Loan for home – compare offers up to R350 000.
Understand home loans in South Africa and compare offers from NCR-licensed lenders.
- Up to R350 000
- Quick loan offers
- Free, non-binding application
10 000+ South Africans have used Swiftbanker to find the right loan.
The essentials
Buying a home on credit, in six points
A home is the largest purchase most South Africans ever finance. These six points cover what actually decides whether the deal works for you.
A home loan is secured
The property itself stands as collateral, which is why bond rates in South Africa sit far below the rates charged on unsecured personal credit.
Banks lend, we compare
Swiftbanker is not a lender, and a bond is granted by a bank after its own credit and affordability assessment.
Affordability decides everything
Most banks want your total monthly debt repayments, including the new bond, to stay below roughly thirty percent of gross income.
Cash costs come first
Transfer duty, conveyancing fees and bond registration are paid upfront and are not covered by the bond amount itself.
A personal loan has its place
Amounts from R5 000 to R350 000 suit renovations, moving costs and home improvements rather than the purchase itself.
Comparing beats accepting
Rates differ between banks, and a difference of one percentage point on a bond costs or saves you many thousands of rand.
Tool · Repayment calculator
What will the instalment be?
Drag the sliders to see the monthly instalment, the interest and the total cost for an unsecured loan of R5 000 to R350 000. Use it for the money that sits around a home purchase – the renovation, the move, the furniture – and use your bank's bond calculator for the property itself.
Each bar = one month paid
The calculation is indicative and based on the annuity principle. Your personal rate is set individually by the lender after a credit and affordability assessment, as required by the National Credit Act.
Introduction
What a home loan is in South Africa
In South Africa a home loan is usually called a bond or a mortgage, and it is credit granted by a bank to help you buy residential property. The bank registers a bond over the property at the Deeds Office, which means the home itself stands as security for the debt. If instalments stop, the lender can ultimately take legal steps to recover the outstanding balance from the property.
That security is what makes a bond cheap by South African standards. Terms usually run for twenty years, sometimes thirty, and the interest rate is quoted as prime plus or minus a margin that depends on your credit profile, your deposit and how much the bank wants your business.
Bonds are granted by registered banks such as Standard Bank, Absa, FNB, Nedbank and Capitec, and by bond originators who submit one application to several banks on your behalf.
Did you know?
Six things that surprise first-time buyers
Details in the South African property rules that quietly decide what a home costs you.
- Fact 01
Transfer duty has a threshold
Cheaper homes escape the tax entirely.
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Transfer duty is a government tax on property purchases, and homes below roughly R1,2 million are exempt. SARS adjusts the threshold and the rate bands most years, so check the current table before you fix your budget.
- Fact 02
Prime is the benchmark
Bond rates are quoted against prime.
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South African bond rates are expressed as prime plus or minus a margin. Prime moves with the Reserve Bank's repo rate, so a variable-rate bond instalment rises and falls with monetary policy over the twenty years you hold it.
- Fact 03
A 100% bond exists
Some banks lend the full price.
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First-time buyers can sometimes get a bond for the full purchase price with no deposit. It is convenient, but the rate is usually higher than on a bond where you put down ten or twenty percent of the value.
- Fact 04
Registration takes weeks
Attorneys, not banks, control the clock.
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Approval can arrive within a week, but transferring the property and registering the bond at the Deeds Office typically takes six to twelve weeks. Conveyancing attorneys handle it, and delays usually come from outstanding documents or municipal clearance.
- Fact 05
Extra payments shorten the term
Small overpayments cut years of interest.
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Because bond interest is calculated daily on the outstanding balance, paying a little more than the instalment each month reduces the capital sooner. On a twenty-year bond a modest overpayment can cut several years off the term.
- Fact 06
Your credit report is free
One free report per bureau yearly.
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Every South African may request one free credit report a year from each registered bureau, such as TransUnion or Experian. Checking your own record is a soft enquiry, so it never lowers your score, and errors can be disputed.
Guidance
Bond or personal loan?
Two very different products are often lumped together as a loan for your home, and choosing the wrong one is an expensive mistake.
A bond finances the property itself. It is secured against the house, it runs for twenty years or more, and because the bank's risk is low the interest rate is the cheapest form of borrowing most households will ever access. That is the right instrument for the purchase price.
A personal loan is unsecured, shorter and dearer, with offers in our comparison ranging from R5 000 to R350 000 over three to seventy-two months. It suits the costs that sit around a home rather than the home itself: a kitchen renovation, a solar installation, replacing a roof, or furnishing a place you have just moved into.
