mortgage rates

Anybody know what the current interest rate is for mortgages in NZ? And do you pay taxes like council tax etc Thanks

Hi,

Mortgage rates vary depending on lender, but at the moment can be from around 6.9% to over 8%.

You do pay rates (like council tax) based upon the rateable value of the home. For an average house, you're looking at just north or south of $1000 a year.

Cheaper than UK then :icon_biggrin:

we were quoted 6.7% at a bank in Dunedin

Make sure thats not one of those fixed rate mortgages that go up to over 8% after the initial period!!

[selchie]

It sounds like "fixed rates" aren't fixed in NZ. I suppose we shall have some studying to do when/if we get there. And I was doing so well learning about home ownership in the US!

[Midder]

Hi all,

wanted to pick someones brains. We've been offered the option of Rent Try Buy on a property that we will be renting. Basically we will pay $430NZ per week rent, and at the end of 2 years all of our rent payments will be put down as a deposit on a new build house of our choice.

Really, I just wanted to know if anyone has done this kind of option either in NZ or the UK, and would anyone recommend this.

Opinions all gratefully received

Cheers

Midder, that sounds a good option, better to line your own pockets by way of a deposit than line the pockets of an investment landlord.

Sara,
try the westpac website, i stumbled across it as an advert on www.realenz.co.nz, but a google search on google.co.nz will find it too. They had all the rates for borrowers & savers, along with "handy tips" for immigrants.

Midder said:

[quote:0db334648a]We've been offered the option of Rent Try Buy on a property that we will be renting. Basically we will pay $430NZ per week rent, and at the end of 2 years all of our rent payments will be put down as a deposit on a new build house of our choice.[/quote:0db334648a]

Hi Midder,

You might want to check out this article in the NZ Herald

[color=blue:0db334648a]http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?...ectID=10328688
[/color:0db334648a]

In a nutshell, the Commerce Commission is warning people buying houses under rent-to-buy schemes to make sure they get the full protection of the new Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance (CCCF) Act.

I'm sure you're getting proper advice - just thought you might want to read this first.

Regards

Chris :icon_wink:

Thanks for your replies,

took me a couple of days to reply though, in Hong Kong at the mo. The article in the Herald was informative, sure I read something about the act in a letter from the letting agent in Auckland. Will need to triple check that though.

Let you know how things go.

Nikki