Loans for Renovations

Loans for Renovations

Any homeowner will tell you that one of the best parts of owning a home is making it indelibly theirs, and taking on loans for renovations is an efficient tool to do so. Whether it’s giving the whole place a new paint job, replacing the roofing in prep for colder months, or even just adding a new patio or shed, borrowing money for renovations is a costly but worthwhile endeavour.

If you’re curious about how to fund renovations for your new home, here are several home renovation loan options to consider. Is it a secured loan or an unsecured loan? Are the terms fair? How long will it take to get reviewed and approved?

Before diving into renovation financing, look out for these things first.

Is your home renovation loan secured?

An unsecured loan doesn’t require any collateral as part of the application prerequisites. Unsecured car loans, for example, offer rates and terms without obliging you to commit an already existing asset to secure your loan. A secured loan, meanwhile, requires collateral; some types of personal online loans ask for pledged assets for certain loan amounts, like with loans for students.

Both loan types have their own advantages – it all depends on what’s more convenient and manageable for you personally. That’s part of the beauty of borrowing with SocietyOne. We personalise each loan offer based on your unique credit score and history, and loan preferences.

How do I apply for a home renovation loan?

Before applying for any loans for renovations, it’s good practice to have a healthy credit score. SocietyOne’s Credit Score tool allows you to get your credit score for free and to track its progress as often as you need to.

There are some general eligibility requirements when applying for a home improvement loan with SocietyOne.

• You must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
• You must be at least eighteen years old at the time of your application.
• You must be earning at least $30,000 p.a.
• Your credit score is preferably in good standing.

Unlike other lending platforms, SocietyOne doesn’t require you to borrow against your property’s equity or mortgage before being considered for home improvement financing. We accept assets like personal vehicles so that any loans for renovations won’t directly affect your mortgage.

We finance your refurbishment loan as a personal loan, allowing you the freedom to decide how to utilise your loan. SocietyOne clients have used the renovation loan to furnish their homes with essential appliances or build accessory structures like sheds and garages. How you maximise your loan is up to you.

Can you borrow more on a mortgage for home improvements?

Though you can choose to remortgage your home for a renovation loan with other lenders, it’s not a requirement with SocietyOne. Loans for renovations approved by SocietyOne are guarantor personal loans, which require fewer documents and are processed faster.

Your home renovation loan application can be accomplished in under five minutes and entered into our system for review and approval as soon as we receive it. Upon approval, loan disbursements may be completed in one business day, and we won’t require you to pay an early repayment or monthly fee, so you only have to keep track of your scheduled fortnightly or monthly repayments.

Our website isn’t the only application portal, either. SocietyOne has a mobile app available for both iOS and Android and features the same products and services as our website. You can keep track of your loan repayments, view your loan balances, request loan statements, and ask for payout estimates for possible loans – all from the comfort of your mobile device.

Is it possible to use part of my home loan for renovations?

Unlike a renovation construction loan, a home loan or mortgage is a loan dedicated to homeownership purposes. This type of loan has exhaustive requirements even from the pre-approval stage alone, including adequate deposits for your desired property and detailed documentation of your current finances.

If your home loan was paid out to you with an excess (like with a lump sum home loan), you might want to invest the extra funds for the bigger home repairs down the line or use it to update your home’s utilities. Only licenced electricians, plumbers, and gas fitters are legally allowed to do work like piping or wiring installations, and a property inspection can cost up to a thousand dollars before any repairs can even begin. Instead of using equity to renovate your home, a line of credit for home renovation may be more convenient overall.

Home mortgages also have longer loan terms than most, with lengths up to thirty years in some instances. By contrast, a secured loan for renovation from SocietyOne has a maximum loan term of seven years, with a ceiling of $70,000. (If you’re curious: the ceiling for unsecured loans is $50,000 payable for up to five years.)

Reinvesting your excess loan funds into your property as an early repayment could shave off a few years from your term or lower your principal loan debt.

Personal property refurbishment loans are an ideal compromise. With shorter terms and more competitive comparison rates, personal loans for renovations can address home fixes and refurbishment in more manageable credit commitments. We also encourage borrowers to maintain good credit by offering fairer and faster terms for a loan for home renovations than what most banks would offer for loans for home repairs.

Helping you build a better home with competitive loans

Loans for renovations aren’t the only credit product we feature at SocietyOne. Our award-winning credit products and exclusive resources help professionals improve their standard of living through credit opportunities, such as green loans and holiday loans.

We believe that good credit deserves good deals, whether it’s for construction loans for renovations or for extended holidays, and that’s been the driving force behind our credit platform since we started our books back in 2012. No one does online loaning the way we do at SocietyOne, so if you need home improvement loans in Australia, we’re one of the best choices in the lending market. Check your rates with us today so you can assess your options for loans for renovations and give your home a much-needed update.

Your very own personalised loan awaits!