Mortgage flexibility a top priority across generations of borrowers

Different borrower generations may have different financial circumstances, but home loan flexibility is at the top of their priority, according to the latest report from CommBank.

The report found that outside of interest rates, general home loan flexibility is the top consideration for four in five Australian borrowers. General flexibility refers to the loan having a redraw facility, multiple offset accounts, and ability to change repayments.

CommBank executive general manager for home buying Dr Michael Baumann said flexible home loans provide borrowers with the ability to make changes to suit their ever-changing needs.

“In fact, when homeowners were asked what their biggest concern was when it comes to taking on a home loan, more than 50% said they would be concerned if their loan wasn’t flexible and they couldn’t make changes to it as needed,” he said.

“This included concerns around not being able to make changes to their loan if their circumstances changed or that they would not be covered if something happened to their family and they couldn’t make their repayments.”

Still, despite flexibility is a common theme across generations, there are subtle differences in their preferences when it comes to home loans.

Top Home Loan Features Across Generations - CommBank
Generation	Mortgage Features
Baby Boomers	Up to 2 redraw facilities Multiple offset accounts Ability to change repayments easily
Generation X	Redraw facilities Multiple offset accounts Ability to change repayments easily Cashback
Millennials	Multiple offset accounts Redraw facilities Easy management with a mobile app
Generation Z	Easy management with a mobile app Support from lending specialist Digital tools Redraw Facilities Offset accounts

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Photo By Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels.