I fixed my rates at 8% cry me a river

[Nards]

What really bugs me is all the ACA/TT stories with people who have mortgages that are fixed saying "my repayments are $300 a week more than they would be if I was Variable, I cant afford it"...well yes, hello..the repayments should be exactly what you signed on the dotted line for them to be, so the expectation should be for the repayment to be $x every month for the term of the loan...thats the whole point of Fixed loans isnt it..the security of knowing your repayments wont go up (or down). Its the punt you make at the time...you could always bet both ways and fix half....

Of course, I'd be banging my head on the wall if I had fixed at 8% or whatever, just as I was banging my head on the wall a few months ago when Variable rates were high..but its par for the course, and unless you have a crystal ball, you have to make the best decision you can with the info you have - then live with that decision...No point moaning about it

Nadia

 

[lizzie]

hmmm - interesting - didn't see anyone having a whinge when they were paying $300/mth "less" than they would have been if they were on variable when the rates hit near 10%.

so glad we don't get tt, aca or sixty minutes here.

 

[letiha]

Im still fairly young and inexperienced in RE. I have never cared to research into what property is right up until the start of this year really.

I guess learning a ^&^%load and trying to understand it all within a short period of time put a lot of stress on me hence why the bitter feeling. But as my friend said, "It gets easier when you buy the second house"

Well I'm young and was inexperienced in realestate, the difference as that I researche d before I purchased.

When your spending a couple hundred thousound..or more in my case you need to do the research.

Its a pity you didin't listen to the expets or the "experts" as you said because if you would have you would be fine.

And what are you stressed, your payments haven't gone up.

As I have said to you in previous posts index Fund, take some responsibility for your actions, don't blame everyone else and looking for a dodgy way out.

 

[boomtown]

I fixed at 9.19% for one of my IPs in early August for 36 months.

Im ok with it - I was prepared to pay a premium at the time for the security of fixed repayments. I could have done better in hindsight but I could have done worse too (I could have been in the stock market with a margin loan!!!) My other IP is also out of the money but will come up for renewal not too long from now so all is good.

 

[granev]

Im still fairly young and inexperienced in RE. I have never cared to research into what property is right up until the start of this year really.

I guess learning a ^&^%load and trying to understand it all within a short period of time put a lot of stress on me hence why the bitter feeling. But as my friend said, "It gets easier when you buy the second house"

Index F , you are actually better off now than if rates had kept going up - your house is worth more at present than it would be if rates were 11-12%

You are still paying an amount you agreed to (as am I)

Yes , in hindsight I would like to have been variable , but at the moment I am still ahead given the time rates have been higher than 7.5% compared to lower.

I made a decision to fix given I thought interest rates would go even higher with a Labor government almost a certainty to win the next election , and interest rates seem to go higher whenever they are in power.
I was wrong this time (at the moment) , but I still got to lock in a rate I was comfortable with and had the knowledge that whatever rates did , I would be comfortable with it. I wouldnt have been comfortable with double didget interest rates , which is what I left myself open for if I hadnt have fixed.

 

[Perp]

What really bugs me is all the ACA/TT stories with people who have mortgages that are fixed saying "my repayments are $300 a week more than they would be if I was Variable, I cant afford it"...well yes, hello..the repayments should be exactly what you signed on the dotted line for them to be

I couldn't agree more, Nadia! These people aren't annoyed at what their payments are - because they're exactly what they signed up for - they're annoyed that somebody ELSE is getting a better deal. That's the wrong attitude to take in life; other people's wins are not my loss.

 

[IndexFund]

Well I'm young and was inexperienced in realestate, the difference as that I researche d before I purchased.

When your spending a couple hundred thousound..or more in my case you need to do the research.

Its a pity you didin't listen to the expets or the "experts" as you said because if you would have you would be fine.

And what are you stressed, your payments haven't gone up.

As I have said to you in previous posts index Fund, take some responsibility for your actions, don't blame everyone else and looking for a dodgy way out.

Please re read my post, no amount of research will help you determine which way the interest rates are going.

People simply act like a pack of sheep... "oh the rates are going down... let's wait until it hits rock bottom then fix it." Then when the rates are going up "Fix asap!!"

The lesson I learned from this is pay less attention to the hordes of people and go with your gut instinct.

PS: for a lawyer, you seem to surf this website a fair bit... not many claims?

 

[IndexFund]

Index F , you are actually better off now than if rates had kept going up - your house is worth more at present than it would be if rates were 11-12%

You are still paying an amount you agreed to (as am I)

Yes , in hindsight I would like to have been variable , but at the moment I am still ahead given the time rates have been higher than 7.5% compared to lower.

I made a decision to fix given I thought interest rates would go even higher with a Labor government almost a certainty to win the next election , and interest rates seem to go higher whenever they are in power.
I was wrong this time (at the moment) , but I still got to lock in a rate I was comfortable with and had the knowledge that whatever rates did , I would be comfortable with it. I wouldnt have been comfortable with double didget interest rates , which is what I left myself open for if I hadnt have fixed.

