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$4000 Cashback When Refinancing Your Mortgage (>$250k) Online with St. George

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$4000 Cashback When Refinancing Your Mortgage (>$250k) Online with St. George
Go to Deal
Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 18:28 stgeorge.com.au (5554 clicks)
Last edited 15/11/2019 - 17:54 by 1 other user

Refinance cashback doubled from $2000 to $4000 for online applications.

Summary of deal:
"Get one $4,000 Refinance Cashback plus $2,000 cashback per additional property refinanced when you apply online by 31 January 2020 and settle by 31 March 2020. Available on Basic Home Loans and Advantage Package loans ($395 package fee, $0 fee for Basic home loan). Excludes Owner Occupier loans with interest only repayments and refinances from within Westpac Group. Min. loan size $250k per property."

I would like to make it clear that the in order to be eligible for the additional $2000 on top of the original $2000, the application must be online (not via broker or in-store).
The rebate is paid 60 days after settlement, with no clawback.

For additional info, please see "What else do I need to know?" and "Frequently Asked Question." below:
https://www.stgeorge.com.au/personal/home-loans/manage/refin…

I was going to take the $2000 standard St George refinance cashback in addition to cashback offered from a broker over a 24 month period (whom may go bankrupt or not pay-up), until I saw this updated offer yesterday. I canceled my application with the broker and have had my application online with St George confirmed as eligible for the $4000 rebate.

Also of mention: the lending Manager assigned to me is asking for a better rate than the default 3.44% (given you apply online there is no way to negotiate during your initial application). Apparently 3.1X% should be achievable on the Package.

Enjoy!

Update: I've been given 3.04% with ~70% LVR on ~$300k loan (Package).

Financial Home Loan Loan

Related Stores

St.George Bank
St.George Bank

closed Comments

  • raiseyoursteaks on 14/11/2019 - 18:32
    +1

    Do you use them Op? How's their back office?

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 18:34
      +3

      Applied yesterday. I called a few times prior to applying and have also been in frequent contact with the lending Manager assigned to me since applying. So far no dramas. Much shorter wait times than with CBA.

      • Averell on 14/11/2019 - 20:30

        Sorry, I am a bit confused on how you negotiate the interest rate? What is the rate that you can get without any doubt?

        And would that be any black mark in your credit profile when you refinance?

        Thanks.

        • Viper8 on 15/11/2019 - 10:57

          You negotiate after applying online but prior to signing the final offer after all of your checks etc.
          The advertised rate is 2.99% Basic or 3.44% Package.
          Not a black mark, just a credit check. Nothing to be concerned about unless you already have a poor credit score. A "black mark" would be bankruptcy, defaulting on loans, repeated failure to meet repayments etc.

      • OzBrogains on 25/11/2019 - 12:32

        @Viper8 - You mentioned your application fees were $900… could you give us a breakdown as to what fees are charged by St George themselves (rather then your current lender)?

        • Viper8 on 25/11/2019 - 12:36

          $100 settlement fee from St George. That's it if you're on the package. Not sure if you go with Basic.
          $350 exit fee from CBA (handled by St George).
          Rest is with my state department for various title related items (all handled by St George).

          • MyLoginName on 21/01/2020 - 11:55

            @Viper8: Hey Viper8: when you say Handled by St George - did you pay for title related items on package?
            My Landing manager told me $100 Settlement Fee and some government charges for registration of mortgage, property search fees etc. around $200-400. wondering how much you end up with all the charges as I am moving from CBA as well?

            Thanks :)

  • ozblogger on 14/11/2019 - 18:48
    +6

    Please note the Online Refinance Cashback offer excludes:

    Internal refinances or switches within the Westpac Group, which includes Westpac, St.George, Bank of Melbourne, BankSA and RAMS
    Owner Occupier loans with Interest Only repayments
    Portfolio Loans
    Residential lending originated under family or company trusts.

  • blergmonkeys on 14/11/2019 - 19:10
    +11

    Awesome! Literally was about to apply through a broker for the $2000 Cashback on our refinance. How good is this! Thanks op! Just got us an extra $2k!

