FAQ’s

The loan term: The ‘term’ of your loan is how long you’ll be borrowing for. You can decide how long you want your loan term to be when you apply

This will be decided by your lender, based on your financial history and your credit rating

Usually, the longer your loan term, the lower your monthly repayments will be – but you’re likely to end up paying more interest overall, so it can end up being more expensive.

One option that you may want to explore is peer-to-peer lending, which lets you borrow money directly from investors and savers.

Some peer-to-peer lenders allow you to repay early without penalty, so they can work as a short-term option.

When you compare loans with us you can filter your results to see just peer-to-peer loans.

Credit unions are not-for-profit organisations which pool members’ savings and lend them out to other members.

They tend to be quite flexible, so they might allow borrowing of smaller amounts over shorter terms, or early repayment on loans.

You’ll need to be part of the community. And some ask you to save with them for a certain amount of time before taking out a loan.

You can apply for any of the above mortgages as a couple or group of friends (although not all providers will allow more than two people to apply together). If you do decide to do this, bear in mind that you will share the responsibility of making repayments, which means that if your mortgage partner becomes unable or unwilling to pay, you’ll be liable.

When deciding how to pay for your mortgage, you generally have one of two options – you can apply for an interest-only deal or opt for full repayment.

Repayment mortgages are designed so that, by the end of the mortgage term – which can range from 25-35 years and beyond – you’ll have paid off the full balance plus interest and will have nothing further to pay. Your repayments will be calculated accordingly, and while they’ll be higher than if you had an interest-only deal, you can be confident that you’ll have paid off everything by the end of the term.

• The shorter your mortgage term is, the cheaper your mortgage will be for the entire term because you’ll pay less interest overall.
• Longer mortgage terms often mean lower monthly repayments, but could cost you more over the length of the mortgage.

Ideally, you should aim to set your mortgage term for as short a period as possible, as that way you won’t pay as much interest – although it does mean higher monthly payments. Conversely, a longer-term mortgage will reduce the monthly payments, but means you pay more overall, as interest will be charged for a longer period.

It’s important to weigh up your options carefully, as your decision will often be based on your current financial situation. However, it could be possible to change your term when it’s time to remortgage, so even if you want to keep your repayments low for the foreseeable future, you could opt for a shorter term when your financial situation changes. Remember, too, that if you find you can pay more, you may be able to make overpayments that can reduce your mortgage term.

• How quickly do they sell homes in New Zealand? What’s their track record with achieving the asking price?
• What is their reasoning behind the value they’re proposing to market your property at?
• Will details of your property be shared with their colleagues? It’s good if more than one person in the office can talk enthusiastically and with knowledge about your property
• What would they do if your property was not selling as quickly or at the price you expected?
• Are they open at weekends? A surprising number of agents only work during the week, and perhaps do half day on Saturday, which means they are less accessible to potential buyers

No two properties are the same. Potential buyers will make an offer based on their knowledge of comparable sales and the emotional value they place on your home.

Regardless of what you might think your property is worth, it is the buyer that ultimately sets the price they are prepared to pay.  The method of selling is an important step towards achieving the best result.

As no two properties are the same it is very hard to give an exact time frame for the sale of your home. The Real Estate Industry of New Zealand (REINZ) publishes statistics for ‘average days on the market’ but these do not differentiate one style of property from another so are likely to be skewed by apartment timeframes etc.

To help limit your time on the market it is important to choose the right sale method and target the right buyers for your property.

All of this needs to be decided with the consultative advise of a good real estate Salesperson.  Equally important to this is good communication on feedback and progress from your Salesperson.  Being informed during the process makes the decisions you need to make as a vendor much easier.

Buyers are looking for properties at all times of the year so if your property is warm and gets good winter sun, why not market it at a time when there is less competition?

Alternately you might have a well-established garden that flourishes in spring so this will be the best time to market your home. Whatever the season, take the time to present your house well to maximise interest and achieve the best possible price.

There is no standard rate or scale of charges for buyer’s agents. It is important that you ask in advance about costs and what services will be provided as a part of this cost. If the buyer’s agent charges a set fee, you should check whether any separate charges are made for expenses.

You need to be accurate and honest when you declare your annual mileage to get car insurance quotes.

Put in a mileage that’s too low and you risk invalidating your cover, which could cause problems if you need to make a claim.

But if you put a higher mileage than you actually drive, you risk paying too much.

According to our research, car insurance is 13% cheaper if your mileage is 9,000 a year compared to 10,000.

The impact of your job title on how much your car insurance costs relates to risk factors. So if your job is seen as higher risk by insurers, this is reflected in your premiums. Don’t change your job title to try to reduce the price of your quotes, unless the alternative title genuinely describes your job accurately. Always be honest – if you lie you could invalidate your cover.

When you get a quote, we’ll help you by estimating what your car’s worth based on its age and mileage – but you can change it if it doesn’t seem right. There are tools online that can help you work out your car’s value. Always give an honest valuation. A ballpark estimate’s okay because insurer’s usually pay out based on average market value.

Here’s 10 things you can do that could help you pay less for your car insurance:

1. Adding a named New Zealand driver can lower prices. But remember, you should always list the person who drives the car most often as the main driver, and any occasional drivers as additional.

2. Increasing your voluntary excess will change prices as you’re willing to a pay more towards any claims. Be sure to consider any compulsory excess listed on a policy as you’ll need to pay the total amount if you make a claim.

3. Build up your no-claims bonus! 

4. Pay annually if you can. Most New Zealand insurers will charge interest or an admin fee if you choose to pay monthly and could end up costing you over 16% extra^. 

5. Watch out for unnecessary add-ons, such as New Zealand breakdown cover or legal assistance, as this will increase the cost of your quote. Only choose the add-ons you need.

6. Picking the correct job title will lower prices as insurers use your occupation as a rating factor when calculating the price of your insurance.

7. Buy your policy early to get the cheapest price. Our data shows the later you leave it, the more you pay for your insurance. At comparity.co.nz we think the best time to buy your car insurance is around 3 weeks before your renewal.

8. Use comparity.co.nz to compare different levels of cover, the most basic cover doesn’t necessarily make it the cheapest. In fact, comprehensive policies can often be cheaper even though you get a higher level of cover.

9. Think about how you use your car and pick the cover that matches your needs. Social use, social & commuting and business use offer different levels of cover depending on how you use your car.

10. Be accurate with your mileage so you’re only paying for KM’s you’re driving. The average yearly mileage is around 6,500², but think about the types of trips you do and how often you do them. You can even check the mileage between your last MOTs to see how many KM’s you drove in the last 12 months.