SBS Bank Home Loans
SBS Bank is a New Zealand-based bank offering home loans, personal loans, credit cards, savings account investment and business products and insurance.
SBS Bank is the winner of Canstar’s most recent Bank of the Year | First Home Buyers Award. For two years in a row, the bank’s fantastic FirstHome Combo deal and market-leading interest rates helped place it above the competition.
SBS Bank’s FirstHome Combo offers a range of benefits for customers who bundle all their banking, insurance and KiwiSaver products with the financial provider:
- Interest rate discounts
- $2000 cash to help cover the costs connected to purchasing your first home
- $1000 to help cover your first year’s home and contents insurance premiums on policies with SBS Insurance
- $1000 top-up for Lifestages KiwiSaver Scheme account(s)
- 12 months of free broadband with Pulse Broadband
What types of home loans does SBS Bank offer?
SBS Bank offers the following home loans:
Residential Home Loans
Principal and interest and interest only loans, with fixed and floating rates, or a mixture of both. The bank also offers a Flexi Loan, offering the flexibility to increase or decrease the amount borrowed (within your loan limit) to help manage your lifestyle.
Residential Investing Loans
Features include competitive residential home loan interest rates for up to five properties.
Reverse Equity Mortgage
Lets you borrow against the value of your property and free up money during your retirement.
How do I apply for an SBS Bank home loan?
You can apply by phone or online, or in person at a branch. For more details, check out the SBS Bank’s website.
Before you start your application for a home loan, you will need evidence of your:
- Income, including salary, dividends, rent, business profits, etc
- Expenses, such as food, rent, bills, loan debts, insurance, etc
- Deposit – how much cash or equity you have, including any KiwiSaver investments
- Personal details, including a form of valid photo ID, such as your passport or driver’s licence
Canstar’s free comparison tool gives you the ability to compare SBS Bank home-loan products with those from other lenders in the mortgage market. For more details, just click on the button below.
Helpful Home Loans Information
Here are the four most common types of home loans:
Fixed-rate home loan
A fixed-rate home loan has an interest rate that is set for a fixed time period, commonly between one and three years years.
The main advantage of a fixed-rate loan is that it gives you certainty of your repayments over the fixed term.
The main disadvantage of a fixed rate loan is its inflexibility; generally, large additional payments cannot be made. You’ll probably also face a break fee if you decide to switch mortgages or lenders before the end of the fixed term.
Floating-rate home loan
A floating-rate loan has an interest rate that rises and falls over the period of your home loan. This can be in response to movements in the Official Cash Rate, or due to a business decision by your financial institution.
The main advantage of a floating-rate loan is its flexibility. While you must meet your minimum repayments, you can pay off extra lump sums whenever you want to. There are also no financial penalties if you decide to switch mortgages or lenders.
A disadvantage of a floating rate loan is that your minimum repayment amount can rise or fall at any time. Floating rates are also usually higher than fixed rates.
Interest-only home loan
Instead of paying off your principal loan, plus interest repayments, you only pay off the interest fees. This type of loan is most often used by investors who intend to sell the property for capital gains.
Interest-only home loans are not recommended for standard owner-occupiers, due to the increased long-term interest costs associated with not paying off the loan principal (the original loan amount).
Generally, interest-only home loans have a short time frame (up to five years) before they revert to a standard principal and interest loan.
Line of credit home loan
A line of credit home loan is a mortgage that allows you to borrow against the equity in your home. It gives you the ability and flexibility to access a portion of the equity at any time, up to an agreed limit, in a similar way to an overdraft.
You only pay interest on any sum borrowed, usually at a variable rate, which means you can make extra payments to reduce the sum owed at any time.
Other home loan features
There are many different features that can be attached to your home loan, which can include:
- An offset account
- A redraw facility
- The ability to make extra repayments
- The ability to split the loan between fixed and variable (floating)
- The ability to switch to a different type of loan
- Ability to pre-pay interest
- Online functionality
- Lending terms, including its LVR (loan to value ratio)
- Guarantor security availability
SBS Bank
Canstar Research
Award:
Bank of the Year | First Home Buyers
