PropertyGuru Tackles Top Home Loan Refinancing Misconceptions Among Singaporeans in New Research

45% of Singaporeans feel unwise to refinance within lock-in period, a top home loan misconception hampering opportunities to save money

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SINGAPORE - Media
OutReach - 18 January 2021 – PropertyGuru
Group, (“PropertyGuru” or the “Group”), Asia’s
leading property technology company, today revealed Singaporeans’ top
misconceptions around home loan refinancing, according to new research
conducted between 23 October to 30 November last year.

When asked for the
reasons for not refinancing their home loans, the research identified that 45%
of Singaporeans feel that refinancing their mortgage during their lock-in
period is an unwise decision, 34% perceive that a lot of effort is involved to
refinance their mortgages, while 21% brought up the need to pay thousands of
dollars upfront when refinancing as a drawback.

Paul Wee, Managing
Director (FinTech), PropertyGuru Group said, “These findings all point to common mortgage
refinancing misconceptions amongst property owners. Contrary to conventional
wisdom, there may be circumstances where refinancing during lock-in periods or
incurring break costs may still make sense. We have helped homeowners attain a
revised loan structure with lower monthly payments and higher savings in the
long run, despite having to incur a legal fee subsidy claw back. This is
achieved by tailoring a cost-benefit analysis to determine if a homeowner’s
long-term savings outweigh the costs incurred to their current loan.”

Commercial banks’
interest rates have also reached historical new lows due to the pandemic,
serving as a good checkpoint for homeowners to review their current financial
commitments, including home loans, and ensure long-term household economic
health.

“Just like going for a
regular health check, it is prudent to re-evaluate your finances periodically
to ensure that the mortgage is serving your needs optimally. Everyone’s
situation is different, and so is each home. Singaporeans should take a
strategic and holistic approach to mortgage refinancing by considering other key
factors such as their current financial situation, employment outlook, personal
cash flow, and even life plans,” added Paul.

On the back of this discovery,
PropertyGuru Finance’s latest
“#Switch2Save” campaign in Singapore aims to shed light on the process of home
loan refinancing — thereby encouraging Singaporeans to act on the benefits of
refinancing their home loans, thus saving money in the long run.

Bjorn Sprengers, Chief Marketing Officer & Head of
FinTech, PropertyGuru Group said, “Getting a mortgage is often
associated with uncertainty and inefficiency, as well as reams of paperwork,
industry jargon, and tricky fine print. PropertyGuru’s #Switch2Save campaign
shares the benefits of seeking one’s home loan through PropertyGuru Finance, a
trusted mortgage advisor that is free, easy to work with and provides
independent, personalised services for consumers’ better long-term financial
benefits.”

To extend its
reach amongst consumers, the campaign will be progressively rolled out through
paid, owned, and earned media channels, running from 11 January 2021 till 31
March 2021, as part of a multi-channel marketing approach.

Why Refinance with PropertyGuru
Finance?

• Choose from over 140 attractive rates

PropertyGuru Finance partners
with all major banks in Singapore, including DBS, OCBC, Citibank, UOB, Standard
Chartered, and Maybank. This means that property owners can choose from a wide
range of refinancing options to get the most competitive rates and promotions.
PropertyGuru’s proprietary data is also used to regularly monitor home
valuations and interest rates to help property owners optimally time moments of
refinancing and enjoy the full benefit from capital gains.

• Get future-proof advice and enjoy a seamless transition of
  home loans

Being independent from
financial institutions, PropertyGuru’s team of experienced Home Finance
Advisors can offer unbiased, personalised advice, and recommend the right home
loan package. They will then navigate through the home loan marketplace, track
indicative property valuations, submit the home loan applications, and share regular
updates about the application status with homeowners/homeseekers — absolutely
free of cost.

• Smart, digital tools to simplify property finances

PropertyGuru’s
technology offers a range of smart tools and features for every step of the
home finance journey, from understanding loan eligibility and comparing loans
to easily applying for multiple loans online. Some tools include a home affordability calculator, refinancing calculator, and a mortgage comparison tool. These services enable
property owners to consume home financing services conveniently, securely, and
instantly online.

#Switch2Save with PropertyGuru
Finance at http://bit.ly/Switch2SavePGF today!

About PropertyGuru Group

PropertyGuru.com.sg was launched in 2007.
It revolutionised the Singapore property market by taking it online and making
property search transparent for everyone. For the past 13 years, PropertyGuru.com.sg has been helping property seekers in Singapore make confident property
decisions. With over 5.5 million monthly visits* and 75%** consumer market
share, PropertyGuru is the No.1 destination for Singapore homeseekers.

It is part of
PropertyGuru Group, Southeast Asia’s leading property technology company and
the preferred destination for 24.5 million property seekers to find their
desired home, every month. PropertyGuru Group of companies empower property
seekers with the widest option of over 2.7 million homes, in-depth insights and
solutions that enable them to make confident property decisions across
Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

Over the decade, the
group has grown from a regional property media powerhouse to a high-growth
technology company with a robust portfolio of No.1 property portals across its
core markets; award-winning mobile apps; best-in-class developer sales
enablement platform, FastKey; mortgage marketplace PropertyGuru
Finance; and a host of industry-leading property offerings
including Awards, events and publications across
Asia.

For more information, please visit propertyguru.com.sg; linkedin.com/company/propertyguru

 

*Source — Google Analytics data, Jan-Jun 2020

**Source –SimilarWeb – Engagement market share, last six-month average
as of July 2020