    • onetwothreefour on 14/11/2019 - 21:24
      +3

      Don't forget to vote on the deal!

  • tnarg on 14/11/2019 - 19:14
    +3

    I applied for this online 4 days ago, have been assigned a loan manager and already submitted my financials. 4k bonus 2.89% fixed and I am negotiating on the % for the Variable proportion. Moving away from CBA. Of course you need to own more than 20% so you don't cop LMI.

  • [Deactivated] on 14/11/2019 - 19:23

    I am with Westpac currently, and this is the second year of my fixed loan agreement. Can I still escape to this deal?

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 19:26
      +3

      Sorry, you must be refinancing from outside of Westpac Group. There are other providers offering $2000 cashback for refinancing. But if you're currently on fixed then it will be expensive for you to leave.

      • [Deactivated] on 14/11/2019 - 19:41

        Ok…thanks for your help

  • Click_It on 14/11/2019 - 19:30

    I'm selling in February (with CBA), is there anything stopping me scooping up $4000 from St George before I sell?

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 19:34

      You'll be pushing it. The money is paid 60 days after settlement. Normally refinance takes 4-6 weeks, however if you're going from a major to another major (which you are) then it normally takes 2-4 weeks. If you have a low LVR then this should put you at the lower end of the time ranges as they'll conduct a desktop valuation vs. booking in a physical valuation.
      I got lucky with both and have been estimated just 2 weeks to settlement.

      • Click_It on 14/11/2019 - 19:35
        +1

        Yeah I have a low LVR. Thanks it is food for thought.

      • lgacb08 on 14/11/2019 - 21:17

        don't bite into their estimate, i was promised about 4 weeks with ANZ and took them nearly 3 months to refinance, my application got approved within 2 weeks but anz dragged on and keep blaming the other non bank lender for the delay.

    • whoopdeedoo on 15/11/2019 - 01:10

      ask st g for the fast refi option

  • Deal finder on 14/11/2019 - 19:34
    -1

    Is this offer valid if I already have home loans with St. George but refinance a new loan fro another property which is with another bank?

    • Len -Bundle Loans on 14/11/2019 - 22:14

      Yes =)

      • Deal finder on 15/11/2019 - 07:36

        So the scenario is that I moved a home loan from St. George to ANZ in September and I still have some other home loans with St. George. So now if u move the ANZ loan back to St. George, will I get this $4000 rebate?

        • IsTops on 15/11/2019 - 18:29

          If you still have existing St George home loan accounts, then no it is not applicable.

          • Deal finder on 17/11/2019 - 12:31

            @IsTops: Is this mentioned in some terms or conditions?

          • Deal finder on 18/11/2019 - 19:10

            @IsTops: Confirmed with the bank, existing customers are eligible as long as they bring in a new loan of more than $250,000.

            I only switched from St. George to ANZ 2 months ago. Now I'm tempted to bring it back to STG.

  • naira on 14/11/2019 - 19:38

    Any catch? Say i want to change banks in a years time. They wont go after the 4k?

    Reading their document, redraw has charges??

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 19:55
      +1

      Nope. No clawback. It shouldn't with "the package".

      • Len -Bundle Loans on 14/11/2019 - 22:16

        Redraw is free even under Basic, as long as done via internet banking. Over the counter has charges. Also a word of warning: Can't refi after 60 days. Need to wait 6 months before refinancing as the new lender will need to see 6 months loan history.

    • OldBugger on 14/11/2019 - 20:30

      Just the $350 discharge fee

  • TheMatrix on 14/11/2019 - 20:07
    +1

    Any deal if the loan is under 250K (eg 220K)? I am with CBA at the moment and they are charging 3.98% variable rate with Wealth package. Try to negotiate but get no response from the loan manager..

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 20:17

      Call CBA and ask them to price match a better rate. You should get ~3.3%.