Great points I am with you on this one. At least we can afford our fixed repayments, if we were on variable it would only be a small bonus but does not matter dramatically much anyway.

 

[tubs]

I fixed a whole lot too earlier this year. The general concensus of opinion was for 2 rises at the end of this year so I figured if they went up a bit this year, then came down a bit next year I'd be pretty stable. I'm locked in for 3 years so its not forever.

I did it to hedge against ongoing rises, but I was wrong.

That's life.

 

[silversands]

Only have one fixed. $155k @ 7.8%. The only thing that bugs us about this is that WE CHOSE the three year option to expire in oct 10 instead of the 2 yr option (at the same rate) that would have expired oct 09. Also ticked of with selves for not checking paperwork as we mistakenly (for some unknown dumb reason)thought it was fixed @ 7.3%. (oops!) We would have broken it when the fee would have been more negligible had this not escaped our radar

I do sympathize with those who couldn't stand the heat and fixed too soon, no one likes to miss out on a better deal. I hope these ones don't really begrudge those who rode out the storm, the financial rewards they are now reaping.

I agree with Letiha though, on the subject of the "poor me, poor me, greedy bank pack" who obviously have no clue about how banks operate. I loathe seeing people complain on t.v. that they are being ripped off, nobody is forced to sign fixed terms.

It might be considered a bad business idea but I do think banks would win loyalty from customers if they advised people how impending rate cuts might affect break costs, before they happen so that they can consider breaking, before the costs/fees blow out of reach. I think I read somewhere (GEE CEE?)that comm bank broke a fixed term on the customers behalf to save her money? That would have to be a vote winner, surely good for business?

 

[Lickster]

I locked one loan in at over 9% in June as it looked like they were still going up. As it is only for 2 years I can't see the value of breaking out of it. My LOCs are coming down, my IP loan was locked at 7.35% 2 years ago and has another year to run (I've done well there). And the new one I'm starting up is already under 7% and dropping.

All up I can't really complain - and the more properties you have the more likely one of your loans won't be quite right. You can't bet on rises and falls...

As long as I can afford my payments I can just wait until the fixed periods run out and reassess my situation then.

 

[Pushka]

ummm - if you look you'll notice that the "whinge like crazy" comment is not kristine's ...

Yes, I know, it was Nth Brisbanite.

In one sentence he said there was no point complaining, in the next sentence he said he 'whinged like crazy'. The only reason Kristine's name was there was because Nth Brisbanite said it was a great post.

 

[letiha]

Please re read my post, no amount of research will help you determine which way the interest rates are going.

People simply act like a pack of sheep... "oh the rates are going down... let's wait until it hits rock bottom then fix it." Then when the rates are going up "Fix asap!!"

The lesson I learned from this is pay less attention to the hordes of people and go with your gut instinct.

PS: for a lawyer, you seem to surf this website a fair bit... not many claims?

Gee you really like to take it to the next level don't you, in another post you get personal and make comments about why I am single. Now you totally change the subject and make comments about me not working.

Sweetheart plenty of claims, plenty of work rememeber by job is recession proof, I'm not the one worrying about my contract coming to an end soon and faking an injury to get money.

I'm just effiecent with my work and guess what Lawyers get breaks too. You seem to be posting quiet a bit too, nothing wrong with that.

 

[markpatric]

I have the opposite story, my loan had been fixed for some time at least 12months, then I extended my line of credit to which the borrower said I could no longer stay fixed this was around 6 months ago, I was a bit worried that the rates may go up!.
Must have been my lucky day!.

 

[redwing]

My biggest loan is fixed at 8.32% until Feb 2011.

But I am glad I never fixed my Macquarie loan which peaked at 10.66% and is now back down to 9 something, maybe 8-ish soon, following RBA's announcement.

We had a 10.6% variable rate as our highest with McBank, others were around 10.2% from memory as well but bailed out and took up the *new* RAMS offer whilst it was on the table, now sitting at around variable 6.99 to 7.18% prior to yesterday’s cuts
Looking forward to the new rate cut

 

[Pushka]

I am old enough to remember 17%.. Dont think anyone fixed in those days.

 

[THEHEATH]

How common/plausible is this scenario. Somebody mentioned somewhere else that with some banks it would be possible to re-borrow funds for a loan with someone else, then make a lump sum payment on the fixed portion (which will incur a fee, but relatively minor one), but not paying it all off, say leaving $1000 owing, and then paying the break costs on the $1000. Sounds like a crock to me, but others may know better???

 

[lizzie]

I am old enough to remember 17%.. Dont think anyone fixed in those days.

they did - when rates were around 18-20%. they fixed at 15% and then squealed like stuck pigs when variable dropped to 10%.

 

[sue78]

It doesn't really bother me. If I had fixed it at 8% I'd be complaining too.

I fixed mine at 7.1% for 3 yrs which expires next year. I have some variable loans too. It doesn't bother me.

 

[letiha]

I'm not saying it wouldn't suck and not saying have a winge, just amazing how people expect the government to step in and make the banks release them from their fixed.

Now if that were to happen watch the banks collapse.