Pay off interest now and pay down the principal later.
An interest-only home loan is one with lower repayments than a principal and interest home loan, as you only pay interest during the interest-only period rather than reducing the principal or balance of the loan. This could be a suitable option if you’re looking to reduce the cost of your repayments for a period of time.
An interest-only loan may suit you if you need lower repayments for a set period. It can give you more flexibility to manage your budget or focus on other financial goals.
When you’re only paying down interest on a loan, you’re not paying down the balance. This can make it harder to build up equity in the property and could potentially reduce the amount you can borrow down the track.
You’ll also have to make higher repayments once the interest-only period ends and you start paying down the principal amount too.
With an owner-occupied home loan, you're buying a property to live in. It’s simply the difference between whether you’re living in the property or not. If it’s your current residence, it’s considered owner-occupied. These loans typically have lower interest rates than investment loans.
With an investment home loan, you're buying a property to generate income, either through rent or capital gains, while living elsewhere. How the property is used determines the type of loan you need. Investment loans usually come with higher interest rates than owner-occupied loans.
With a variable rate loan, your repayments can change during the life of your loan as interest rates can change for various reasons. Sometimes you’ll pay more, and sometimes less depending on the direction of an interest rate change. Always do your research about whether a variable or fixed rate loan works best for you.
With a fixed rate home loan, you will know exactly what your repayments will be for a fixed period of time. We offer fixed rates for periods of 1 to 5 years. Your fixed rate will change to a variable rate at the end of the fixed term, unless you advise the bank you want to ‘re-fix’ your loan before the fixed term ends.
Simple and easy to use, our home loan calculators can help you estimate repayments, how much you can borrow, and what you could save if you refinance. But remember, the results are just a guide to help get you started on your journey.
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You can typically choose an interest-only loan term of 1 to 5 years, depending on the loan terms, conditions and eligibility. After the interest-only period, your loan will revert to principal and interest repayments, which means higher repayments. If you’d like to re-apply for an interest-only period again, speak to your lending specialist and they’ll review your eligibility.
You may be able to make extra loan repayments, but this depends on the terms and conditions of your loan. Speak to us to find out more about your options with NRMA Home Loans.
A break cost is a fee that applies if you close a loan early (by repaying the loan amount or switching to another lender), refinance to a different loan type, or make extra repayments beyond an allowed limit. Break costs only apply to fixed rate loans, not variable loans.
When you take out an interest-only loan, you aren’t reducing the principal amount during the interest-only period. This means you’ll keep paying interest on the full amount for longer, which can lead to more interest overall compared to making principal and interest repayments.
Once the interest-only period ends, your repayments will increase because you’ll start paying both principal and interest to repay the loan within the remaining term.
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Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited (ABN 11 068 049 178, AFSL and Australian Credit Licence 237879) (“Bendigo Bank”) is the credit provider. Credit services are provided by Tiimely Pty Ltd (ABN 41 605 696 544 and Australian Credit Licence 496431) (“Tiimely”). Insurance Australia Limited trading as NRMA Insurance (ABN 11 000 016 722) (“IAL”) is a member of AFCA and does not hold an Australian Credit Licence. IAL may receive a commission from Bendigo and pay a commission to Tiimely if your loan application is approved.
NRMA Home Loans is brought to you by Insurance Australia Limited ABN 11 000 016 722, trading as NRMA Insurance, which is a separate and independent company from National Roads and Motorists' Association Limited ABN 77 000 010 506, trading as NRMA. NRMA provides Membership, the “My NRMA” app and other services.