Browse Forums Home Finance 1 Jan 16, 2009 5:03 pm Hi everyone, just curious to see your lenders of choice for construction loans; also if you've been happy with their customer service etc.
If choosing Other category, please post which lender. Poll will be open for a short time! Thank you. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 2Jan 16, 2009 5:09 pm I am with Westpac..
I have been their customer for, oh can't remember how many years, and i don't have much issue with them at all and the loan process was great throughout the build (although there was a stuff up during the land settlement, but it was mainly because of the loan manager fault).. Blog - http://clageonewhouse.blogspot.com/ Building Thread - viewtopic.php?f=31&t=10886&hilit=milan I am in, with my husband and my beautiful bunny Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 3Jan 16, 2009 6:09 pm Hmm, happy? Been a CBA customer for over 30 years, and had no probs getting approved on the spot - they practically threw money at us. No dramas with valuations either (they didn't bother doing one), and the loan deal was good in terms of interest rates and zero fees.
But admin of the loan was appalling. In the end when they couldn't even organise a simple final progress payment request, even with 10 days' notice and all the required documentation, it was the final straw. After 3 faxes and 4 phone calls didn't prod them into action, I complained to their customer relations dept and said the magic words "Banking ombudsman" and (surprise!) got immediate action. Considering I worked for the ******s for 20 years, I expected better....after all, I know how the process is meant to work. We've had enough and we're shopping around for another bank now. We were seriously considering Bank West, but then there was that merger thing.... We'll just take our time and see who offers us the best deal and the likelihood of some old-fashioned customer service. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 4Jan 16, 2009 6:11 pm I’m going with ANZ and I could not be happier with the help I got from the girl there!
NOT considering St George, thanks to the stuffing around they have given us! Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com home loan lenders for construction loans 5Jan 16, 2009 6:19 pm kek, thanks for your comments. i actually wanted to list Bank West but I was limited in number of choices I could put up.
If there is anyone using Bank West, Homeside, AMP, RAMS, Wizard etc, i apologise. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 6Jan 16, 2009 6:39 pm We are with bank of Queensland purely because the credit union ( Statewest- Dh's old bank) we were originally with was bought out by a bank ( Home building) which was then bought out by Bank of Queensland. It's all been a bit of a mess with us moving from the city down here soon after the first buy out and then going through the 2nd our accounts were a pain to sort out with new account numbers etc. and the staff at the local branch 35 kms away having to learn details of the new loans etc. Hopefully it's all settled down now. Once we've finished building we might refinance anyway and will look at other bank /credit unions and compare rates, access etc. I also have a CBA account as well whcih my pay goes to and at least here there is a post office so i can get access to money that way but we were trying to avoid going CBA this time for the mortgage.
We had a CBA mortgage years ago. We felt quite mucked around when w e finished it up and didn't fancy repeating the exercise. Re: home loan lenders for construction loans 7Jan 16, 2009 6:49 pm thlo kek, thanks for your comments. i actually wanted to list Bank West but I was limited in number of choices I could put up. Yeah, shame....they looked really good. I don't care that they don't have full service branches, since I do all my banking via internet or ATM anyway, and their products were outstanding. Their business products looked promising as well, and the staff were friendly too. Bummer about the buyout. Another one bites the dust. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 8Jan 16, 2009 6:57 pm I went with CBA.. not really a choice but only one who had the loan we required.
I was with Westpac for just my normal accounts for last 10 years and their customer service has been great.. moved my accounts to bankwest last year due to their $0 monthly fee and being able to use any ATM for no fees (was $2 each time with westpac, for non westpac atm's). Bankwest customer service is also very good.. branches are very different to any other bank. CBA are by far the worst customer service I have ever dealt with from a bank. Absolutely disgraceful and I will look to refinance with another bank in a few years. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 9Jan 16, 2009 7:28 pm We are with HSBC for no other reason than they are one of DH's major sponsors at work so we get a good deal.
We deal with a great guy, nothing is too much trouble for him. My karma ran over your dogma Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 10Jan 16, 2009 7:32 pm We orignally went with Virgin but decided to go with ANZ. So far so good! Building our dream H3nl3y home together House: Cott3sloe Modifications: Extended ensuite, grand dining, grand rumpus, Bedroom 4 option, two plus garage Frame done, roof tiles are on, brickes start this week! Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 11Jan 16, 2009 7:36 pm we were with ANZ till we sold our last house, charged us 7k to pay out the loans. now i understand they have to cover costs, and everyone does this, but is it just me or does it seem retarded that they lost all of our business, including a new loan for over double the old loan, our cards, and then future business from our kids who will most likely bank as we do
i spoke to them about options and they wont budge and dont care that im leaving so theyve just lost a heck of a lot more than the 7k theyve just charged me to lose my business banks are just crap in my opinion and get away with absolute murder Blog - http://snakedr.blogspot.com/ Build Thread - viewtopic.php?f=31&t=12084&p=307406#p307406 Status - PCI 15/10. Things nearly done. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 12Jan 16, 2009 7:47 pm Went with NAB, reason, rates were not a hell of a lot different from the cheapies and my wife likes to stick with what she knows. We do our personal and business banking with NAB.
