I wasn't doing this, And I just can't see myself stepping outside of finance. I feel like I know it like the back of my hand. So it's just something that I feel really passionate about.
Really, I adore it, and that's probably why we get on so well. And I mean, you're preaching to the converted right here. Like, oh, yeah, I'm not that interested in finance. It's just not for me. Like it is. I live it, I breathe it, I love it, and I feel like one of jointly our favorite things about working at Zelimoney is getting people into their first homes. Like, don't get me wrong, it's so fun to like meet clients and do a refinance or like meet clients and they're buying like a multimillion dollar property, Like it's always fun, you know, looking up the house prices on real estate dot Com and being a little bit perfect right, Like not gonna lie, but there is something so insanely special about holding the hand of a first home buyer who you know, maybe wasn't sure or wasn't even in a position twelve months before to even get into their first home. Yeah, and I just know that you're as passionate about that as I am. Now, if you're listening and you're just starting to save, or you already have a deposit but you feel really unsure of what is going to come next, or if you're just feeling like you're entertaining the idea that property might be for you, and previously you're like, oh, I don't think it is. I'm telling you right now, you are absolutely in the right place, and I have dragged in the big guns to help us here. This episode is going to be jam packed full of practical tips and advice to guide you through one of I would say, your biggest financial decisions. Like, I don't know you and I were talking about this the other day. Your first home is the hardest to get into because you're like starting from scratch. You have no equity, you have no ability to leverage anything and knowledge. Literally I won't have any Like if you've never done it before, how do you know what?
You don't know exactly?
So stick around because even in a tough market, there are a heap of steps that you can take to feel more in control and then move closer to getting into your dream home. And I think that we can definitely do it together. Jack, let's dive straight in. I've got to start with the question that I think is on everybody's mind. Yeah, I've been trying to predict this. When's the best time to see a mortgage broker?
Definitely the most asked question for sure.
Yeah, I mean I wish I could be like, oh I thought of this myself, but the reality is I just like, yeah, gave everybody.
I'm sure it's got to be from the moment that you even think about your home buying journey, you know, even if it's going to be two years away, whether you just want to find out what the current interest rates are and if that's competitive in your mortgage. I really think that you need to be speaking to a mortgage broker up front, just because they're going to be able to guide you in terms of like all areas of the home buying process. You know, you might think that you're five years off from buying, but once you speak to a mortgage broker, you can find out that you actually can purchase maybe a house tomorrow if you wanted to.
I feel like one of the biggest obstacles when I talk to our community about, oh, I really want to talk to a mortgage record, but I have no savings. Am I wasting their time? If I don't want to buy yet. Maybe let's say I want to buy in three or five years. Do you feel like I'm wasting your time? If I to an appointment, I.
Think you still need to be making that appointment. There's just other factors that come into it as well. You know, you might be eligible for a scheme right now. You know that could be for the next financial year. You might tell me that you're expecting you a pay increase over the next twelve month. That's going to ring alarm ballance in my head that maybe that's going to push you over the threshold for that scheme. So that might be something that I guide you and say, Look, you're eligible for the scheme up until June thirty of this financial year. However that yeah, am banking on it, Yeah, might push you over that threshold. Therefore you might not be eligible. And it's a whole nother scenario. So you really need to the second you start thinking about that homebuying journey on what that looks like getting touched and we can just have a chat and then put it all in the process like at next steps, next touch points and what that looks like.
Yeah, Because I feel like there is this idea in the industry that mortgage brokers are scary, or that mortgage brokers are overwhelming, or that I probably I don't and I mean maybe you are a little bit like I've seen you on the phone when you're like backing a client and you're going into bat for them, and you're yapping at the bank, and I'm like, I would not want to be on the other end of that phone, But you know who I would want on that phone the person that is my mortgage broker. But I feel like there's this misconception that like, oh, you've got to like save up all your deposit and then talk to a broker, and in reality, you could be doing yourself a disservice, definitely, And I wanted to get that upfront because I think a lot of people don't want to waste people's time, Like our community are so kind and so generous and so thoughtful, and we're all the type of people that are like I wouldn't want to bother Jack with that. And in reality, we spend so much time in meetings with clients who, if I'm being honest, don't convert right now, because we know that they're going to be clients for life, and it's about building that relationship.
You don't know what you don't know, So when people come to us, you know, we've had a bunch of clients that will say, I've been looking forward to this meeting. You know, I've been thinking about it for two years I've paid off all my debts, I've paid off my HEX. I'm now ready to look at purchasing when in reality, maybe their hex didn't need to be paid down and closed immediately, where those funds could have gone towards a deposit to purchase their property earlier.
Yeah, and you'd never say that, Like you don't sit in a meeting with a client and go, oh my god, like you didn't have to do that. You kind of go, oh, good job, like amazing. But like in the background, as a broker and like as the business owner, I'm always like, oh, I wish you'd kind of like not done that, because I could have like leveraged this and done this. I've got you in and you wouldn't have had to stress as much, and.