One warning worth repeating. Borrowing your deposit with a personal loan rarely works, because the bank sees the new instalment in your affordability assessment, your bond application weakens, and you end up paying unsecured interest on money meant to prove financial discipline. Save the deposit, then borrow for the extras afterwards.
Loan types
Six ways South Africans finance a home
Not every home loan is a purchase bond. Pick the structure that matches what you are actually paying for.
First-time buyer bond
For your first property purchase
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Most banks run a dedicated offering for buyers who have never owned property, with softer deposit requirements and sometimes a discount on the initiation fee. Buyers within a defined income band may also qualify for the government's First Home Finance subsidy, formerly called FLISP, which reduces the amount you need to borrow rather than lowering the rate.
Building loan
For constructing from the ground up
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If you own land and intend to build, the bank pays out in stages against construction progress rather than in one lump sum. An inspector signs off each phase before the next payment is released, and you pay interest only on what has been drawn. The paperwork is heavier, but you control the design and the budget.
Further advance
Borrowing more on an existing bond
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Once you have paid down part of your bond, the bank may advance you more against the same property, usually up to the original registered bond amount. It is cheaper than unsecured credit because the security already exists, but it lengthens the debt and the property remains on the line if repayments stop.
Switching your bond
Moving the debt to another bank
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Refinancing means moving your bond to a lender offering a better margin against prime, or renegotiating with your current bank. The saving over the remaining term can be substantial, but a switch triggers new registration and attorney costs, so work out how many months of lower instalments it takes to break even.
Access bond
Using the equity you have built
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An access facility lets you withdraw money you have already paid in above the required instalment. It makes overpaying painless because the cash is not locked away, and the rate is far below any personal loan. The discipline risk is real, though: money drawn out starts attracting bond interest again.
Home improvement loan
Unsecured credit for upgrades
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For renovations that do not justify restructuring a bond, an unsecured personal loan of R5 000 to R350 000 over three to seventy-two months is the simpler route. Nothing is registered against the property and the money is paid out in days, but the rate is higher, so keep the term as short as your budget allows.
Qualifying
What a South African bank looks at
Income and employment
Banks want proof of stable income. Salaried applicants usually need three recent payslips and six months of employment, while self-employed buyers submit audited financials and six to twelve months of business bank statements to show the income is durable.
Your credit score
South African credit scores generally run from 300 to 850. Above 650 you can expect approval on decent terms, between 550 and 650 approval is possible at a higher rate, and below 550 a deposit usually becomes essential.
The affordability calculation
The National Credit Act obliges every lender to test affordability before granting credit. In practice banks want your total debt repayments, bond included, to stay near thirty to thirty-five percent of gross income once living costs are deducted.
Deposit and loan-to-value
A deposit lowers the loan-to-value ratio and with it the bank's risk. Ten to twenty percent down often buys a better rate than a full-price bond, and it leaves you with equity from the first day you own the home.
Tool · Affordability
How much room does your budget have?
Enter your household income and costs to see roughly how much unsecured credit your budget could carry. Banks run a comparable affordability test under the National Credit Act before granting a bond, so a realistic picture here tells you a great deal about how a home loan application will go.
Likelihood of approval
The estimate is indicative only and does not reflect what a bank will lend against a property. Every lender performs its own affordability assessment of your income, expenses and credit record before granting credit.
Step by step
From first sums to the keys in your hand
Buying a home on credit is a sequence, and every step has a predictable timeline. Here is what actually happens, and how long each stage tends to take in South Africa.
Work out what you can afford
Set a realistic price bracket before you fall in love with a house.
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Start from your net income, subtract every fixed cost and see what is genuinely left. Banks work to roughly thirty percent of gross income for total debt repayments, so run that test yourself first. The number you reach becomes your price ceiling, not the bank's.
Save the deposit and the cash costs
Two separate piles of money, and only one of them is the deposit.
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A ten percent deposit improves your rate, but transfer duty, conveyancing and bond registration are extra and payable in cash. Budget for both before you sign an offer to purchase, because a shortfall at registration stage is the most common reason a sale collapses.
Gather your documents
Identity, income and expenses, in the format the bank expects.
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You will need your South African identity document, the three most recent payslips, six months of bank statements and proof of residence. Self-employed applicants add audited financial statements and up to twelve months of business statements. Scan everything once, clearly, and keep it in one folder.
Get pre-qualified
A pre-qualification tells you the amount before you shop.