Reasonably happy so far. Bank manager doesn't seem 100% up on all the ins and outs but seems genuine and not out to rip us off. Approvals etc have been ok, not super fast but not too slow. Initially we got a broker through MortgageChoice but he didn't seem to know his stuff well and in any case NAB isn't on their panel (huh??!) Currently experiencing a hiccup and not sure who is more at fault. Bank wanted council stamped and signed plans with engineering drawings etc before they would release any funds. Builder says this is not normal and it would cost the 4k just to do the drawings let alone all the permits so they won't proceed without the deposit. We don't have the deposit and were told by builder we shouldn't need it (beyond our initial token 1k payment). Bank also seemed to indicate we wouldn't need any money up front beyond what we put up for the land loan deposit, as $29k FHOG would more than cover that proportion of the cost not being met by the loan (never mind that it doesn't get paid until slab is laid). Fingers crossed they will sort it out and we won't have to try to pull 4-10k out of thin air. "Now, supposing a house to have a southern aspect, sunshine during winter will steal in under the verandah, but in summer, when the sun traverses a path right over our heads, the roof will afford an agreeable shade, will it not?" -- Socrates, ca. 400 BC Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 13Jan 16, 2009 8:02 pm CBA - suprised - but happpily suprised they have been fantastic!!! Some advice I got was it doesn't matter which bank all are comparative what matters is:
a. if you know someone who works there - will get looked after b. Or like us you find a great mobile lender - we have kept in touch with ours for many years and she fixs every banking issue. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 14Jan 16, 2009 8:19 pm CBA here too. Not particularly happy at this stage but I'll see what next week brings before I make a conclusive comment on that.
Having had a bad experience with CBA a few years ago (after which I closed my account and have happily been with ANZ since), I was reluctant to go with them for the loan. However they had the best option for me at the time so I've just got everything crossed that they don't disappoint me like I'm expecting! Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 15Jan 16, 2009 8:19 pm We're with ANZ - the whole getting started thing was a nightmare - the valuation didn't happen three times and ended up taking six weeks. The file was with someone who went on annual leave and then got passed around. Since then I can't complain - I don't have any contact - I just fax in the progress invoices and they pay promptly. Fi has moved in!! Re: home loan lenders for construction loans 16Jan 16, 2009 8:29 pm kek thlo kek, thanks for your comments. i actually wanted to list Bank West but I was limited in number of choices I could put up. Yeah, shame....they looked really good. I don't care that they don't have full service branches, since I do all my banking via internet or ATM anyway, and their products were outstanding. Their business products looked promising as well, and the staff were friendly too. Bummer about the buyout. Another one bites the dust. Bankwest is still operating as a seperate entity to the CBA (for now anyway) they made a point of this in the press releases regarding the buyout and the mobile lender told us the same. We are going with them and luckily got in before they removed their ratetracker product, 1% less than the 4 majors is a BIG help! Besides Bankwest I think CBA is offering a good deal at the moment. home loan lenders for construction loans, sydney 17Jan 16, 2009 8:33 pm snhouse, i'm sure i recently received communication from Bank West that said Rate Tracker is back. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 18Jan 16, 2009 8:47 pm hhhmmm, we have only just established our loan and the product has been removed from their web site very recently (unless you know something I dont)
http://www.bankwest.com.au/Personal/Hom ... index.aspx home loan lenders for construction loans, sydney 19Jan 16, 2009 9:02 pm In the latest update from our Bank West relationship manager just before christmas, I received this,
Quote: The rate will be tracked against the average standard variable rate of the 4 Majors, less a guaranteed discount of at least 1.00% = 5.82% p.a. Full Doc Applications, Electronic Lodgement Only This rate is guaranteed for 2 years from date of disbursal whereby it will automatically revert to the Lite Home Loan rate (not product). Maybe it's not available direct? I know we can offer it to customers. Re: Which Lender for Construction Loan? 20Jan 16, 2009 9:20 pm We have a close friend who Dh has known since HS who works for a major credit union here and if/when we refinance we'll be checking the rates he can get us. They were pretty competitive before but at the time Dh wanted to stick with the credit union he'd always dealt with. The biggest challenge will be if you take out a loan and then run out of money - you'll have an incomplete security and lenders do not like this so you can get stuck.… 2 19108 Hi, you've probably already resolved this, however, Commbank will probably pay the funds to you after you send evidence the work is done regardless the change in the quotes. 1 35327 How much are you ahead in payments compared to where the build is at? Have you fully drawn down the loan? 5 11928 |