So you don't need to be making changes before you speak to us, yea, you know, come to us, tell us the scenario now, what your goals look like, and then we can sort of guide you into what you should be doing or focusing on.
Really, I think my favorite part of that is even if you come in and you're not going to be a client for the next five years, you kind of fall into the Zello ecosystem and like we just pester you, like yeah, in a nice way. We're like, oh, hey, how's that going, like in six months, or like you get our newsletters and our updates, so like you kind of fall into the ecosystem of being kept in the loop of that dream and that goal. And we find that a lot of people say like, oh my gosh, like I feel so motivated because, like, you know, I get an email from Jack a couple of months after our meeting, going oh, hey, how did that thing go? Tell me about that though, because there's a lot of work in the background when it comes to the business, and I'm sure people are going to send messages and we'll craft some episodes in the future around answering those as clearly as possible. But like, when a client comes in for an initial meeting, what does the journey look like? Do they you know them buy house the next day, or do they you know, stay in contact with you? Are you just contacting them because you're like, oh, this is a client and I should follow up like they're on my list. I'm asking because I know you're real PERVN you get so emotionally investigator.
That's and a point with me. Will know that I tend to speak to you as if we are best friends. We are I get carried away, and we'll speak to you as if I've known you for a lifetime. So I do get I guess invested, and I do want to check in and things like that. So at the end of the conversation, whether that you know they're saying they want to purchase in five years, I will always say to them if anything changes throughout that timeframe, like if you change jobs in six months time and you want to see what that looks like, if you ended up saving more in a shorter period of time, and you just want to see what that changes and where that sets the goalpost, Like get in touch, shoot me through an email whenever you want. We can touch base as many times as you want. It doesn't matter.
Yeah, no, And I love that. Now there are going to be some people who are like, oh, that actually sounds so good. I thought I'd have to save or be a really big investor before I actually have this conversation. I've decided I want to book. How much is it going.
To cost me nothing?
Let's talk about that, like I'm in a book. An appointment with a mortgage broker to be very clear right now, we're talking from our experience, from our business. But some mortgage brokers are going to charge an initial fee and that doesn't mean that they're bad. Like we're not here to say, oh, this model is better than that. We don't charge initial fees because we just don't want to. I don't know, I want to be accessible. I don't want people to have to jump through hurdles and come up with five hundred bucks cash complete side note, It's why I got out of financial advice. Like I adored it. I loved doing what I did, but it was so prohibitive when it came to cost, Like if you couldn't afford my advice, what you don't get to be in a better financial situation. Yeah, I didn't like that, and so we've carried that into Zella money. But some people do charge an initial feed like that does not change that. Some brokers rebate it. So like you might pay your five hundred dollars fee up front and then when you finally settle a mortgage you get the cash back. Fine, how does it work with us and with most brokers? Because I feel like our model and the way that you work with us is the same as most.
Yeah, so you can come to us and make an appointment, like we said, you know, free of charge upfront. There is some circumstances where we will need to charge fee, but we're going to be really upfront and honest with you from the get go if we even see that as a possibility. Why would we do that though, So if you're coming to us to obviously get a better interest rate and looking at refinancing, but you're telling me upfront that you're wanting to get a better interest rate, but you're actually going to be selling that property within six months to us as a broker, we will get one hundred percent clawback in that first year.
What's clawback.
Clawback is where the banks do pay us a commission as a thank you for bringing you on as a client. So it just means that they may not necessarily have gotten you as a client had you not come to our brokering services. And we've shown all the nitti gritty and details behind the scenes. So in terms of charging an upfront fee, it would be yeah, if you were open on est about that saying that you're going to look at selling, we just obviously need to recoup the funds that we were going to lose because no one's working for free.
Yeah. At the end of the day, like we are getting paid. We're not saying, oh, we're a charity. Yeah, And that's why I don't know. In the first half of this episode, I wanted to be super clear about how that works. But then let's dive a little bit deeper. The word commission can be a pretty dirty word to me about that, yes or no.
I can't talk for everyone else, obviously, I'm talking specifically for Zella and how we work. We are very, very very upfront on how we get paid and what we get paid. There is a document that you will receive that outlines exactly to the sense what we are receiving as an upfront commission based on this loan, and also what the trail looks like going forward for as long as you hold that loan. Like I said, no one's working for free. This is how we get paid. It's not a new structure by any means. This has been going on for years and we're not hiding it.
But it used to be a little bit dodgy, right, Like I feel like it used to be. Some banks would have better commissions than others. Now they're across the board the same. Yeah. I think it's an interesting concept because I get it. Like before I worked in this industry, before I had the financial literacy that I improvally to have, I was very much like ill, like mortgage brokers work for commission, And now I'm the broker with the business that works for commission. And I mean I'm not brokering the loans. You guys do the hard work and the hard yards. I'd just sit in the background and wave and go anything you need, sweetie, you're doing a great job. I think it used to be this dirty word, but now post the Royal Commission, everything has been smoothed across you, like, we don't get the bonuses and the benefits.