    • Averell on 14/11/2019 - 20:33
      +1

      I'm having 3.3x at CBA. 3.9 must be last year's rate, not at the end of 2019

    • shizmo on 14/11/2019 - 21:43

      I was just dropped down from 4.5% to 3.9% on a similar loan :S

    • Gerry H on 14/11/2019 - 21:49

      investment?

    • squinly on 15/11/2019 - 08:48
      -2

      Ubank, NABs no frills online bank is 2.84% variable right now. The rate advertised with this deal is terrible.

      • mrvaluepack on 15/11/2019 - 09:19

        The 4k more than makes up for it. Refinance after 3 years.

  • Motoxman1 on 14/11/2019 - 20:09

    So is there anything to stop someone switching thier home loan to this, receiving the $4k in 60 days then switching out to another?(possibly with another bonus)

    • blergmonkeys on 14/11/2019 - 20:25
      +1

      Credit hit, cost associated with switching?

      • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 20:30

        Costs to switch for me are ~$900.

    • alz on 14/11/2019 - 20:55
      -1

      Man you're bothered

  • blergmonkeys on 14/11/2019 - 20:26
    +1

    So I just finished my online application and it told me my rate would be 4% even though the advertised rate is 2.99%? What’s up with that. Didn’t submit. Tried calling but they won’t pick up. Goes to voicemail even though it’s within hours of operation. Hmmmm not a good look St George.

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 20:30

      Keep calling. You get through instantly after a few atempts.

      • blergmonkeys on 14/11/2019 - 21:29
        +1

        I tried a half dozen times over a half hour. No luck. Yikes. What kind of bank uses voicemail?

    • OldBugger on 14/11/2019 - 20:35
      +1

      Goes to voicemail

      Call centre might be having a party

  • crashloaded on 14/11/2019 - 20:40

    Wish I wasn't with westpac!

  • kronicmacstigator on 14/11/2019 - 20:45
    -8

    Be careful though! If you have issues repaying they will do anything to screw you over!

    They actually told me that instead of buying life saving medication that wasn't on the PBS paying back my small personal loan should of been a higher priority.

    They then refused to wait three months (had plenty of paperwork to show) for myself to pay back the loan in full and sold it to a collections company for 18c in the dollar.

    All the way through they constantly sent a debt collector around to my small rented room even though they were fully aware of the situation and spent more on the debt collector than what they were owed!

    • bohn on 14/11/2019 - 20:49
      +5

      If you have issues repaying they will do anything to screw you over!

      Technically not paying them back (or having issues paying them back) is screwing them over ;)

      • Splashtash on 14/11/2019 - 20:55

        agreed… they are a business and you should take out insurance if you have health concerns or a like and worried you might not be able to pay it back, ect…. or you could rent out a room or 2 potentially if possible. Usually people have options but not many people explore all the possibilities and complain when things dont go there way…. maybe not in this case but i feel ive seen enough of them to have this opinion

        • kronicmacstigator on 14/11/2019 - 21:16

          Rent out a room when I was renting a room? Where would my tenants live? In a literal shoebox?

          Ironically the broker repeatedly assaulted myself when I attempted to take out loan insurance when I took out the loan. That should of been a sign to walk away but I was young and dumb.

          • Splashtash on 14/11/2019 - 21:36
            +1

            @kronicmacstigator: AH missed the personal loan bit. Thought we talking about home loans but I guess comments overall on loans ~_~" personal loans cost too much and most people shouldn't take them out unless they have a good plan to make more money from it quickly… Yer shoulda walked away. Pretty sure you can talk to community agencies to help freeze debt, ect… maybe I cant understand your situation as I would never take out a personal loan and put myself in a position like that. Australia is easy enough going to save money for a raining day for most people. And if the banks words were telling you to not buy meds and having the loan be a higher priority then that is fked up… they should stated in other words but mentioned your obligations or pointed you in the right direction to get help.

      • kronicmacstigator on 14/11/2019 - 21:14

        Well it's rather difficult to get a dead customer with no assets to pay back a small loan!

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 20:50
      +2

      That sucks, but the royal commision showed all the banks have this type of behaviour. Your home loan has to be with someone.

