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Managing your Housing Loan

Please note: The information provided in these resources has been prepared as a general guide, without knowledge of your specific situation. You should consider how appropriate the information is to your own financial situation and needs, and seek your own legal advice before making financial decisions.

Buying a home is one of the most important and expensive purchases you will ever make. It is your responsibility to ensure you can continue to afford your housing loan repayments – and other costs associated with purchasing and maintaining your home – while considering your other financial obligations and future plans.

However, life sometimes presents unexpected challenges – with resulting expenses or debts – that can affect your ability to meet your financial obligations.

A sudden drop in individual or family income can arise through illness or injury (causing a prolonged absence from work), a divorce or separation, loss of a job, or loss of a spouse.

One of the more common reasons borrowers experience difficulties meeting their loan repayments, however, is their over-commitment to other loans and lines of credit (eg store cards, credit cards, personal loans).

Falling behind on your housing loan repayments can have negative effects not only on your economic security, but also on your physical and mental wellbeing, and the wellbeing of your family.

Are you:

  • using your credit card to pay for essential items?
  • having trouble paying your council rates, water, phone, gas or electricity bills?
  • at risk of defaulting on your housing loan repayment or other loan repayments?
  • experiencing health problems due to your money worries?

One of the most crucial factors for regaining control of these and similar financial concerns is to take quick action. By acknowledging a problem and acting quickly, you can take positive steps to prevent it from becoming a bigger – and potentially overwhelming – problem.

Budgeting

Budgeting is a great first step to understanding your income and expenditure. Learning how and where you spend your money is a positive first step to regaining control of your finances.

The Australian Government’s MoneySmart website offers a useful Budget Planner (external website, new window) which identifies everyday costs including groceries, insurance, medicines, transport and takeaways etc.

Having trouble paying your household bills?

Many companies and councils can help you work out a plan to pay your bills in instalments.

If you are experiencing difficulties paying your water, phone, gas or electricity bills, contact your council or utility provider as soon as possible.

If you are experiencing difficulties in paying your local council rates, contact your local council.

If your financial difficulties are serious, you might consider seeking help from a free financial counsellor or a free legal service, such as:

At risk of missing an IBA housing loan repayment?

Financial stress can happen to anyone, and admitting that you are struggling with your financial situation can be stressful and embarrassing.

IBA staff are experienced in handling these situations and we are committed to helping our customers manage their housing loans and find ways to alleviate financial stress.

If you feel you are in danger of missing an IBA housing loan repayment, it is important that you Contact Us as soon as possible so together we can explore options such as:

  • postponing your loan repayments for a short period of time
  • reducing your loan repayments for a short period of time
  • extending your loan period and as a result reducing your loan repayments.

If you have another housing loan, it is also important that you contact your other lender as soon as possible.

If your repayments are no longer affordable, you may have to seriously consider selling your home and downsizing or renting. However, this decision requires careful thought and it is important that you seek professional advice.

Contact us

IBA has 18 offices Australia-wide and our helpful staff are ready to provide you with assistance and advice. Our office opening hours are generally 8.30am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday.

Find your local office or Freecall™ 1800 107 107* (and select ‘option 1’ when prompted) to talk to one of our staff.

Our Customer Service Charter

Our Customer Service Charter outlines our commitment to our customers.

We want to hear from you if you have a complaint concerning the level or quality of service received, or about a decision that IBA has made that will affect you. Because our aim is to deliver quality service, we take complaints seriously. In this regard we recognise that our customers should have a right to express their dissatisfaction, and we further recognise that attending properly to complaints will help us to identify and rectify any areas in which we can improve our services.