No, but you're right fifteen years ago, I've definitely seen it.
Do you remember seeing, like fifteen years ago in the industry the conferences that people would go to, Like I remember brokers would go on conferences, and like, as a financial advisor, I was very privy to it. I remember one of them going on a helicopter to Macau to go to the casinos there, and the bank was funding it. Like, let's be really honest. It used to be cooked. That's illegal now, like that can't happen anymore. And I feel like if you're talking to you mum or your dad and they had that historic experience, Oh.
That's exactly right.
Don't talk to a broker. I know you've got this meeting with Jack, Like they're not going to put you in the best possible position. What do you even say to that?
Well, I mean, for us, the way that we work, we obviously outlined to you know, put together a product comparison, we'll send it through to you, We'll put our recommendations in there, but we outline it for you so visually that you can see the benefits in each way. There's no hiding behind the fact, like we aren't going to place you with a lender that you know, we think is paying more in commission if it's not going to benefit you. And the reason that we can't do that is there's actually you know, laws in place for best interest duties that we have to adhere to as to why we are placing you with that lender. And again you will see that information as to what we've put in there and why. So there's no hiding or being sneaky anymoarning at that. But yeah, I definitely see from you know, talking to your parents or many many years ago, people used to place I guess you with maybe a not so favorable lender because they may have been getting paid more in commission.
But that's just it's not the reality anymore, and it just across the board doesn't happen. I don't know, I feel like I want to be pervy and like give people some insight into our business because like we're really proud of it and the way that we work. But even the brokers the work for Zella, it doesn't matter if you're doing what one hundred thousand dollars refinance or you're you know, helping a first home buy buy like a nine hundred and fifty thousand dollar property, you individually as a mortgage broker get paid the same, right, correct. Yeah, So like it doesn't actually change it. And I think that that's a really important factor. And why sounds like a Zella like spokesperson area, but why clients have a consistent experience.
It's such similar experience. It's regardless of your situation and where you're sitting one percent.
Because like sometimes you might go to another broker who maybe is an independent and that's fantastic and they will have access to everything that we.
Do and they don't see the benefit.
But they're like, oh, I can't be bothered working with that client because you know, I've got this other client and they do have to do a cost benefit analysis and make the right decision for their business and no shade, But that is not how I wanted to run the business, not just us anyway, moving on, I feel like I've got questions about schemes and grants and they're different things, but like, how do you know the difference? And I mean, while in Australia we have access to these things, how do we familiarize ourselves with maybe what we might be able to access and how that works? Like where do we even begin?
I mean, talk to a mortgage broke.
I don't like pretend I don't want to talk to you, Jacqueline. Let me pretend I want to do my own research. You shouldn't obviously jump on Google, Yah, jump on the internet. Start having a little research seeing what you can find out. But again, obviously you know you might not find ones that are one hundred percent applicable to you.
And that's why we do, say, you know, get in touch with the mortgage broker, because we're going to have a wide range. You know, there's different schemes that are available to you in each state, so it's not just a blanket all across Austraight. There certainly are ones that you know, our most common ones are First Home Guarantee Scheme, First Home Owners Grant, and First Home Super Saber scheme. They're probably the most common ones that we do see, but there is particular ones to each state. So knowing what's available to you, I guess in your hometown and when you're purchasing.
Yeah, absolutely, And I feel like you can do that research yourself, and like, I like the idea that we empower people to do it on their own, but if you don't want to, we can do it for Yeah, that's fine. Yea, But what's your favorite scheme? Like, do you have a favorite that you're like, oh, yeah, what is it? I feel like it's like everybody kind of has their own favorite, and I want to know, do.
I first time Guarantee scheme? I mean it's just purely there, you know, for our first time bias to sort of give them a leg up. Like obviously not everybody.
We get from it. So if I've never heard about this scheme, what does it.
Provided me with. I mean, there is no Alumi charge, so first home guarantee scheme, no al am I.
El am I can be expensive.
So expensive. I've honestly seen fifty thousand dollars before in al Ami and people have paid it, and I mean, no shame to pay. It's going to get you into the house, you know, if that's what you've got to do, that's what you got to do. But if you can avoid paying fifty thousand dollars an alumi, yeah why not?
Yeah?
So you need to have five percent to posit as a minimum. Obviously you can have more. You know, you've got six seven, eight percent up your sleeve, perfect, we can put that down as well, but a bare minimum five percent. But the one thing that I really love about this scheme is obviously the interest rates most lenders. If you took this exact scenario outside of this scheme and place it with another lender that wasn't within the scheme, you're going to get charged al Ami like we've spoken about, but you're going to get charged really really hefty interest rates.
