Make your homeloans work for you

Your homeloans will most probably be the biggest debt you will ever have to make in your life. Your homeloan however does not need to take over your life - there are simple and clever ways to make the impact of your debt as little as possible, like consulting mortgage lenders.

The most important way to make sure your home does not get repossessed is to make sure that you buy a property which you can easily afford. If you are a first time buyer, then do not buy a mansion, start small, work your way up to a bigger property, as your needs change.

Get the best interest rate

Competition is stiff amongst the various financial institutions. So take advantage of this and make negotiations between them in order to get the best interest rate for yourself. Do remember though to enquire about the notice period from your current financial institution. It is usually 90 days, and if you do not give notice, you will be charged a hefty penalty.

Also try to get your interest rate fixed. Even though you will not be able to do this for the entire term of the homeloan, you can have it fixed for approximately one year at a time.

Another way you can save thousands of rands in interest is by paying more into your homeloans than what is on request by the bank.