In our monthly Ratehacker round-up, Jeremy Cabral from comparison site finder.com.au highlights the latest credit card deals, plus the best savings accounts and home loans and the June rush of health insurance discounts.
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Credit Cards
Feature: 0 percent balance transfer
St.George Vertigo Visa Card: 0% per annum for 18 months As well as a long-term balance transfer deal, this card also offers a low rate of 0.99% on purchases for the first four months (after which it reverts to 13.24%. The maximum credit limit for the card is $40,000.
Feature: No annual fee credit card
ME frank Credit Card: No annual fee for the life of the card The interest rate for this card is a competitive 9.99% per annum, and there’s an interest-free period of up to 55 days. The main restriction? A relatively low maximum credit limit of $15,000.
Feature: Apple Pay
ANZ Low Rate: ANZ offers Apple Pay across its full range of credit cards; this card is the one with the lowest interest rate (13.49%). You can also use the card for a 0% balance transfer for 18 months, though a 3% balance transfer fee applies if you take this option. The annual fee is $58.
Home Loans
There was no change to the official cash rate by the Reserve Bank this month, so we’re not anticipating many rate changes for home loans. However, with many banks delaying the introduction of reductions due to last month’s official rate cut, it’s still an excellent time to shop around for a better deal.
Feature: Variable rate home loan
UBank UHomeLoan Standard Variable Rate Value Offer: 3.74% p.a. with no application or ongoing fees either The lack of fees means this remains one of the most competitive loans on the market, and it saw a rate cut following the RBA decision last month. You’ll need a 20% deposit to qualify, and it’s only available to owner-occupiers.
Feature: Refinancing loan
loans.com.au Fixed Home Loan: 3 year fixed loan at 3.67% per annum (3.88% comparison rate) If you want predictability in your payments, this is a competitive rate. You can set payments as weekly, fortnightly or monthly.
Savings Accounts
The cut in the cash rate isn’t good news for savings accounts, with many accounts cutting their interest paid. To earn more, you have to ruthlessly hunt down the best deals, and be prepared to switch accounts.
Feature: Bonus interest rate
Citibank Online Saver: 3.40% per annum interest rate for first four months After four months, the interest rate drops to 2.00% (at which point you could always seek out a new account). The rate applies to balances under $500,000.
Share Trading
Feature: Free trades
Westpac Online Investing: No brokerage fees for first month New customers for Westpac’s share trading platform won’t be charged the first $50 for any trades conducted during their first month. After that, the fee is $19.95 or 0.11% of the value (whichever is greater).
Personal Loans
Feature: Fixed rate car loan
Matchacar Private Car Financing: Loans for car sales from 5.35% per annum This loan matching service covers new cars, private sales and refinancing, so it can be a useful alternative if you’re not happy with your current loan.
Feature: Short-term loan
Credit24 Personal Loans: Borrow up to $1,750 for 1-12 months Interest on this short-term loans is charged at between 10% and 15% of the loan, plus 4% of the loan amount monthly. You must be employed and have a good credit history to apply.
Travel Insurance
Feature: Policy discount
youGo Travel Insurance:10% off policies Score a discount on your travel insurance with this finder.com.au exclusive coupon.
Health Insurance
Feature: Discount deals
Health insurers run deals in June to try and attract new customers who are either looking to avoid the lifetime health cover (LHC) surcharge which kicks in after you turn 31, or high-income earners who will be hit with the Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS) if they don’t have health insurance. We’ve rounded up all the active deals if you fall into either of those categories.
Jeremy Cabral is the Publisher at finder.com.au and finder.com which includes tools to compare credit cards, find savings accounts and pick the best mobile phone plans, and a constantly updated database of discounts and coupon codes. Connect with Jeremy on Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+.
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