      • bohn on 14/11/2019 - 20:53
        +5

        True. But taking out a home loan is a real commitment and both sides have responsibilities.

        It's like the A Current Affair show at Christmas showing a single mother being evicted, and how horrible the landlords are. But yet she hadn't paid rent for months…

        • Snoop on 14/11/2019 - 21:33
          +3

          ACA never seem to show the landlord working that extra 20+ hours a week to pay the mortgage, or telling their kids they're not going away on holiday this Xmas, or them sitting up late at night stressing over the books trying to figure out how not to lose everything they've invested.

      • kronicmacstigator on 14/11/2019 - 21:16

        Was only a small unsecured loan

    • Gerry H on 14/11/2019 - 21:52
      -2

      m8 if i lent u hundreds of thousands i dont care if ur dying of brain cancer. u shouldnt of took the loan if u had such medication upkeep.

      • kronicmacstigator on 14/11/2019 - 22:32

        It was only $5k owing… and if they waited another three months they could of had it all back instead of $800.

        I didn't have the medication upkeep until three years into the loan!

        • Gerry H on 14/11/2019 - 22:35

          lol u didnt mention that. thought ur were on anti hiv cost tier medication and still decided to buy a $500k+ house.

          • kronicmacstigator on 14/11/2019 - 22:42

            @Gerry H: I shouldn't need to… why the hell did you go to anti hiv meds? If I could afford those and get approved for a $500k house loan something is wrong with the banks!

            They knew damn well they only had to wait another three months and I had the papers to prove it. Didn't matter to those scumbags. They still bent my credit rating over for the next seven years. I was AAAAAAAAAAAA until they messed with me

            • Gerry H on 14/11/2019 - 22:46

              @kronicmacstigator: yea corporations r like that, they wont lose a cent no matter ur situation. u need to clearly state ur situation next time so people wont attack u, if it sounds like ur lender is losing tens of thousands every month and u went in knowing the risk its entirely different from a 3 month $5k.

  • dumkaze on 14/11/2019 - 20:50

    As soon as we apply we got credit file hit or we can negotiate rate of interest ?

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 20:51
      +1

      You apply, then over phone they get your consent for credit check. With mine they're doing rates after the check to know what they're dealing with.
      If they dont come to the party you simply leave and take your $4k with you after 60 days.

  • endolphin on 14/11/2019 - 21:02
    +3

    I had a St George credit card recently and got a random call asking about possibly switching home loans, with the $2k cashback offer. I'm on 3.25% with NAB. She couldn't even match that. I was put on hold while she got "special approval" for 3.29%. The conversation ended there.

  • MadMaxBargainRoad on 14/11/2019 - 21:03

    $400 annual fee is a freaking deal breaker

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 22:12

      Basic has no annual fee???
      Package has the same annual fee as every other major bank that gives you a "free" 100% offset account, CC, unlimited redraw etc.

      • MadMaxBargainRoad on 14/11/2019 - 22:29
        +1

        Basic isn't that useful for ppl like myself who simply goes in for the 4k.

        Bank of Sydney is still offering full offset with no fees.

        • fozzie on 15/11/2019 - 00:16

          Why is that? I don’t understand….
          Even if you do basic you get the $4k then you can still walk.

          • MadMaxBargainRoad on 15/11/2019 - 09:16
            +1

            @fozzie: Say I don't need a mortgage at all in reality and but I want the 4k.

            Borrowing 250k with basic is coping about 1k fees, 250k x 3.5% x 2 years + $800-$1200 package fee + whatever they decide to charge to terminate the loan early.

            I have done this with Bank of Sydney for the $1500 wish card and iirc I only really made $350 sans everything. However I still needed a mortgage back then so it's worth it just for the $0 annual fee alone.

            • GoogleFroogle on 15/11/2019 - 14:38

              @MadMaxBargainRoad: Hey MadMax I am in the same situation as you. I have a $1 balance on my homeloan, would like to switch to get the 4k, then immediately load up the offset or pay off 249,000.

