#4 Refinance and Save

							                            NEWSLETTER
                  How to Save Money
           Refinancing and Debt Consolidation
       What does Refinance mean? How about Debt Consolidation?
  These two terms are used a lot together and even interspersed. What they
          usually mean is that you can save money and lots of it.

Refinance is commonly the term given when your Financial commitments /
arrangements are changed to a different facility and / or Financial Provider.
For example, your current Bank may offer a product with a lesser interest
rate than what you are currently paying and it would be financially
advantageous for you to switch to this product. Alternatively a different
Bank or Finance Provider may offer a product that is better suited to your
cash flow or income, business practises, lifestyle, goals and financial
objectives.

Debt Consolidation is the term given to grouping many different Credit
Facilities into one product. For example:
   1) You may have 2 separate Credit Cards and a Personal Loan all
       charged at different interest rates with payment expected at different
       times of the month. If the outstanding amounts of these three facilities
       were joined together and a Personal Lending product obtained, then
       you would only have 1 payment to meet. Personal Loan interest rates
       are usually lower than Credit Card rates so your repayments would be
       less than they were before.
   2) You may have a Home Loan, which was taken out to purchase your
       House and a Personal Loan for your Motor Vehicle. You may be able
       to group these two facilities together into your Home Loan and enjoy
       the monetary advantages of paying off your car at Home Loan rates.

To consider Refinancing, a complete assessment of your Financial Port-
Folio would need to be carried out. As an independent body Berg Financial
Services can provide this service and if a Refinance and / or Consolidation
of your borrowing needs is in order, Bergs can handle all of the necessary
arrangements.
Each Clients’ situation is assessed individually, conditions apply dependent
on the type of facility or product offered by the Finance Provider.
Berg Financial Services can source the lending package best suited to your
needs and we can negotiate all details associated with your application,
ensuring competitive rates, fees, terms and Loan structures.


Case Study
     Young Family with New Baby on the Way
   (Personal Refinance & Debt Consolidation)
Clients approached us for some advice on budgeting as they had a new baby
on the way and were worried about managing their money when their
household income dropped.

After assessing the customer’s financial position it was revealed that they
had a Home Loan, a Personal Loan, three credit cards and a store card. In
addition to these loans, clients were also operating three separate transaction
accounts and had dealings with seven different financial institutions in total.

Berg’s were able to assist the client’s by consolidating all debts into one loan
at a much cheaper rate. The whole banking process was simplified by
having only one loan, one credit card and an everyday bank account.

Before approaching Berg’s the customer had a monthly outlay of $1,687 on
loan repayments, which only took into account the minimum credit card
repayments and was not effectively reducing the card debt. Once our
finance package had been put into place, the credit card debts were cleared
(replaced with one card with a nominal limit to ensure debt didn’t creep up
again) and the monthly loan repayment was reduced to $840, cutting the
customer’s monthly commitment in half.

The above action then enabled Berg’s to help the client not only cope with
the expense of a new baby, but also establish a savings plan to cope with
unexpected future expenses.
In order for Berg Financial Services to act on your behalf a Loan
Management fee is charged. This fee is only payable if the client agrees to
proceed with the Finance Package negotiated by our team. This is a One Off
Fee and covers the client for the term of the Loan. Should Bergs be
unsuccessful in obtaining Finance or should the client decide not to accept
the proposal, then NO FEE is payable.

Many Finance Intermediaries will secure finance without any cost to you for
their services. More than likely they will receive a commission from the
Finance Provider that they place your loan with. It is important to remember
the relevant cliché “You get what you pay for”. Will this intermediary be
available to follow up any questions and queries that may arise during the
term of your loan or will they “set and forget”?

Berg Financial Services’ Loan Management is for the term of the approved
facilities and is defined as advice and assistance in respect to the following –

      Financial Risk Management           Interest Rate Risk Management
      Fees (Establishment & Ongoing)      Product Mix
      Review of Interest Rates / Margins Product Switching
      Interest Rate Fixing or Variance    Security Variation
      Reassessment and Repayment Program
      General Assistance and Advice on Business Matters

In short, Berg Financial Services will manage the lending for as long as it is
there. We will be happy to interpret any correspondence that you may
receive from your Finance Provider and follow up any matters that you may
find confusing, ambiguous or incorrect.

With the lending Market so competitive we would encourage our clients to
utilise our services each year to ensure that their lending arrangement is
meeting their needs. Should there be a more appropriate deal in the market
we will show the benefits of switching and recommend transfer of lenders, if
of financial advantage and convenience to our client. Should the client
proceed with our recommendation there will be no additional fee payable.
Fees and Charges
When considering Refinancing and / or Debt Consolidation any Fees or
Charges that may be incurred in the process need to be added into the
equation. Some relevant Fees and Charges may be –

Mortgage Finance

      Stamp Duty
           Mortgage Stamp Duty, as opposed to Contract Stamp Duty
           (payable only when purchasing property) may be applicable
           when Refinancing or Consolidating debts. Mortgage Stamp
           Duty would have already been paid on the original amount
           borrowed, and if the same amount is being refinanced then no
           Duty would be payable as this can be transferred to
           the new lender. If any additional money were borrowed i.e.
           above original loan amount then Mortgage Stamp Duty would
           be payable at a rate of $4 per $1000 borrowed in excess
           of original loan amount.

      Registration of Documents
            If refinancing through the same lender this fee is not applicable.
            If refinancing through a different lender you will need to pay
            for Registration of a new Mortgage and Discharge of old
            Mortgage, this is a State Government charge – in NSW this
            currently costs $62 per document.

      Legal / Conveyancing
            If refinance is in same name/s as it was previously, it will not
            be necessary to avail of a Conveyancer. If you wish to add or
            delete any names from or to the Title Deed then Legal /
            Conveyancing fees will be incurred.

All Finance (Personal / Mortgage / Commercial)

      Finance Costs
           Loan Establishment Fees / Account Service Fees / Document
           Preparation Fees / Exiting Fees Ongoing Fees specific to
           particular Finance Provider
For a full explanation of “Hidden Fees” when purchasing Real Estate please
email bergs@pnc.com.au for a copy of backdated Newsletter titled ‘Buying
Property – How much does it Really Cost?’




                  Berg Financial Services
             The Specialists in Finance
    All Fees, Charges and (NSW) Taxes quoted are correct as at 24 January 2003