I'm continually notifying my clients about their options when it comes to refinancing their mortgage, but before you go away and refinance your loan through another 25 or 30 year term there are 5 key points for you to consider, and I'll discuss these with you.

What are the results ?

Every conclusion we reach in our lives comes back to the age old question of "what's in it for me ?". For you to be considering a refinance, there must be some obvious profit for you in some shape or form. You'd hope to gain by either making your repayments reduced (which would free up some much need cashflow), a lighter interest rate or a much more active loan structure. The primary profit of a refinance for almost all of my clients is to get all of their outstanding debts under the one roof. This results them with just the one, low smooth repayment to worry about and some well attained peace of mind !

2. Is my broker licensed and experienced ?

Most sound brokers in Australia should be licensed with the MIAA, FBAA and hold accreditations with a huge number of lenders. The longer your broker has lasted in the mortgage industry, the more improved his or her knowledge foundation. The more seasoned your broker results in a smoother, pain-free process. As a mortgage broker gets experience, their knowledge of what deal is best worthy with what bank increases.

3. How long will I be in the place for ?

If you are only contriving to stick in the property for a relatively short period (a year or two) then you would want to steer clear of any loans that charge early payout/discharge fees as well as any loans that lock you into an stiff fixed interest rate. If the property is a short term trade, then I'd recommend looking at an equity styled loan which really leaves you a tremendous amount of flexibleness and freedom. If you are planning on being in the place for the long term then you want to source a loan that has low interest rates and very few account keeping fees.

4. How will refinancing impact my credit rating ?

Everytime you apply for credit with a loaner, they'll exercise a credit check on you (usually with Baycorp Advantage). The credit check itself gives an enquiry on your credit file, but these enquiries will not impact your credit rating whatsoever. As long as there isn't a large amount of queries listed on your file, no alarm bells will be set off.

5. Should I get independant consulting ?

When obtaining a loan, you are supplied with a set of bank documents to sign when the mortgage has been approved. When signing your bank documents the lenders urge that you sit with your finance agent or bank officer to explain precisely what they mean. If you are in need of any advice involving your documents, please don't hesitate to contact your mortgage broker, accountant or lawyer as they will be able to walk you through them and answer any wonders you may have.

I hope that you are able to take something out of from interpreting these 5 assistive and handy tips on refinancing. I've also just included 2 other points which will help you in the long run !

A few more reasons to refinance your home loan are:

• To switch over to an Equity Loan: You want to refinance your loan to extract cash from your home's equity for debt consolidation, home improvements, investments or other intentions.

• Paying Off Your Mortgage Sooner all relates to the fact that you ramp up your equity in your home quicker and pay off your loan earlier by refinancing your home loan onto a more capable and effective structure that really gets your money working for YOU and NOT the banks!