They're really hogh, and they have to hike them up because they're hedging their bets and their risk and like it makes sense from a business perspective, but that ends up impacting you significantly financially definitely.
So with the first time guarantee scheme, most lenders, I'm not going to say all, most lenders will price your rates at eighty percent ELVIR so loan to value ratio meaning good?
Is that bad? I mean, I know, but like I feel like as a brokeer, you're like, yeah, eighty percent LVR fantastic? What is what jacquelin?
So I'm talking you know, the banks are looking at you as if you had a twenty percent deposit, So.
Obviously it's a good thing. Right, So you're saying that I can have a five percent deposit, but the bank is going to lend money to me as though I had a twenty percent deposit. That is very sexy.
Yeah, we love to see that, I know, so so good.
How do I access that? If I wanted to do? I just apply for it? Are there caps on who can have it?
Like?
Is there a purchase price limit? Can I spend six billion dollars? Can I buy a whole apartment? Complex.
What the rule, It's definitely not available to everyone, so you've got to fit within I guess the criteria. So you've got to be a permanent resident or a strained citizen. There is property price caps in each state.
They actually set those property price caps based on the average purchase price in that state, So like if it's like Sydney, you actually have a little bit more leeway than you might in Tasmania.
And you do find that they do increase I guess over time. There's no guarantee that they will definitely increase every financial year, but going in life with the property prices, you should see them slowly increase as well. But there's yeah, property price thresholds in there. There's income thresholds. So we're talking one hundred and twenty five thousand dollars for a single applicant and two hundred thousand dollars for a couple tool income.
Yeah, and I feel like that's fair. Like at the end of the day, it's helping the people that are usually in a situation where pulling that deposit together is far more of a stretch than if you had, you know, a joint income of more than two hundred grand, like I'm not saying that that makes it super easy. And I feel like we talk to clients all the time who are like, oh, we own two hundred and five thousand dollars and you're just like, oh, I wish you ear you know, six thousand dollars less like how do we do that? But that's also where a broker can come in handy and we can talk to you about lowering your taxable income in that particular situation and like, you know, not advice, but you could potentially make a superanuation contribution so that then that becomes a lower taxable income situation for you. And I think these are things that you just don't know unless you know, and you need to talk to the right people and be in the right situation. And I think the biggest thing here that I want to get across is that if getting into property is your dream, just talk to a mortgage broker. And I mean the way that we work is that we do like an online kind of form. We want to know as much about you before we pick up the phone to make sure that we're not wasting your time. And so you might fill in a form and be like, hey, V I'm in personal debt of like thirty thousand dollars and I want to get out of it and I want to buy property in this that the other. We will often reply and be like okay, cool, So like we don't even need to see you to give you some advice to put you in the best possible position. Here are the resources that you need, and come back in six months and we can book that appointment because you're going to be in a far better position to be moved along the process and to get you going. And so I don't know, I just get so excited about getting people into their first homes. Let's go to a really quick break. But if I you, I would probably stick around because when we come back, we are going to be unpacking what banks really look at when they are assessing loans and how to make yourself a stronger candidate. And I'm going to be asking Jack for her top tip to save you literally thousands of dollars on your home loan. Guys, you're not going to want to miss this one. All right, my friends, we are back, and I feel so privileged. I've got Jacqueline, who is one of the Zella money brokers here in the studio with me. It took a little bit of convincing to be like, will you come on my show? You've asked me, I know, and I am so excited that you are finally here, because do you know what all our clients say, They're like, Oh, why hasn't Jack been on the show yet? She'd be great. I'm going to send this to everyone who's ever asked me, just so you know, But I want to know. One of the other questions that we get, apart from like when should I see a broker? Is Jack? What do banks actually look at like when they're assessing a home loan application and we're going through that process. I feel like it's kind of one is the Wild West. But then it also feels like a really big secret because you know, you submit all your information and you kind of know, oh, they want to look at my bank statements, and then they want to look at my payslips, and then they want to know, you know, what my intentions are and if I have any dependence and like what does my boyfriend do for work? And like it can be really pervy that I want to know. How do we know if we're ticking the right boxes or doing the wrong thing?
I mean banks will look at obviously a range of things. There's so much to take into account, but it really is quite specific to your scenario. What the bank's can ask for someone that is a individual purchasing on their own going through, like I said, the first time guarantee scheme is going to be completely different to someone who's as a couple, as a dependent has a larger deposit. There's just different documents that's needed. So whilst there is a lot that the bank can look at, they're not necessarily going to look at absolutely everything. And I mean that because someone that's going to go through the first home guarantee scheme, you know, we need to show a minimum five percent, which is classified as genuine saving. So the bank's going to need to see three months worth of statements on your savings account to show that that's sort of been sitting there and growing over time. But someone that's you know, got a twenty percent deposit just doing an eighty percent lend against that property, we're not necessarily needing to show any of that genuine savings, So that sort of document gets pushed aside. It's not something that we need to see. Obviously, we need to know what the funds are to complete and how you're doing that. But the bank's not needing to be like with a fine toothcomb saying how long's this been your account for? Do we have five percent? Things like that, So it is very specific to your situation on what's needed.
