Not everyone is in the same situation when it comes to their mortgage. Refinancing isn’t a one-size-fits-all decision but there are some common situations where the case for reviewing your loan is especially strong.
In 2025, a record 640,137 Australians refinanced their home loans up 20% on the previous year. They weren’t all doing it for the same reasons. Let’s look at the three scenarios where refinancing tends to make the most meaningful difference.
Scenario One: You Took Out Your Loan Between 2022 and 2024
This is probably the most common situation worth looking at right now.
Between 2022 and late 2024, the RBA raised interest rates repeatedly, pushing the cash rate to 4.35% the highest it had been in 13 years. Many borrowers locked in during that period either at variable rates that were rising, or at fixed rates that now look expensive compared to today’s market.
The cash rate has since come down to 3.85%, with average variable rates for owner-occupiers sitting around 5.5% as of late 2025 according to RBA data. If your loan was written during the higher-rate period and hasn’t been reviewed, the gap between what you’re paying and what’s available today could be significant.
The question to ask: when did you last compare your rate against the current market? If the honest answer is “I’m not sure” or “not recently,” that’s the starting point.
Scenario Two: Your Property Has Grown in Value Since You Bought It
Australian dwelling values rose an estimated 8.6% through 2025. For many homeowners, particularly those who bought three or more years ago, that growth has quietly improved their equity position. And better equity means better options.
Lenders use your Loan-to-Value Ratio (LVR) (your outstanding loan as a percentage of your property’s current value) to price your loan. The lower the LVR, the less risk the lender carries, and typically the better the rate they’ll offer.
Here’s how it plays out in practice. Imagine you bought a property for $600,000 with an 80% LVR meaning a $480,000 loan. If that property has grown to $700,000, your LVR on the remaining balance could now be well below 70%. That improved LVR is a genuine negotiating advantage and most people don’t think to use it.
Average owner-occupier refinancers currently hold over 50% equity in their property, according to Money.com.au research. Many of them discovered that equity through a simple valuation they hadn’t thought to request before.
Scenario Three: Your Life Situation Has Changed Since You Got Your Loan
A mortgage isn’t just about the interest rate. It’s a structure that needs to fit your life — and lives change.
Think about the following situations:
- You’ve moved from a single income to dual income (or vice versa)
- You’ve started or are planning to start a family
- You’re thinking about purchasing an investment property
- You’ve built up credit card or personal loan debt you’d like to consolidate
- You want to start a renovation and need to access your equity
- You’d like to pay your loan off faster and need a structure that supports that
In each of these cases, your loan structure, not just your rate, might need to change. Refinancing can be the mechanism for resetting that structure to something that fits where you are now, not where you were when you first signed up.
What to Do Next
If one of these three scenarios sounds like your situation, the practical next step is to understand what’s actually available to you. An Oxygen broker can give you a genuine market comparison (not just one lender’s view) and help you work out whether the numbers stack up.
More than 75% of all new home loans in Australia are now arranged through a mortgage broker, according to the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia. For refinancing specifically, around 63% of people who switch do so with a different lender — meaning the market, not just your existing bank, is where the options are.
Oxygen Home Loans has put together a practical guide to the refinancing process — covering what to look at, what to watch out for, and how to assess whether it’s the right move for your circumstances. It’s written clearly, without the jargon.
👉 Download our free Refinance Guide → oxygen.com.au | Call: 1300 855 699 |
Call Oxygen Home Loans: 1300 855 699
⚠ Disclaimer: This information is general in nature. Please seek independent financial advice suited to your personal circumstances
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