What to Expect Post Settlement Re: Your Finances

So you have secured the property and settlement has just occurred.  The stress of the last couple of days is sort of behind you as you still try to get your head around the process that just took place and all the parties that made it happen, from the two banks, the two solicitors, the selling agent, the vendor, your buyers agent, your broker and most importantly, yourself.

The property is now in your name and yes you also get the loan that comes with it.  From this point you are starting to think about your new banking arrangements.  If you have used one of our team, then it’s fair to say your lending structure is going to be very strategic based around your current and future plans. This may include interest only, offset, split accounts, non-cross securitisation of properties, primary and lifestyle accounts, linked credit and debit cards with automated payment sweeps in our attempts to make your money work as hard as possible to minimise your interest and plan for tomorrow’s actions.

Just prior to settlement you should have received your new banking account details re: your loan accounts, offset account/s and also your credit/debit cards and your internet banking access, so you can go about setting up any direct debits, auto payments  outside of your home loan arrangements.  (For the record, when you completed your mortgage documents prior to settlement, you would have signed off on the direct debit instructions regarding those loans.  This will ensure the interest payments will occur when due).

With the market leading advice we provide around how we set up our clients sophisticated finance and lending solutions, it is important that you firstly understand all the moving parts and even more important, that the chosen lender has followed our instructions in setting up what we have requested on your behalf.

There is nothing more frustrating than learning that the lender has either forgotten or misplaced these instructions, usually because our advanced approach is often not what they are used to in their general day to day request from their branch network or a standard transactional broker.

Not only is it prudent in making sure the lender has played their roles in getting your new finance structuring and strategy in place, but it’s also wise to check your first lot of transactions following the settlement of the property, namely the fees and charges and the breakdown of the settlement distributions. You may recall just prior to settlement your Conveyancer/solicitor would have provided you with a settlement disbursement calculation showing you the transactional breakdown that will occur at settlement, from the stamp duty to the calculation of rates duties etc, etc.

It is also crucial you check these to ensure no incorrect calculations have occurred, whereby you may be out of pocket.  Although, the chances of this happening is very rare because in reality thousand of settlements are occurring every day with lenders, but it can still occur.

All in all the post settlement period is one where you are still learning about how your new banking works and if you have opted for a new lender, how their internet banking functions and how the accounts ‘operate’.

Again, if you have chosen to work with Empower Wealth then it is important that you understand that our work is not just about getting the loan to settlement.  We are and will always be your personal finance advisors, so think of us as your ‘private’ bankers.  We are here to ensure that you have a great understanding of all your finances and a good working knowledge of the banking you do with your lender.