And that's so annoying, like, not not any individual, but just for the client experience, right, because I might go, Hey, my friend Alisha, she used Jacqueline as a broker and she got this loan with this criteria and this rat. I'm going to go see Jacqueline because that's what she got, Alisha, and I want that Jack give that to me. Yeah, I know, how do we deal with that? Because I feel like so many of us, like I want you to ask your friends and family for referrals. Like, to me, that is the best way to find someone legitimate. Yeah, and find someone who's going to care about your situation, someone that you're going to resonate with. But that doesn't mean that the situation will be the same. Like even if it's your coworker and you earn the same amount of money.
It comes back to people saying, you know, but my friends on this rate with the same bank why are not on that rate?
And it's heartbreaking as well because you're like, baby, if I could get you that rate, I promise you right, it doesn't change my outcome. I don't make less money or more money based on your rate. I actually would love to give you the lowest possible rate.
Yeah. Like I said, there's so many factors that will come into it. How much deposit you're putting down, what your loan to value, your ratio looks like, your employment types, and you know, credit scores is a big one too.
Credit scores are something that scares so many people in our community. How seriously are they taken when it comes to getting your first home?
Yeah?
Very yeah, pretty seriously. Yeah, get a good credit score.
Good conduct would be the number one. Any credit in your name as well as rental leases that grows against your credit score as well, whether you've had a phone in your name before, things like that gets taken into account. The credit scores side. It does have a huge impact. Obviously. Again, I feel like a broken record, but it comes down to you.
You've never been on the podcast yet, so you can say that next episode.
So it comes down to your scenario. I mean, if there's you know a valid reason as to why your score is so low and it's been rectified, and we can show that. You know, that might be something that we can get across the line. But if you just come to us with a poor credit rating because your conduct's been really poor, because you've just forgotten to make your payments on your personal life or yeah, whatever it looks like, just because you were lazy or forgetful for a multiple period of time, I'm talking like you've really assaulted and all of that. Yes, it's going to definitely hinder your credit score, and it's also going to hinder what options are available in terms of the lender options.
And I think that something that you could do today as well as a listener or someone who's thinking about property, or you might not even be thinking about property, is investigate your own credit score. So if you don't know what that number is, you can for free request a credit score report. At work, we use a company called Equifax. You can get them literally from so many different suppliers, but they will send you an email report of your credit score after you've gone through a few hoops improven your identity. And that can be a really powerful way of seeing what that might look like before you talk to a broker, and what that might look like in case there is some dodgy credit in your name that isn't yours. One of the best finance tips that I have for people who are like, oh, yeah, but what else can I do? Like you know, obviously pay down your debts all of that other fun stuff, but like be aware of your credit score, because heartbreakingly, we have had people come to us Jack who you're like, yep, cool, like you're brilliant, no worries, and then we look into their credit score and what do we find. Yeah, like we find an absolute mess and you go, oh hey, so we actually can't work on this loan at this point because like you've got this personal loan. Yeah, and they go, I don't have a personal loan, and then we're going down a whole scam and fraud.
Yeah. I've actually had that before. Yeah, someone's been scammed. It's ruled their credit rating. Like I said, that's why I'm saying, it's specific. If we can prove and.
There's and we can actually help you in that situation, Like we actually thankfully have all the contacts to get that cleaned up. And like if that is legitimately not your issue and not your thing. We can have it removed from your credit score. Fair few hoops to jump through, but my friend, we have done it before. Jack. I feel like for a lot of our community, they just feel like property is out of reach, like it is still so far away. Like I feel like so many of us are I don't know, close to thirty, just over thirty and still thinking like, oh my god, I thought that I would have achieved this by now. Like we are living in a different time and the goalposts are so different to what they used to be. Can you talk to me about what we could do to put ourselves in a better position if we're like we really want to buy property, but it just feels so far away, or just I can't save or I can't you know, seem to get ahead. Where are we going? What are we doing so that we can still create the life that we deserve.
Yeah, I mean get in touch with the broker obviously, Like I've said, when you start even thinking about that, whether that is five ten years off, if that's what it feels like, there's obviously resources available online. You've got the National Debt Helpline that you can reach out to and they one if.
