Credit Simple NZ
A personal loan is a monetary loan you can get from a credit provider such as a bank, credit union or online lender – usually for a specific life purpose like renovating your home, paying for a holiday or consolidating several smaller loans. Lenders approve personal loans by evaluating your creditworthiness. When you enter into a contract for a personal loan, you typically receive money in a lump sum and agree to repay the lender back the money in regular…
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Comparing credit cards the right way can be rewarding, because there’s a credit card that can cater to almost every lifestyle and financial need. When you compare, you’ll be looking at everything from interest rates, to reward programs to promotional offers to fees. Compare credit cards by type of card Since you probably already know that closing your accounts too often can hurt your credit score, we hope you’ll keep your card for some time. That’s why it’s important to…
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When you consolidate your debt, you are essentially taking out one large loan and using that money to pay off two or more smaller debts. The two major ways you can do this is by applying for a balance transfer (BT) credit card or taking out a debt consolidation loan. This guide explores why you’d want to consolidate debt in the first place and then looks at your two options to help you determine which one is right for you.…
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Want a more efficient and effective way to compare home loans? Just follow these steps: 1) Identify the non-negotiable features you need. Google those features and shortlist the banks that offer them. Forget about the others, as there’s no reason to spend time of offers that don’t suit your needs. Case Study A 10% home loan deposit is below the 20% threshold for most loans. Kath googled the feature low-deposit home loans and saved the links to all relevant home…
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Most home loans come with their share of fees. Don’t fret over the length of this list, as you probably won’t be subject to all of them. You may even be able to convince your lender to nix a few. It’s also not an exhaustive list as every lender has its own fee schedule. Important Make sure you understand your lender’s specific fee schedule as it can differ from lender to lender. Without further delay… your list of the most…
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Don’t believe you have to have a credit card. Paying interest sucks. It sucks the lifeblood out of your finances. That’s because unless you clear your entire bill within the interest free days, you pay interest. That interest means you’re paying as much as 22.95% more than your mates at the mainstream banks for the same things, which has a detrimental effect on your finances over time. Other (cheaper) ways to pay Thankfully there are way more credit-free ways to…
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Watch out! Your credit score could soon affect the interest rate you pay. That’s good if you’re a “unicorn” with a credit score from 801 to 1,000, and not bad if you’re a “thoroughbred” with a score of 601 to 800. If, however, you’re a credit “donkey” at the very bottom of the credit score pile, a credit pony at 201 to 400, or a farm horse from 401 to 600 you could well pay more. Why donkeys pay more…
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Do you like baked beans? Unless you want to be eating student grub for the next few years it’s a good idea to figure out how much house you can really afford. Don’t be fooled by what the banks tell you that you can borrow. It’s not the same question. Can you really afford the repayments? Really? The banks’ calculators don’t always take into account all the other things you have to pay for when you’re a home owner. What…
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Mortgages in Auckland are not small. The average one is $393,000 and a quarter of them are at least $500,000. When you owe that much money you want to know things are going to be okay: that your property values will stay up, that your interest rates will stay down. But the truth we come to know quickly in the credit rating business is that unhappy surprises have a habit of turning up. These post-GFC times have given us some…
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Do we have decent competition in the mortgage market here? Are the banks as ready to sharpen their pencil as they across the Tasman? Looking at the numbers, you might wonder if we’re being taken for a bit of ride. New Zealand’s banking base rate – the official cash rate – is 1.75% and until recently was 2%. Australia’s is 1.5%. So yes, you might expect the mortgage rates in Australia to be a little bit better than New Zealand.…
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