Its is always a good idea to review your home loan and risk protection plan every few years or when you have undergone a major life event. Here are some hot tips.
1. Make some of the low rates a bit more permanent by fixing some of your home loan. Currently the interest rates on offer are below the long term averages and more so, with a bit of haggling. It is nice to have some certainty in terms of low rates for the coming months but what about the coming years. A good way to hedge your bets is to partially fix your home loan so that some of it will be locked in.
2. Is your floating rate sharp enough? A lot of people currently on floating may not realise that they may be able to get a further discount, currently most banks will give you at least 5.60% quite easily. This can be a lot easier to do if you have more than 20% equity in your home. We at www.mortgagesonline.co.nz are more than happy to double check the competitiveness of your floating rate for you.
3. Does your life insurance premiums keep heading up? A lot of clients are not aware that they can lock in the premiums for a portion of their life insurance if not the whole amount. Locking premiums does cost a bit more but can be a good way to future proof some of your cover. Most life insurance premiums are re viewable annually and can really start to sky rocket when you hit your late 50s and into your 60s.
4. Is your life insurance and income protection plan still relevant? If your pay has increased or you have gone on to self employment your income protection plan may not provide full cover even if you are paying the premiums. If you have taken a new mortgage, had a baby or are taking on extra dependants you may be eligible for an increase in cover without medical underwriting. A lot of the higher quality policies allow increases up to certain amounts for life events. Contact us or your insurance broker to review.
5. Is your investment property in the right hands? With recent changes in legislation, losses in an investment property may not be transferred to PAYE income under the old LAQC structure, going forward. It is important to make the change to an LTC this month, if you feel that you want to continue to transfer losses, the best person to talk to is an accountant. If you have an LAQC, it is important to contact your accountant ASAP.