She's on the money's favorites. Honestly, the people there are so kind and like I always say this, but I'm always going to say this when you call them, You're not like calling the CEO of the bank and being like, oh my god, I have no money, Like you're going to think I'm so silly. No, they're people just like you who actually have chosen to work at the National Debt Helpline help. They are so empowered when they help people in situations like yours. I promise when you pick up that phone, the person who's going to answer it is going to be like, oh my gosh, Jack, I'm so glad you cold, Like you'll be shocked at how supported you feel. I think there's this massive misconception that they're going to, i don't know, crucify you, like oh yeah right, and like they're not and like is a broker going to judge you? Like, because we just want the best for you, we might give you some hard truths, like we might have to sit you down and go, hey, if you don't change your spending habits, this goal of yours isn't actually achievable. But like I think that that's the beauty of having a good relationship with a broker, because we're going to give you the tough love, but it's because we want the best for you.
Yeah. Well, obviously, like I said, hold your hand throughout that process, Like step by step, we can market our calendars to follow up in six months time. Let's talk about it. Where are we at. Have we done a new budget, how much are we saving now? Are we on track? Things like that?
Yeah, I love it, But let's move on to income and expenses. Jack, I want to know if a bank is looking at financial health. Obviously they're having a look at your credit score, they're having a look at your income. What are their spending or saving habits that people could implement to make themselves look like really shiny to a bank. Because there's some information flying around. I saw a TikTok the other day. A girl was like, four months before I got alone, I had no uber ets. I deleted the app off my phone and I did this, and I did that. Like from a BROKEUS perspective, what are you hot tips and tricks to make yourself? You know, let's pretend six months out from purchasing your first home, look like a very respectable human being that they definitely want to lend hundreds of thousands of dollars too.
Yeah, obviously raining and the splurging banks are going to have a look, you know, three months back into your statements.
So I was starting six months.
Yeah, I know, but they're only going to request that three months. Generally, they will have a look at your sort of spending habits. But I mean, the banks lenders aren't these big scary companies. Yes, they need to do their digilidance and look.
I'm still scared of them.
No, you need to look at your spending habits and what that's being spent on. But everyone spends at Christmas. This is not a new thing. We all buy presents for friends and family.
So that's not saying that a bank is actually going to use their initiative and they're like, now, look I don't know. Yeah, some of them need a little bit more, a little bit more fine tuning. Yeah, yeah, that's okay.
I mean it's common sense, isn't it.
Yeah, So as a broker, you kind of know what those banks are. To be honest, you probably would avoid it for that climent.
I mean, big one to avoid would be gambling one hundred percent. Everyone says no, no, no, no, I don't. But when you look into the bank statements, it's there a few times. So that's just one thing I would be definitely cleaning up, you know, and lead up to purchasing.
In small amounts big amounts, like obviously it's going to be a massive issue if you have a gambling addiction, and will pop some information in the show notes to the Gambler's help line to make sure that if you are going through that literally no judgment call, get it sorted out so that you can live the life that you deserve and get what you want exactly. But if sports beat comes up a few times, a bank's going, oh you're a risky human being. What's that look like? Because you know, the races come around, the tennis is happening, like I know, it's Australian culture to have a bit of a punch, So talk to me about what's reasonable use versus not very good at all.
Look, the reasonable is again common sense. Yes, Cup day? Do people have a bit on Cup Day? Yes, it's very common. The main events, you know, you do see there and there's no sort of real red flags there. It's the ongoing monthly spending, the weekly habits, the pattern. When you see a pattern there, it's not just the odd one every three months, every six months.
I wanted to bring that because I didn't want the community to be like, oh, like, are you saying that you really because like my partner and I don't all we put ten bucks either way on cup day, Like, we're not saying that that's the bad thing. But when we request the three months of bank statements and it goes to the bank, like, patterns are very easily identifiable. They basically printed out and go through with a highlighter and highlight all the same things. And if there's just a lot of pink, that is a habit, that is something that is impacting your ability to pay back a mortgage, and they're going to take that into consideration and see you as a higher risk client. And we just don't need that for you.
No lead up to personally first property obviously we've spoken about spending habits, but savings pattern as well. You know, showing that you can put some money aside and that you're making regular savings into your account sort of shows that you have the ability to make that mortgage repayment back even rental.
I was about to say, Jack, this has changed in the last few years. Let's pretend I want to buy my first home, and you know, I leave in a city, like I'm living with my partner, so personally I'm only paying like fifteen hundred bucks a month rent, but like I'm still fifteen hundred dollars a month rent. My partner and I we've done the maths. We reckon between us three grand a month. We could probably afford a mortgage, but like it's all going on rent right now, can we still get a mortgage?
Yeah?
So are you saying that the bank might see that as savings? So, and maybe that's what I was getting at.
Yeah, they do. If you are currently renting, they look at that rental ledger as a savings pattern to show that you've got the ability to sort of make that mortgage of payment. You're already sort of doing it, you know, in some sense. So yeah, that's definitely can be looked at as your sort of savings.
