Home Renovation Loans with Money Matchmaker™
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Renovations can be expensive. Planning is important and ensuring you stay on budget.
Before you even pick up a hammer, you’ll want to do two things:
- Estimate the costs of your project
- Make sure you have the finance available to fund it
There are ways two common to finance your project:
- Personal loan: generally used for smaller renovations under $50,000.
- Construction loan: generally used for large renovations over $150,000 in value.
Before we start assessing your costs, let’s cover off some renovation loan basics.
Everything you need to know about Renovation Loans in 60 seconds
Renovating is one of the most popular reasons Australians take out a personal loan.
Home renovations are used to:
- Increase the value of your property
- Adapt the space for a new baby, looking after an elderly relative, or for retirement
- Add cosmetic features, like a swimming pool or outdoor deck
Finance your project:
- Personal loan - loans for smaller renovations you can do with little assistance.
- Construction loan - larger loans usually paid in stages across the project.
Where to get finance:
Personal loan lender - fast approval, tailored products, competitive rates. Banks - slow approval, access to construction loans and mortgage equity
Important Tips
Get multiple quotes on your project and add 10% as a buffer Avoid expensive, fragile materials where possible Understand your project fully before applying for a loan.
Keep this in mind as we look at estimating the project in the next section.
Estimate your home renovations
Now it’s time to estimate your project.
The bad news is that it might cost more than initially expected.
The good news is that everything gets much easier after this point.
Let’s get started with an overview of average renovation costs from Aussie lender, SocietyOne.
Renovating on a budget - what can you afford?
| Area | Average Price | Costs |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | $10,000 - $45,000 | Labour, appliances, fittings, flooring, structural changes |
| Bathroom | $10,000 - $35,000 | Labour, tiling, fixtures |
| Bedroom | $2,000 - $35,000 | Labour, structural changes |
| Living Room | $10,000 - $15,000 | Labour, flooring, furniture |
| Outdoor | $2,000 - $10,000 | Labour, landscaping, structural changes |
As you can see, costs vary wildly between projects, but it basically comes down to:
- The complexity of the job
- The cost of materials
- The number of people you have to pay and for how long
If you’re planning on putting in some new tiles and a bath, or build a deck for summer, your project will be pretty simple to scope.
If you’re planning to knock down some walls or build a second storey, then you’ll definitely want to get in a professional to keep you within budget.
Two things to keep in mind at this point:
- Be realistic about the cost of your renovations and what you can afford
- Get multiple quotes on the total project cost before committing to a renovation loan
Once you’ve settled on the cost of your project, you’ll want to add around 10% to the total costs.
Why?
Because life happens sometimes. The best project plan in the world can’t account for an unexpected pandemic, or delayed shipments, broken materials, and any other setback.
Adding 10% gives a little peace of mind that one hurdle doesn’t mean doom for a project.
Money Tip: Properly scoping your renovation project and getting comparable quotes from multiple contractors before committing to a loan is the first step toward keeping your renovations within budget.
Evaluating your project should also dictate the type of renovation loan you’ll need:
- Small project? Finance it today with a personal loan.
- Larger project? Create a project plan and prepare to consult with your bank.
Find the best deal on home renovation loans
FIND YOUR LOANRenovating with a Personal Loan
Best used for: home renovations under $50,000
Personal loans can be a simple, straightforward way to fund renovations.
Home renovation personal loans have shorter terms than a mortgage or larger loan, with terms generally offered between three and seven years.
Borrowing limits range from $2,000 to $75,000, and they may also have higher interest rates than home loans and construction loans.
Pros:
- Quick, easy application
- Simple loan structure
- May have low fees
You can use the Money Matchmaker™ engine to compare your options for home renovation loans in less than 5 minutes.
See how much you can borrow and which lenders you qualify with, completely free of charge.
Using a Construction Loan for renovations
Best used for: Large renovations over $150,000
Construction loans cover expenses when building or substantially renovating your home.
They’re structured a little differently than regular home loans to make the process as simple as possible.
You’ll usually need a signed all-inclusive contract with a builder, including quotes and plans.
After your lender approves your application, they will generally pay out funds in stages:
- Payments are made as needed to complete the construction.
- These payments will often be made directly to your builder.
Repayments
The good news about staged payments is that you’ll generally just cover interest charges.
This means your repayments will be lower while the project is underway, and once it’s complete you’ll return to normal repayments of principal and interest.
