Loan features

How to compare home loans

Compare home loans by looking at rate, fees, features, lender policy, repayment structure, and your actual borrower goal.

Updated: 15 June 2026
Read time: 7 min read
Reviewed by: emoney broker team

Reviewed for general guidance. Reviewed by emoney broker team. Last updated 15 June 2026. Sources are listed below so borrowers can check the public references behind this general information before speaking with a broker.

Key checks before you decide

What is the loan for?
How long do you expect to keep the loan?
Do you need offset, redraw, or extra repayment flexibility?
Is settlement timing or approval complexity important?
Interest rate and comparison rate.
Application, ongoing, package, and discharge fees.

Full guide

Now read the full guide

Checklist

Start with the goal

A comparison should start with the borrower goal. Buying, refinancing, investing, debt consolidation, using equity, and paying the loan down faster can each point to different features and lender questions.

For a first home buyer, deposit, LVR, pre-approval, buying costs, and settlement timing may dominate the conversation. For an existing borrower, current rate, fees, loan balance, fixed expiry, equity, and switch costs may matter more.

Without the goal, a comparison can drift into a rate table that does not explain whether the loan actually fits the borrower.

What is the loan for?
How long do you expect to keep the loan?
Do you need offset, redraw, or extra repayment flexibility?
Is settlement timing or approval complexity important?

Guide

Compare costs and features together

Interest rate matters, but it should be compared with the comparison rate, application fees, ongoing fees, package costs, discharge costs, and the value of features the borrower will actually use.

A loan with offset, redraw, split options, or extra repayment flexibility may be worth discussing if those features fit the borrower. If the features are unlikely to be used, a simpler product may be more practical.

The comparison should also include how the loan behaves over time. Repayment amount, total interest, remaining term, and fees can tell a different story from the headline rate.

Interest rate and comparison rate.
Application, ongoing, package, and discharge fees.
Offset, redraw, extra repayments, and loan splits.
Repayment type, rate type, and loan term.

Broker note

Check lender fit

A product that looks strong in a comparison table may still be unavailable or impractical for a borrower. Lender fit can depend on income type, debts, property, deposit, loan purpose, documents, credit history, and timing.

This is especially important for self-employed borrowers, low-deposit buyers, investors, borrowers with complex income, or anyone with credit-history issues. The policy pathway can matter as much as the pricing.

A broker review should test whether the lender is a realistic option before the borrower relies on the comparison.

Does the lender accept the income type?
Does the property fit policy?
Are the documents ready enough for assessment?
Does the timeline fit settlement or refinance goals?

Example

Use calculators to test the shortlist

Calculators can make a comparison more concrete. They can show repayment differences, total interest, refinance payback period, offset impact, or upfront buying costs before the borrower speaks with a broker.

The useful habit is to test the same scenario across each option. Change one thing at a time, such as rate, fee, term, or offset balance, so the result does not become confusing.

Calculator results are estimates. They do not confirm product availability, lender approval, property valuation, or final loan pricing.

Use the same loan amount and term for repayment comparisons.
Include known fees where possible.
For refinance, compare payback period after switching costs.
For buying, compare repayments with upfront costs and cash buffer.

Next step

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Watch out

Watch for comparison traps

Home loan comparisons can go wrong when they focus on one number or ignore the borrower's next move. Cashback, honeymoon rates, fees, loan-term resets, and unused features can change the result.

A refinance can lower a repayment by extending the loan term, but that may increase total interest over time. A low-fee loan can be less useful if it lacks a needed feature. A cashback offer can help upfront but still needs to be assessed against rate, fees, and how long the borrower keeps the loan.

These are not reasons to avoid comparing. They are reasons to compare with the whole picture visible.

Do not compare repayments without checking loan term.
Do not assume cashback makes the overall outcome stronger.
Do not pay for features you will not use.
Do not ignore discharge, break, or application costs.

Broker note

Bring the shortlist to a broker

A borrower can do useful preparation by comparing rates, fees, features, and calculator estimates. The broker conversation then checks the shortlist against real lender options and borrower circumstances.

For Emoney, the site should help the borrower ask a better question: does this loan pathway fit my goal, documents, lender policy, and timing? That is more useful than asking which advertised rate looks smallest.

Bring the current loan details, income context, debts, deposit or equity position, property details, and any preferred features. That gives the broker enough context to make the review practical.

Bring current loan balance, rate, repayment, and fees if refinancing.
Bring income, debt, deposit, and property context if buying.
List the features you actually expect to use.
Ask what would make an option unsuitable.

Calculator next step

Home loan repayment calculator

Test whether a loan amount, rate, term, and repayment type feel workable before taking the numbers further.

Best for: Checking repayment comfort across purchase, refinance, or rate-change scenarios.
What it calculates: Weekly, fortnightly, or monthly repayments from loan amount, rate, term, frequency, and repayment type.

A broker still needs to check fees, comparison rates, offset or redraw settings, loan structure, and policy fit.

Open Repayments

Sources used

officialASIC MoneySmart choosing a home loan officialASIC MoneySmart mortgage calculator officialASIC MoneySmart using a mortgage broker officialASIC MoneySmart switching home loans

General information only

This guide is general information and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. A broker can review your circumstances before any recommendation.