And I love that, And I think that not many people know that, Like if you don't know, you don't know, because historically, when you paid your rent, they also wanted to see you saving on top of that. But that was a different time. That was when people had so much more disposable income and should have been saving on top of that because you had that leeway. But now we're seeing people come through our business and people in our community fifty sixty percent of their income is going on rent. And I remember when I started this podcast, Jack, like back in like twenty twenty, insane, so weird to talk about. We used to talk about that, you know, what's reasonable to spend on rent?
Yeh?
And I remember I'd do the research and work it out. And this is like pre COVID, right, So like twenty twenty, twenty nineteen, let's call it twenty eighteen, early twenty nineteen, just pre COVID, all right, it was very normal for financial advisors and mortgage brokers to have the expectation that, oh, it's actually reasonable for you to be spending thirty percent of your income on rent. Any more than that it's actually impacting your lifestyle. And so that advice is now completely outdated.
But people still think that.
People still think.
They still come to me and saying, but I've done the math, and it's more than thirty percent of my total empowtment.
I'm like, that is our dictated advice because it's a different market, it's a different situation, and I think it's good to bring that up. Are there other things that have changed in the industry since like twenty eighteen twenty nineteen.
Definitely. I don't know if you've seen interest rates, but it's.
Interest rates have changed, like people's incomes have not everything.
Everything has changed everything, you know, that's why you talk to a mortgage broker.
Yeah, one hundred percent. All right, Jack, I feel like I have taken up heaps of your time and I really want to finish on a big one because I know that this is what everyone really wants to know. I suppose do you have an ultimate money saving tip? Like, I know you're financially savvy, so I've kind of set you up like you are really good with money, but I want like one piece of advice that could save potential buyers thousands on the life of their loan. I guess, no pressure. I hope you've come prepared.
Oh, one tip. I'm gonna have to probably give you a few, Okay, you know what.
Like less is more, more is less? Whatever? What's your first one?
I'm gonna have to say, using offsets correctly. Yeah, so offsets big one can save you thousands.
So offset we can do more episodes like diving into the different specifics of different types of loans and stuff. But crash. Course, an offset is a bank account that's attached to your mortgage that offsets the amount of interest that you have to pay every single month. And you're saying that people don't use them correctly, like they set up their offset and they don't use them.
Some banks have only got the ability to have a one offset, or some banks will have multiple, so people might park, you know, the bulk of savings into their offset, thinking that's great. But if you've got a large income, you know, and you're getting paid every month or every week, it's calculated daily, so it's in your best interest to sort of have you know, your income going into an offset as well. You know, you might also have another accountan's just got bills, which in your mind has only got two thousand dollars sitting in there just for my bills that are going to come out, but again calculated daily. It's better off being in an offset sitting against your mortgage, so you're not paying interest on that.
And is that something that every mortgage has and we just need to use them.
That's something that you need to obviously let us know that you want or the bank that you're with that you would like to have an offset and see what the options are there. But not every bank will offer it.
No.
Yeah, and I think that's important because some people go into a loan, like they might just go and sign up for that and go, oh, I'll just set an offset up later, like it's just bank account, right, But it has to be specifically tied to the mortgage. It's a part of that mortgage product.
It needs to be linked to it.
So is that something that you would bring up with a client. Are you going to be like, hey, so what we're going to do? And are you talking cash flow post settlement of the property or are you just getting them into the property and being like wam bam, thank you, ma'am catcher, Like what's the process?
No, there's definitely things that will come into play, like whether or not, you know, even an offset is worth it for you. You know, you might be someone that's not going to have a large block of funds left over after settlement, after you move into the property. You might be worried about the interest rates increasing, so a variable rate might not even be best for you. You might be sort of leaning towards more of a fixed interest rate, knowing that you're going to be having the same set repayments each month that you can sort of tackle. Like a lot of clients are our first home buyers. They don't know how much a war order bill is and electricity bill is. They don't know all the other costs that come involved. So having a set amount that they can picture in their mind and it's not going to change for a period of time can be quite comforting.
Yeah, And I love that because we then use the data from She's on the Money and the data that we get through all of our mortgage broking systems and software is to go, Okay, in this location, your average water beello is going to look like this. Did you know that? And they go, oh my god, no, But that's so helpful. And I love giving the perfect little details that you get as a bonus, but you didn't even know you need it.
Other factors that people don't take into account. I mean, I'm detering, but you're talking like strata, insurance, body, corporate that's our top of expense on top of your monthlyer payment. That's not included in your mortgage repayment. So people get caught out. If that's another five hundred dollars a month, you've got to factor that into your spending on top of your monthly repayment.