              What kind of fees and costs are we likely to hit. I guess just stamp duty, an initial hit of some interest, maybe some kind of fee to pay off the loan? And then a package if we need the offset, etc?

              I'll reserach it myself and let you know what I estimate the costs to be

              Thanks

              • MadMaxBargainRoad on 15/11/2019 - 14:50
                +1

                @GoogleFroogle: A rough recall from my last refinance:

                1. Evaluation Fee waived by BOS otherwise $400ish
                2. Mortgage discharge fee from ING $100
                3. Stamp duty $100?
                4. offset funding transfer this is the big one. There is usually a gap between your old mortgage's discharge date and the new offset facility commence date. For me it was 10 days last time and I coped $800 interest
                5. Annual fee from St.George assuming their crawl back period for the $4K bonus is 18 months - $400 x 2
                6. There is going to be a early termination fee on your St.George mortgage if you want to get out before the 25/30 yr term
                7. You (and your partner's) credit score goes down
                8. Documentation headache
                  etc etc
                • GoogleFroogle on 15/11/2019 - 15:32

                  @MadMaxBargainRoad: Thanks for the reply!

                • miwahni on 16/11/2019 - 01:27

                  @MadMaxBargainRoad: Victoria state govt mortgage discharge registration fee $116.80 to register the discharge of the original mortgage, and $116.80 to register new SGB mortgage. Only little fees but need to be taken into account. St.George hasn't charged early termination fees for years, but there would still be discharge fees (and govt registration fees) if you pay out before the end of term.

  • SpendLess on 14/11/2019 - 21:04

    Sent you a PM @Viper8

  • jetabe on 14/11/2019 - 21:15
    -2

    St George is not a good bank,
    Neither their rates nor the service.

    I would say stick to a better bank like ubank or something.

    They are last to offer cuts never pass on in full. Imagine how many more thousands they will make from you.

    Last to get on payid.

    Still send paper statements for joint accounts spammers.

    Horrible IT systems and also charge you fees.

    • lgacb08 on 14/11/2019 - 21:21
      +5

      to be fair most of the big 4 are like that (probably exception to CBA regarding their IT system and technology adoption)

    • Vinnie Barbarino on 14/11/2019 - 21:37
      +2

      Ubank seems pretty good, are you with them? thoughts?

      • blergmonkeys on 15/11/2019 - 06:51
        -1

        Charging fees on redraw is a non-starter when they also don’t have an offset.

        • squarepants on 15/11/2019 - 07:39
          +2

          Their variable rate loans have unlimited free redraws.

      • blackfrancis75 on 15/11/2019 - 09:06
        +1

        UBank doesn't do Offset accounts, which can save you $$$$ over the term of the loan. Something to incorporate into comparisons

      • daiguren on 15/11/2019 - 10:41
        +1

        I'm with UBank (I have a fixed and variable loan with them). No complaints whatsoever. I've got a redraw facility set up as well (no fees).

  • db87 on 14/11/2019 - 21:18

    Currently on 3.3% with nab. Although well on top of our finances I always get a bit lost with the transitions of refinancing.

    Currently sitting at about $350k with a sizable offset.

    Would there be any benefit other than the upfront rebate if we won't be able to negotiate/secure a cheaper rate?

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 22:14
      +1

      Probably not. I'm in this predominately for the rebate.

    • chemax on 14/11/2019 - 22:24
      +2

      Well you can take the $4,000 rebate and then switch to a lower rate provider when you're ready

      • JayCeeJay on 15/11/2019 - 14:34

        all this change affects your credit rating, but so does jbhifi's telstra $500 gift voucher contract subscprtions…

  • Fusion13 on 14/11/2019 - 21:26

    Started the online application process for their basic home loan👍

  • ely on 14/11/2019 - 21:31
    +1

    3.1x% is still not a competitive rate; if you're motivated enough to refinance again in the near future and pocket the cashback then fine, but don't do this for the cashback if you're planning on sticking around as you'll eventually end up worse off due to the poor rates.

