MartinH

Take a look at this article.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/property/...402361444.html

Would not be my choice but if you absolutely have to get on the property ladder then these may cushion the cost.

JAJ

It doesn't "cushion" anything. You don't get something for nothing ...

Wol

Very true - but there might be something in it providing you are well aware of he downside(s). If you can't refinance the balance for example you will be "locked out" of any increase in value which might help finance an upward move?

daunted

Anyone looked at The Governments Shared Equity scheme? (not sure if it is just WA or country wide)

AndyR1976

My advice would be to see a martgage broker....

I know some people don't like them but I ahve a mate who is a mortgage broker and over the last few months I have been looking at gettign another place ..... he could find me a deal MUCH MUCH better than any of the banks/lending places I could get...... not only that, but he works in the industryc EVERY DAY and is right up to date onn all the ways of saving, and all the pitfalls/traps that banks use to make their money (like exit fees and maximum additional repayments etc.....

Hutch

Extremely long repayment mortgages are the norm in countries like Germany, where loans extend to as much as 100 years. They get passed on, from family member to family member.

JAJ

I very much doubt that loans can be passed on like that. Few if any free nations accept the concept that debt can pass on to the next generation. (in Britain if a person dies insolvent, that's a problem for the creditors, no-one else).

In any case, if you do the math you will see that to increase the period of a loan from 40 to 100 years at 6% interest only reduces the annual payment by 10%.

And the annual payments on a loan can never be less than the interest rate.

Hutch

Never-the-less, they've been available in Japan and Germany for some time and are indeed passed on down the generations.

JAJ

Interest only mortgages (infinite repayment period) have been available in the U.K. for some time too. However they don't pass down the generations.

longreach

It is a way for those who are struggling to get 'on the ladder' so long as they are aware of the downsides and what you are giving up for the privilage.

It is a shame that the minority give the rest of us a bad reputation... although Ozzies seem more open to me than Brits do even though I am a Brit myself

Hutch

You're the only person that's mentioned the UK - I haven't, nor does this thread refer to the UK.