Pros:
- Designed specifically for large renovations
- High loan limit ideal for large renovations
- Interest-only during the construction period
Using your mortgage equity to renovate
If you have a mortgage, you may be able to refinance to fund your renovations.
Using equity:
- Adds the borrowing amount to your existing loan
- Interest rates will be lower than using a new loan
- Won’t require a new application from scratch
- The amount can be spread out over 30 years instead of a maximum of 7 or 8.
From a cost perspective, this means your ongoing repayments will be significantly lower, but you’ll pay significantly more interest by the end of your term.
You can see this illustrated in the example below, and it’s something to keep in mind when considering short-term and long-term costs.
$30,000 Personal Loan vs Home Loan Renovations Cost Comparison
| Type of loan | Interest Rate | Length | Monthly Payments | Total Interest Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Loan | 8% | 5 years | $608 | $6,497 |
| Home Loan | 3% | 30 years | $126 | $15,360 |
Meet your Potential Home Renovation Loan matches
- No Early Repayment Fees
- No Monthly Fees
- Get Funds 24 Hours From Approval
- Same day decisioning
- No admin, early repayment or "risk" fees
- Support from real people
- Build your credit score by making timely repayments
- Once approved, loans are funded in minutes
- Flexible repayments; weekly, fortnightly, monthly options
- No ongoing fees
- No monthly fees
- No Deposit Required
- Apply in under 8 minutes
- Once approved, cash transferred in 60 seconds
- No early termination fees
- Pay your loan out early with no fees
- Increase regular payments to suit your situation
- Make extra repayments at any time
- Get a guaranteed, personalised rate in 2 minutes
- Apply online in under 10 minutes
- Weekly and fortnightly repayments
- $0 establishment fee: offer expires 3NOV21
- $0 ongoing fees, early repayment fees, exit fees
- Multi Award winning and 100% digital
How to qualify and apply
Every lender has different eligibility criteria for a home renovation loan
The most basic qualifying criteria requires you to be:
- Over the age of 18; and
- An Australian citizen or permanent resident; and
- Employed, with a regular source of income that you can demonstrate
The most important factor in applying for a home renovation loan is to demonstrate your ability to repay the full loan amount to your lender.
If you meet the basic eligibility for a personal loan, you will then need to compare lenders and assess their individual approval criteria.
To get apply for a home renovation loan you will need to:
- Submit an application to a lender
- Meet the lender’s approval criteria
- Sign a loan contract and agree to the terms of the loan
You will need to provide personal identification and financial documents (usually your bank statements or recent payslips), as lenders will need to assess your financial stability and determine if you can service the loan amount.
Money Tip: It’s a good idea to leave an extra 10% in the budget just in case your renovations end up costing more than you expect.
Here are the most popular questions people are asking about home renovation loans
Is there any financial assistance available for renovations?
Check to see if you qualify for any of the government’s current grants for homebuilders and homeowners. You can find more information about available grants on the Australian Treasury website.
What’s the best way to fund renovations?
Construction loans may be suited to large, high-cost renovations, while personal loans may be better for smaller, low-cost renovations.
Can I get a construction loan for renovations?
Yes, you may be able to get a construction loan to renovate your home. However, you’ll need to supply your lender with a deposit of 5% or more, a signed building contract and quotes to as well as meeting their credit criteria.
Can I pay for renovations with my existing home loan?
In some cases, you may be able to open a line of credit without refinancing your home loan. Speak to your lender to find out more.
The benefits of using Money Matchmaker™ to find your Home Renovation Loan
1
Save Time
Get matched with real loan offers from up to 11 lenders, all at once.
2
Don't Overpay
We show you the best interest rates and repayments from each lender you match with
3
It's Personal
The rates are based on who you are and where you are at in life
4
You're in Control
No obligations, just the facts, make an informed choice
5
100% free
There are no middlemen, marked up pricing or broker fees. (We get paid by the lender)
Get matched with your perfect home renovation loan
FIND YOUR LOANHow Money Matchmaker™ works
Just like when you use a dating app or go to a broker, we use your answers to show you real lenders, real rates and actual repayments across all our lenders that you’re eligible for; without any broker fees or marked up interest rates.
- You tell us about you and we scan your profile through our Money Matchmaker ™ engine.
- We give you all the results that you match with, without any advertising or promoted offers, these are the real rates and fees, just like you’d receive when applying directly with a lender.
- You can then choose the lender you wish to match with.
The right home renovation loan can save you $1,000s
FIND YOUR CAR LOAN