    • ely on 14/11/2019 - 21:38

      Available on Basic Home Loans

      Their basic home loan rate is somewhat better at 2.99%, although you'll still get better elsewhere (and they have fees on redraw, which makes it a bit of a pain).

      Still, $4k cashback is a lot of cashback.

      • jobargain on 14/11/2019 - 21:39
        +1

        Online redrew is free according to the pds, even for Basic loan.

        • ely on 14/11/2019 - 21:59
          +1

          Nice. Not a terrible option then. Redraw only isn't a good option if you plan on turning in to an investment property at some point due to the insanity of our tax system, but otherwise it works much like an offset account for me - pay goes directly on to the mortgage, I put everything on credit cards, then I redraw once a month to pay off credit cards and so pay no interest. Not worth paying anything for an offset.

          • Tapori on 19/11/2019 - 15:19

            @ely: Hi, instead of using Offset account, could you not use the Redraw facility from loan if I was to turn PPOR into investment property? How would it impact the tax considering the owing balance would still be the same whether you use offset or redraw? Just trying to better understand what I am missing here.

            • ely on 19/11/2019 - 16:30
              +1

              @Tapori: Don't try to reason about the law, it doesn't make any sense (especially in this case, where it's totally stupid) and it will lead you astray :D

              The TL;DR is that redraws are treated as personal borrowing, not investment, and so interest incurred because of it is not tax deductible, which can make a huge difference.

              Some info here but if you're looking at turning your PPOR into an investment property later then I'd talk to an accountant rather than some random non-accountant (me) before committing to anything.

              • Tapori on 21/11/2019 - 11:25

                @ely: Great, thanks. I will certainly have to check with accountant. Sadly tax laws are complicated as anything. Over that, I can never understand why you can only offset interest incurred on investment and why not on PPOR. Many countries including US do it.

                • ely on 21/11/2019 - 19:10

                  @Tapori: Mainly because you pay tax on profits from the investment and you don't on your PPOR. I'd be fine with being able to offset interest against the PPOR if they charged CGT on it (and fixed up the CGT system at the same time).

      • ely on 14/11/2019 - 22:15

        And fixed at 2.99% for up to 5 years, although also expectations are for another rate cut in the near future.

      • SuperKat on 15/11/2019 - 00:57

        what are the discharge fees?

    • gregorian on 14/11/2019 - 21:43

      Have to also add that consider a credit hit for refinancing into St George and credit check again when you want to get out of it due to poor rates. You may not be able to refinance if your credit history is not upto scratch.

      • ely on 14/11/2019 - 22:00

        Yes, it should be remembered, but one extra credit enquiry doesn't amount to much. A really short time with a lender may look bad to another potential lender though, which could conceivably limit your refinance options to get away I guess.

    • Viper8 on 14/11/2019 - 22:16

      Find me a loan that includes 100% offset and tier 1 CC that's significantly better. Even St George offer 2.99% with zero fees if you're willing to forego the previously mentioned features. I offset over $5k in interest each year. Its not all about the rate.

      • ely on 14/11/2019 - 22:24
        -1

        I haven't looked; there might not be one. For a start, I don't know what you mean by "tier 1 CC", for a second I have no need for offset (redraw provides exactly the same interest savings, but there may be taxation reasons to prefer offset over redraw). Tic Toc offers a better rate and an offset (I'm with Tic Toc; I don't use the offset option), while Athena offers a better rate but doesn't seem to offer offset. There were some other competitive options out there, although I'd avoid Reduce based on their reputation for jumping rates after you sign up, for not passing on rate cuts, and for having high discharge fees.

        Its not all about the rate

        Indeed it's not, run the numbers and figure out what's best for you. It's also not all about the cashback, and if you're only getting cashback in return for worse rates (and nothing else) then it's very likely that you'll end up worse off if you stick around.

        Had I not recently refinanced I'd be very tempted to take them up on this, for a short period of time. Refinancing took a while but it wasn't really much work, just a bit of waiting.

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