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A pre-qualification is an indicative assessment of what a bank would lend you, based on your income, expenses and credit record. It is not an approval, but estate agents take your offer more seriously with one, and it stops you viewing homes outside your range.
Submit the application
Directly to a bank, or through an originator to several.
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Once you have a signed offer to purchase, the formal application goes in. Applying to one bank gives you one answer; applying through a bond originator sends the same file to several banks at no cost to you and produces competing quotes to choose from.
Compare the offers
Look at the margin against prime, not only the instalment.
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Approvals usually arrive within a week. Compare the rate expressed against prime, the initiation fee, the monthly service fee and any conditions such as a required deposit. A quarter of a percentage point sounds trivial and is worth tens of thousands of rand over twenty years.
Registration and transfer
Attorneys register the bond and transfer the title deed.
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The conveyancing attorney lodges the transfer and the bond at the Deeds Office. Municipal rates clearance, compliance certificates and the seller's existing bond cancellation all have to line up, which is why this stage commonly takes six to twelve weeks rather than days.
Repay and overpay
The instalment starts, and so does your chance to shorten it.
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Your first instalment is debited in the month after registration. Set the debit order for just after payday, and if you can add anything extra, do it from the beginning: early overpayments attack the capital when the balance, and therefore the interest, is at its highest.
Weigh it up
What a bond gives you, and what it costs you
A home loan is the cheapest large debt most South Africans will ever hold, and also the longest. Both columns deserve an honest reading before you commit two decades of income.
Pros
The cheapest credit available
Because the property secures the debt, bond rates sit near prime – far below unsecured personal loans, store accounts or credit cards.
You build equity, not receipts
Every instalment moves a portion of the payment from interest to capital, so the share of the home you actually own grows month after month.
Long terms keep instalments low
Spreading repayment over twenty years makes a large purchase affordable on an ordinary salary, which no short-term credit product can do.
Overpaying is rewarded
Interest is charged daily on the outstanding balance, so paying extra cuts both the term and the total interest without any penalty on most bonds.
Cons
The property is on the line
Security cuts both ways. Sustained default can end in the home being sold in execution to recover the outstanding balance.
Large upfront cash costs
Deposit, transfer duty, conveyancing and bond registration are payable in cash before you move in, and none of them is financed by the bond.
The rate can move against you
Most South African bonds are variable and track prime, so an increase in the repo rate lifts your instalment for as long as the cycle lasts.
Two decades of commitment
A bond limits your flexibility. Selling early carries costs, and an early settlement without ninety days' notice can attract a penalty.
Term explained
Bond.
The South African word for a home loan registered over a property.
South Africans rarely say mortgage. The everyday word is bond, and it refers to the legal instrument registered against the property at the Deeds Office rather than to the money itself. That distinction matters when you read a quote: the bond amount registered can be larger than the loan you draw, which is what makes a later further advance possible without a new registration.
A bond is granted by a registered bank, priced as prime plus or minus a margin, and repaid monthly over a term that usually runs to twenty years. Because the property is security, the bank can approve amounts and rates that no unsecured lender would consider. The trade-off is equally simple: the home carries the risk, so the agreement, the insurance obligations and the arrears process all deserve careful reading before you sign anything.
Words you will meet
Home loan terms, plainly explained
Property finance comes with its own vocabulary, most of it invented by lawyers. Here are the nine terms that appear in almost every South African home loan conversation.
- Bond
- The South African term for a home loan. A bond is credit registered against a specific property at the Deeds Office, giving the lender security over the home until the last instalment is paid.
- Transfer duty
- A government tax paid by the buyer on the purchase of property, calculated in bands on the price. Homes below the annual threshold are exempt, and the tax is payable in cash before transfer.
- Bond registration
- The legal act of recording the bank's security over your property in the Deeds Office. It carries attorney fees and Deeds Office charges, which the buyer pays separately from the purchase price.
- Conveyancing attorney
- The property lawyer who transfers ownership from the seller to the buyer. In most transactions a separate bond attorney, appointed by the bank, registers the new bond, and both are paid by the buyer.
- Loan-to-value
- The size of the bond expressed as a percentage of the property value. A hundred percent means no deposit; a lower ratio reduces the bank's risk and usually earns you a better interest rate.
- Prime lending rate
- The benchmark rate South African banks quote against. Bond rates are expressed as prime plus or minus a margin, so when the Reserve Bank changes the repo rate, variable bond instalments move with it.
- Access bond
- A bond facility that lets you withdraw money you have paid in above the required instalment. It rewards overpayment without locking the cash away, but the funds withdrawn attract interest again.
