A guide to refinancing your home loan

Meet Charlotte. She’s a self-proclaimed introverted extrovert, and when she’s not helping people secure great deals on their home loans, she’s at the gym warding off those dreaded COVID kilos or binge-watching her favourite shows.

What is your favourite part of your job?

No two days are the same! I like that I get to speak to different people every day and that it’s not monotonous. Even though we’re talking about the same subject of home loans, every person is different. Every home loan application is different. That’s what keeps me interested and motivated – it’s so varied.

Your best friend is applying for a home loan. What tips would you give them?

Be as organised as possible. Make sure you have all the right documents. Give your lender exactly what they ask for. This will speed up the application and ensure you get your approval faster. I actually spend a lot of my time chasing people up on necessary paperwork, and at the end of the day, it just slows down the process.

What is a common issue people have when they apply for a home loan?

People sometimes have unrealistic expectations when it comes getting a home loan approved. Applying for a home loan isn’t the same as booking an Uber - there’s actually a lot that goes on behind the scenes to get it approved. As it stands, our current turnaround time of less than 24 hours from application to initial assessment, which is better than what I hear you’d get with one of the big four banks.

What can a borrower do to increase their chances of successfully applying for a home loan?

Making sure you’re organised and have enough of a deposit is a good start. If you have credit issues, it’s better to be upfront about that and actually let us know so that we can help you work through it. We’ll find out about it eventually, and it’s a better use of everyone’s time if you’re honest at the start.

You’ve been given an unlimited budget to design your dream home. What’s the first thing you put in?

I’d like my own fully equipped gym with a swimming pool and spa. Or a relaxation and fitness area. Right now, the gym is the only place I go – it’s the only reason I leave my house at the moment. So, not having to leave my house and have everything I need for exercising would be great.

What is one thing you can’t live without?

The internet. It’s become even more vital these days when we’re relying on it so heavily for work, communication, and entertainment.

What is something you have learnt out of the COVID-19 lockdown?

It’s so easy to put on weight when the gym closes! Even more reason to build my own fully equipped gym at home! Gotta watch out for those COVID kilos! I’m actually quite an active person, so when everything closed down, I found it very hard to motivate myself. I also realised that I don’t function so well when I don’t have a routine.

What pro tip do you have for working from home successfully?

To set myself up for success, I had to set my desk up at home exactly like I have it set up at work. Initially, when the lockdown first happened and no one knew how long it would last for, I didn’t even an internet connection at home. I was on my laptop, sitting at the kitchen table, using my phone as a hotspot, and thought, “This will be fine, we’re only going to be working from home for a week!” Obviously, it’s lasted a lot longer than that! So now I’ve got two screens at home, I’ve got a proper keyboard and mouse, I’ve got a proper internet connection, and I’ve got an area set up in my living room that’s specifically for work. Having a separate designated space is important – I know when I’m in that area, I’m in work mode. Amidst all the disruption from the pandemic, it’s important to build structure back into your own life again – something that you’d automatically get from going into the work office but may not have at home initially.

Outside of work apps, what are the five most frequently used apps on your smartphone?

Internet banking, Netflix, my Virgin Active app (because I have to book all my gym sessions now), my GPS app (I can’t go anywhere without a GPS because I don’t know where I’m going!), and Spotify for music.

What would people be surprised to learn about you?

I’m more of an introvert than people realise. People see me as very loud and outgoing, and I definitely am during team meeting situations and when I’m speaking to customers. But then when I switch my computer off at night, I just want to retreat. I’ll put Netflix on, and then I don’t want to speak to anyone. Having my own personal space is very important to me.

The opinions expressed in this article are the opinions of the author(s) and not necessarily those of homeloans.com.au.