Are you ready for higher Interest Rates?

Consistent with reports since late last year, financial experts are predicting Interest rates are likely to rise, either in the last quarter of this year or early 2019. Of course, the banks will not tell us ahead of time when the rates will increase, so it is important to take out some insurance to protect yourself.

Some of these measures could include debt consolidation to reduce monthly budget expenses and have a little more disposable income at the end of the month. The other is to fix your home loan for a period of time to lock in current low rates and guarantee your repayments for the next 2, 3 or 5 years. This way, you can be certain of what your ongoing monthly mortgage expense will be for the next few years.

Both of these measures are a prudent way to protect yourself against interest rate rises, and prevent yourself from being in a position where you have to consider selling your home in a declining market.

Some will say you will not lose money in real estate, however this is only true if you remain in control, and are not forced to sell in a slow market.

The important thing is to remain calm and take control. Increasing expenses can be avoided to some degree with good planning. With the property market now on a downward trend, it is critical to maintain good conduct on all financial commitments, and not panic if you perceive yourself to be in a negative equity position.

Failure to plan is planning to fail. It's an oldie but a goodie and there is definitely a lesson in there for all of us.

Call us today if you would like to discuss your situation.