- Bond originator
- An intermediary that submits one application to several banks and presents you with the competing offers. The banks pay the originator, so the comparison is free for the buyer.
- First Home Finance
- The government subsidy for first-time buyers in a defined income band, formerly known as FLISP. It reduces the amount you need to borrow, and applications run through the bank or a housing authority.
Definitions are general guidance. Your credit agreement and the attorney's statement remain the binding documents.
Watch out
Six costs and clauses that catch buyers out
None of these are hidden, but all of them are easy to miss in a stack of paperwork. Read this list before you sign an offer to purchase.
- Early settlement notice. Banks may charge up to three months' interest if you settle a bond without giving ninety days' written notice, so send the notice as soon as you plan to sell or switch.
- The bond does not cover everything. Transfer duty, attorney fees and registration costs are cash expenses on top of the deposit, and buyers who forget them stall at the worst possible moment.
- Variable rates move. Most South African bonds track prime, so the instalment you can afford today may rise. Stress-test your budget against a two percentage point increase before committing.
- Insurance is not optional in practice. Homeowners cover on the building is required by the bank, and credit life cover is usually insisted on, so include both in your monthly figure.
- Missed instalments escalate fast. Arrears are reported to the credit bureaus within months, and sustained default can end with the property being sold in execution by the lender.
- Upfront-fee promises are a red flag. No registered South African lender or originator asks for payment before an application is assessed. Check the NCR register and walk away from anyone who does.
Tool · Extra repayments
See what paying a little extra saves
Overpaying works the same way on a home improvement loan as it does on a bond: the extra rand goes straight to the capital, so every month afterwards carries interest on a smaller balance. Move the slider and watch the term and the interest fall.
Repayment over time
Indicative calculation. Confirm with your lender that extra repayments are penalty-free and are applied to the capital before you build a plan around them.
A word on timing
The best home loan starts a year earlier
Almost everything that decides your rate is settled before you apply. A clean credit record, a stable job, a deposit in a traceable account and no new store cards are worth more than any negotiation on the day. If you are twelve months away from buying, the most valuable work you can do is boring: pay on time, close small accounts, and let your report show a quiet, predictable borrower.
Approval odds
Eight moves that improve your home loan offer
Practical steps that raise your chance of approval and lower the rate you are quoted – most of them cost nothing but planning.
Check your credit report before anything else
Pull your free report from each bureau and fix errors months before you approach a single bank.
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Disputes take weeks to resolve, so start early. Look for accounts you have already settled, judgments that should have lapsed and old addresses that confuse the matching. A clean report with a long record of paid accounts is worth more to a bank than a big salary.
Save a deposit, even a modest one
Ten percent down lowers the bank's risk and usually earns you a visibly better interest rate.
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A deposit does two jobs. It reduces the loan-to-value ratio, which is the single biggest lever on the margin a bank quotes against prime, and it proves you can accumulate money. Keep the funds in a traceable savings account so the origin is easy to show.
Clear the small debts first
Store cards and short-term loans eat into your affordability far more than their small balances suggest.
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Affordability is measured on instalments, not on how much you owe in total. A R700 monthly store account can cost you tens of thousands of rand in bond value. Settle and close the smallest accounts first, then let the closure reflect on your report before applying.
Keep your job while the bond is in process
Banks prefer at least six months of unbroken service, and a resignation mid-application can stop the process.
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Lenders verify employment shortly before payout as well as at application. Changing employers, moving onto probation or switching from salaried work to contracting in the middle of the process forces a fresh assessment and often a fresh decline. Wait until registration is done.
Let several banks compete
A single application through a bond originator reaches several banks at once and turns them into competitors.
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Originators are paid by the banks, so the service costs you nothing, and the offers that come back can differ by half a percentage point or more. On a twenty-year bond that gap is worth many thousands of rand, which is why it is worth collecting.
Budget for the cash costs, not just the bond
Transfer duty, attorney fees and registration costs are paid upfront and are not part of the bond.
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Buyers are regularly caught out here. On a mid-priced home the combined legal, registration and duty bill runs into tens of thousands of rand, all payable before you receive the keys. Ask your attorney for a written pro forma statement early in the process.
Negotiate the rate rather than accept it
A quoted margin above prime is an opening position, and banks do move when they must.
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If one bank comes back at prime plus one and another at prime minus a quarter, take the better quote to the first and ask it to match. Existing customers with a clean transactional history have the strongest hand in that conversation.
