Home loan flexibility is a top priority amongst all Aussie homeowners when looking for their next mortgage, new data from CommBank has revealed.
When asked what they considered to be the most important feature in a new home loan outside of interest rates, almost 80 per cent of homeowners said general home loan flexibility like redraw and multiple offset accounts, together with flexible features like the ability to change repayments in an app or online, were critical to them and their needs.
When taking a closer look at Australian's home loan priorities, there were subtle differences between what the different generations wanted from their next mortgage.
Baby Boomers listed an array of different flexible features as their top priority, with one in two saying a redraw facility was critical, while a quarter labelled multiple offset accounts as a must-have. Further, 41 per cent said general home loan flexibility - including the ability to change their repayments or loan type quickly and easily - would be an important feature when it comes to looking for a new home loan.
Across the different generations, the data found Gen X were the most similar to Baby Boomers, with this generation labelling home loan flexibility as a top priority for their next home loan. In addition to home loan flexibility, this generation of Aussies also said cashback offers were a big consideration, with 2 in 5 listing this as a priority.
While flexibility was still a top consideration amongst younger Aussies, so too were digital tools and the ability to easily access home lending specialists.
"Often dubbed as 'digital natives', it's hardly surprising to learn 32 per cent of Gen Z homeowners labelled an app for managing your loan in one place as a key feature for their next home loan," said Commonwealth Bank's Executive General Manager Home Buying, Dr Michael Baumann.
"Interestingly, despite their desire for digital tools and features, this cohort also said support from their lending specialist was one of the factors they considered when choosing a future home loan. It shows the continued demand for a blended experience of digital self-service and expert support and assistance."
For millennial homeowners, the ability to have flexible features, multiple offset accounts and redraw facilities were listed as top priorities, with two in five listing these as an important consideration for their next loan. Not too dissimilar from their digitally focused Gen Z counterparts, 25 per cent of millennial homeowners also said having an app to manage their home loan in one place was an important feature.
"A home loan is long-term commitment and it is clear from the research that homeowners are looking for a mortgage and lender that can evolve with them throughout their life - a loan and home lender that is flexible and provides customers with the ability to make changes to suit their ever changing needs," Dr Baumann added.
"In fact, when homeowners were asked what their biggest concern was when it comes to taking on a home loan, more than 50 per cent said they would be concerned if their loan wasn't flexible and they couldn't make changes to it as needed. This included concerns around not being able to make changes to their loan if their circumstances changed or that they would not be covered if something happened to their family and they couldn't make their repayments."
In terms of what Aussie homeowners think would make their home loan more manageable, almost 60 per cent said being able to instantly change their repayment amount in their banking app would make a difference, while 61 per cent said having the ability to change their loan type would make it easier to manage their mortgage.
"At CommBank we help more Australians into a home than any other lender and are proud to be able to offer what we consider to be Australia's most flexible home loan. Part of that flexibility includes providing our customers with the ability to align their home loan repayments with their salary payments, as well as providing eligible owner occupied home loan customers with access to Compassionate Care - which can provide support for home loan repayments for around 12 months if an eligible borrower, their spouse or dependant passes away or is medically certified with a terminal illness. We know life isn't always smooth sailing and we want to be able to support our customers through every life stage," Dr Baumann said.
About the research
The survey was conducted by the House of Brand Group, with fieldwork conducted between 29/08/2022-30/08/2022, amongst a sample of n=1,012 nationally representative respondents including n=599 homeowners, with quotas set on age, gender and location.
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