Yeah, And I feel like we get very excited about budget and cash flow in office, So like we love sitting down with clients being like, Okay, got the mortgage there, but like let's talk budget after you've settled, because we just want you to be in the best possible position. Because and I think a lot of people don't realize this, Like you use your mortgage broker to get into your first time fantastic, But that relationship, from my perspective, is a lifelong relationship. Like you're going to meet with Jack, or you're going to meet with Charlotte, or're gonna meet with one of our brokers or any broker really, and their role is to support you to get into that house. But they're going to or they should be checking in on you every six months, checking your rates, making sure you're in the best possible position. Like if you have a major life change, you should be like, oh, hey, Jack, I just wanted to check, like I'm having a baby, Like this is my favorite thing, Like when clients get engaged or when clients and I know you've had this as well. You have this like whole meeting with a couple and you're like talking about the financial life and like you know, really basic, really standard, hang up, no worries. You're like putting your file notes together and you get a call on your mobile and you're like, hey, what's up Jordan, And he goes, I didn't tell you, but I have this secret savings account for an engagement ring. It's like so fun, but like we get to go through that journey with clients, and when your situation changes, sometimes your mortgage does as well. So I think fostering a relationship where you're broker is on the front foot.
And they're on your side. Oh yeah, they're about it.
For you, and it's fun batting for you too. Like I'm not saying that we always want it to be tricky, but when it gets tricky, the whole office is behind you. Beave me, believe me. We're all like, hey, have you had this before? If not, what are we doing? How are we doing?
It.
Oh Lisha's done that before and you're worries, Alicia, can you call your contact and see if your contact can do this for me? Like it becomes a game to get the best outcome for a client. Jack, I've adored this. Thank you so much for joining us today, sharing your wisdom, having a chat about mortgages. We'll ask the community. We'll be like, do you want Jack back? What do we want to know?
I do want to add one thing?
What is it?
Going back to the hot money tip?
So okay, sorry, I got more money tips you to get this out? No, I love this, let's go. What is it?
You have to have your mortgage rate frequently reviewed. There's so many people out there that it is sitting on high interest rates that haven't had it reviewed and they're just paying thousands of thousands of extra dollars that you just can't get back.
How do we do that though? Like when you say frequently, was that even mean?
Jack? After you settle, Yeah, I would be sticking in your calendar to sort of follow up with the bank to see if we can bring that interest rate down for you. There's just so many clients, like I said, that come back that are sitting on a high interest rate. It sort of sits in the same category as having your home and contents reviewed or your private health reviewed. It's something that you don't do regularly enough to make sure that you're saving. Something that it's probably worth mentioning is that Zella actually has a dedicated team purely for pricing reviews, So from the moment that you actually settle, we will diroize it for you.
Yeah, you don't have to do that, but like this is advice for people who aren't with Zella. Yeah, Like, not all brokers do this, no, because honestly, if they're an individual broker, it's crazy because people go, what type of broker do I want to say? And like, I'm so nasty with this. I love all brokers. I think that they do a great job. But I would never see a broker that works specifically for a bank, because if you're seeing a broker that only works for the bank, that means that they are still a beautiful human being, but they only have access to that bank's products. They can't, like, you know, get you a better rate with a different bank or a credit union or a different lending option. They can't wiggle things in the same way as an independent broker. So we love an independent but then most independent brokers don't have the resources behind them to do pricing reviews because they're always seing brand new clients and building their book and that's fantastic, So you might need to diorize it. And we broke it and be like, hey, can you review my pricing or even just call your own bank and do it yourself. We definitely have it, which is I don't know, big flex Worth Mentioning. Yeah, we have a whole pricing team, but that's because we're a bit of a bigger business. We still have a credit license, but we're not bank aligned. And I think that that's a really important delineation between different brokers. And like, if you're weighing up what you want to do, maybe that's the type of thing you want, but you want to see someone in person in Queensland, like Okay, well you know Zella's is not the one for you. But like, these are things that I would want you to look out for and be aware of because you are building that lifelong relationship and you are putting yourself in a position where you know a broker could help you create your wealth or it could just be a service that you have once off and like I mean, I want to create wealth. I don't know about you, Jack, any other hot tips before I try and wrap you up? No, no, no, we're done. I love that Jack. This has been amazing and I know that the community is going to want to get you back on the show at some point. So if you guys have questions or queries for Jack, shoot them through because I'm just going to collate them all and put together new episodes and then be like, oh, I'm so sorry, Jack, you have to come on the show because, like the people have asked what they're vast for. But with that said, if you guys have found this episode helpful, I would adore it if you shared it with your family and friends who are thinking about purchasing their first home or a home in general. It could be honestly exactly what I need to feel more prepared and more confident in that journey and put themselves in the best possible position to make their property dreams a reality. And guys, do not forget to hit follow and subscribe so that you never miss an episode. It actually helps us grow our podcast so that we can keep bringing you the content that you know and love. My friends, until next time, keep dreaming big, taking small steps in the right direction, and working towards smashing your money goals. My loves see you on Friday. The advice shared on She's on the Money is generally nature and does not consider your individual circumstances. She's on the Money exists purely for educational purposes and should not be relied upon to make an investment or financial decision. If you do choose to buy a financial.
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