Important information about Open
Open Home Loan is committed to providing quality services to you and this policy outlines our ongoing obligations to you in respect of how we manage your Personal Information.
We have adopted the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) contained in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (the Privacy Act). The NPPs govern the way in which we collect, use, disclose, store, secure and dispose of your Personal Information.
A copy of the Australian Privacy Principles may be obtained from the website of The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner at www.aoic.gov.au
Open is Australia’s leading innovative mortgage brokerage. We compare and help you find the best home loan for you (based on your needs and position) from our panel of banks. We value our independence and not owned by any bank.
Commercial relationships: we do not get paid to display any of those providers. We only make commission as a mortgage broker when you select a provider, apply through us for a home loan and it successfully settles. We earn upfront and trail commission as any other mortgage broker.
Although we include our panel of banks in our comparisons which covers a wide range of banks, we don’t cover every available product or service. Please note that the information published on our site should not be construed as personal advice and does not consider your personal needs and circumstances. Please speak with one of our mortgage brokers for approriate guidance. For more information, we can send you disclosure statements (such as any Target Market Determination (TMD) and/or Product Disclosure Statement (PDS)) issued by the provider before making a decision.
What is a Target Market Determination?
A Target Market Determination (‘TMD’) is a document that explains which people particular financial products may be suitable for (the target market) and sets out any conditions around how financial products can be distributed to consumers.
Why do product issuers provide Target Market Determinations?
From 5 October 2021, TMDs are compulsory for most financial products.
Issuers and distributors of financial products must take reasonable steps that are likely to result in financial products reaching consumers in the target market defined by the product issuer.
We recommend that you consider the TMD before making a purchase decision. Contact the product issuer directly for a copy of the TMD.
Products displayed
When products are grouped in a list, the order in which they are initially sorted is influenced by the interest rate, fees (upfront and ongoing) and any cashback incentives. We calculate the lowest predicted cost based on those factors and automatically calculate the lowest cost and present that recommendation. If two banks have predicted same costs, we promote either one of them with no set order. We will be providing tools in the future to filter these lists to highlight features and requirements that matter more to you.
Calculations
The monthly repayments are calculated using compounded interest based on the known interest rates, fees, loan amount and loan term. We default loan term to 25 years but you can change this at any time. The rates are generally updated once every week with us working to make this live instantly. Bank home loan rates don’t tend to change every week.
Open about all fees upfront
Our committment to being open about all fees upfront: Fees are calculated based on upfront fees and ongoing fees. Upfront include application fees, valuation fees, land titles discharge and registration fees and existing bank discharge fees. Ongoing fees include package fees, ongoing monthly fees and other applicable fees. Please note that we aim to provide the most accurate information, but there are instances where not all fees are completely disclosed. We are reliant on our product database provider on the information they update. If you have any questions, you can reach us prior to applying to speak to one of our mortgage brokers who will break down all costs. Please note that banks can also change their fees structure with no notice.
Open Banking:
We use Open Banking to help facilitate the application, to reduce the time you spend providing us your information. Open banking gives you the ability to share your banking data with third parties that have been accredited by the ACCC. This will allow you to get better-suited banking products and switch products or banks more easily.
Estimated interest rate TM:
The problem is banks do not usually publicly disclose the potential discounts you are eligible for, which can mean that select products in comparison websites that are not the best for you. Our goal is to open up transparency so you have all the information relevant to make the best decision. So we created a simple algorithm to help estimate as approximately as possible the potential discount you’re eligible for.
We estimate your applicable interest rate after bank potential discounts on packaged products. We base this on their historical offerings by using an average estimate of what discounts they are supplying. This information is updated every 30 days. This is not necessarily exactly accurate, but our intention is to give you an approximate enough idea of what you could be eligible for based on the inputs you have added. We will confirm the exact interest rate after lodging a formal pricing request to the bank. You can ask to speak with us, prior to applying to confirm the final interest rate from the bank selected. There are no costs involved to confirm the interest rate.
We try to be a leader in being open with as much information that is most relevant to you – including information which may mean we do not make any commission from assisting you. Our intention is to provide value to you, help you find what’s best for you and continually assist you as an independent business that is designed around being an advocate for homebuyers.
Some product issuers may provide products or offer services through multiple brands, associated companies or different labelling arrangements. This can make it difficult for consumers to compare alternatives or identify the companies behind the products. However, we can provide information to enable consumers to understand these issues and make decisions either before applying formally with us, or after applying.
Providing or obtaining an estimated interest rate quote through us does not guarantee you can get the home loan. Acceptance by based is based on things like income, loan amount and property value. By providing you with the ability to apply for a home loan, we are not guaranteeing that your application will be approved. Your application for credit products is subject to the Provider’s terms and conditions as well as their application and lending criteria.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
If you have any queries or complaints, please contact us at:
Address: 180 Flinders St. Melbourne VIC 3000Email: hello@openloans.com.au
You may view our Privacy Policy here.