Free internet or $10k: Crazy incentives to switch your home loan

Now could be a good time to consider switching your home loan. (Source: Getty)

The Reserve Bank of Australia pushed the cash rate up to 0.85 per cent yesterday, and mortgage holders now face repayment increases.

But, just because the banks are passing on the interest rate hike to customers, doesn’t mean they have stopped competing for your business.

In fact, now is a great time to look into switching your home loan to a new provider to potentially get a lower interest rate as well as some great perks.

• Also read: When interest rates were 17.5%: 'No light at the end of the tunnel'

• Also read: Golden mortgage rule 1 in 4 homeowners are breaking

• Also read: ‘Need a buffer’: RBA’s warning to 1.1 million Aussies

RateCity.com.au data found that banks across Australia were offering up to $10,000 cash back, frequent flier miles and even free internet.

Switching your home loan can be a tedious process, but well worth it if you can nab yourself a lower rate and get some benefits at the same time.

Here are some of the best deals out there.

Cash back

Cash-back offers are everywhere at the moment, allowing you to benefit quickly with an injection of funds.

Here’s what the banks are offering:

Lender	Max cash back available	Who can get it?
BCU	$5,000	Refinance
HSBC	$3,288	Refinance
ING	$3,000	Refinance
CBA	$2,000	Refinance
Westpac	$3,000	Refinance
NAB	$2,000	Refinance
ANZ (cashback through a broker)	$3,000	Refinance
Citi (cashback through a broker)	$6,000	Refinance
ME Bank	$3,000	Refinance
Reduce (refinance and new purchases)	$10,000	Refinance and new purchases
St.George Bank	$4,000	Refinance
Bank of Melbourne	$4,000	Refinance
BankSA	$4,000	Refinance
Virgin Money	$3,000	Refinance
Bank of Queensland	$3,000	Refinance
RAMS	$4,000	Refinance
Defence Bank	$2,500	Refinance
MyState Bank	$3,000	Refinance
Bank of China	$3,000	Refinance
Credit Union SA (refinance and new purchases)	$2,500	Refinance and new purchases
Bankwest	$2,000	Refinance
Newcastle Permanent	$3,000	Refinance
AMP Bank (only for new purchases)	$3,000	New purchases
BankVic	$1,500	Refinance
Peoples' Choice	$4,000	Refinance
Suncorp Bank	$3,000	Refinance
MOVE Bank	$2,500	Refinance
OneTwo	$5,000	Refinance

Frequent flier

If you love the benefits you get from your frequent flier miles, then you can earn up to 200,000 points with two Aussie lenders.

Here is what they’re offering:

Lender	Maximum points available	Conditions
Qudos Bank	Up to 200,000 QFF points.	200k QFF points when you apply for a new Qantas Points Home Loan between 01/04/22-30/06/22 and settle by 30/09/22
Macquarie Bank	Up to 170,000 QFF points when you borrow $600k	10k QFF points for every $100k loan drawn, 1000 QFF points per month for the life of the loan, 25,000 QFF points on the third and fifth anniversary of your loan

Lenders mortgage insurance waivers

If you’re looking to get into the market but haven’t quite saved enough for the 20 per cent deposit then you can get a waiver through some banks - which could save you thousands.

Lender	Offer	Conditions
St.George Bank	$1 LMI	15% deposit required, max loan size $850k, owner-occupier, principal and interest
Ubank	No LMI	15% deposit required, owner-occupier, principal and interest

Loyalty discounts

Sticking with a lender can also save you money through loyalty discounts. If you’re looking to get into the housing market you may want to consider some of these options.

Lender	Loyalty discount	Conditions
Unloan	Up to 0.30% off as you pay off your home loan	Receive an extra 0.01% p.a. discount every year, up to a maximum discount of 0.30% p.a.
OneTwo Home Loans	Up to 0.15% off your rate as you pay off your loan	For every 5% you pay down, OneTwo Home Loans will drop 0.03% of your interest rate, to a maximum of 0.15%
Athena	Automatic rate drop	Athena's variable rates are based on three LVR (loan-to-value ratio) tiers where they lower your rate based on how much you’ve paid down your loan

Other cool offers

Some banks are also thinking outside the box to attract new customers - like Commonwealth Bank’s ‘free internet for three years’ offer.

Here are some of the other options to consider:

Lender	Offer	Conditions
RACQ Bank	Insurance discounts and discounted rates for green upgrades	15% off Home & Contents Insurance for the life of the loan and RACQ members with a home loan of $250k+ can receive a 0.79% p.a. green loan to purchase eligible clean energy products
CBA	Free Internet	Eligible conditionally pre-approved customers get free NBN for 3 years
Great Southern Bank	Upfront fee waiver	No establishment fee or security fees when you apply online. Save up to $835
Credit Union SA	First home buyer grant	$5,000 first home buyer grant when you borrow more than $250k to purchase/build your first home with an LVR > 80%
Tic Toc Home Loans	Rate match	Tic Toc will match the rate if you find a lower rate on an identical variable principal-and-interest home loan
Suncorp Bank	Ongoing fee reimbursed	Package fee of $375 reimbursed, save up to $11,250
Bank Australia	Eco pause	Repayment break for environmental upgrades for up to 3 months or half your repayments for 6 months

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