Pay a little extra from the first month
Interest is charged daily on the balance, so every extra rand shortens the bond immediately.
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Rounding the instalment up, or paying in an annual bonus, attacks the capital directly. On a typical twenty-year bond a consistent overpayment of a few hundred rand a month can remove several years and a large amount of interest from the schedule.
About Swiftbanker
An independent, free comparison service
Swiftbanker is an independent comparison service for the South African credit market, and it is completely free to use. We are not a bank and we are not a lender, so we never grant a bond and never decide the outcome of an application. What we do is explain the market honestly and give you one place to compare loan offers.
When you apply through this page, your application is handled by our partner Myloan.co.za, a leading South African loan marketplace, which matches your details against multiple NCR-licensed lenders and returns their offers to you. For the property purchase itself you apply to a bank or through a bond originator; the offers you receive here cover the unsecured borrowing around a home, from R5 000 to R350 000.
We earn a commission from lenders on loans that are actually paid out. You never pay us anything, and the commission does not change the rate you are offered. Everything on this page is general information rather than financial advice, so check any provider against the National Credit Regulator's register and read your quotation before you sign.
Three routes
Ways to finance a home, side by side
The route you choose shapes both the rate and the amount of work involved. Here are the three realistic options for a South African buyer, and what each is genuinely good at.
| Product | Typical amount | Term | Cost level | Best for | CTA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Straight to your bankOne lender, one answerSimplest | Full purchase price | Usually 20 years | Lowest – priced off prime | Loyal customers with a strong record | See loan offers |
| Bond originatorOne form, several banksMost offers | Full purchase price | Usually 20 years | Lowest – banks compete on margin | Buyers who want competing quotes | See loan offers |
| Personal loan for home costsFor the extras, not the purchaseUp to R350 000 | R5 000 – R350 000 | 3 to 72 months | Higher – APR from about 20% | Renovations, moving and furnishing | See loan offers |
Figures are typical market ranges rather than offers. Your rate, fees and amount depend on the lender, the property and your credit profile.
How Swiftbanker works
One free application, several offers, and the decision stays with you – comparing unsecured loan offers takes three short steps.
- Step 1
Tell us what you need
Choose an amount between R5 000 and R350 000 and a term that fits your budget, then complete one short form.
- Step 2
Get matched with lenders
Our partner Myloan.co.za matches your profile with multiple NCR-licensed lenders, which send back their offers.
- Step 3
Compare and choose
Weigh the offers on total cost rather than instalment alone, then sign directly with the lender you prefer.
FAQ
Home loan questions, answered
The questions South African buyers ask most often about bonds, deposits, approval and the costs around a property purchase.
What credit score do I need for a home loan?
There is no universal minimum, but a score above 650 puts you in comfortable territory and generally earns a better margin against prime. Between 550 and 650 approval is still possible, usually with a deposit or a higher rate attached.
Can I get a bond without a deposit?
Yes. Several South African banks offer 100% bonds, particularly to first-time buyers with clean records. Expect a slightly higher rate than a buyer putting down ten or twenty percent, and remember that transfer and registration costs still have to be paid in cash.
How much must I earn to qualify?
It depends entirely on the price of the property. As a working rule, banks want total debt repayments including the new bond to stay near thirty to thirty-five percent of gross income, so a R6 000 instalment usually implies an income around R18 000 to R20 000.
How long does approval take?
With complete documents, a decision typically arrives within five to seven working days. Transfer and bond registration at the Deeds Office then take a further six to twelve weeks before the property is legally yours.
Can I apply if I am self-employed?
Yes, but the paperwork is heavier. Banks usually ask for audited or reviewed financial statements, personal and business bank statements covering six to twelve months, and tax returns that show stable income over time.
What does it cost besides the deposit?
Transfer duty above the SARS threshold, conveyancing and bond attorney fees, Deeds Office charges, a once-off initiation fee and a monthly service fee. On a mid-priced home these add up to tens of thousands of rand payable in cash.
Should I use a personal loan for the deposit?
Generally no. The new instalment appears in the bank's affordability assessment and weakens the bond application, while the unsecured interest rate is far higher than the bond rate. Save the deposit, and use unsecured credit for renovations or furnishing instead.
Can I settle my bond early?
Yes, and it saves a great deal of interest. Give the bank ninety days' written notice, because settling without notice can attract a penalty of up to three months' interest, especially within the first years of the agreement.
What insurance will the bank require?
Homeowners cover on the building is effectively compulsory, since the property is the bank's security. Credit life cover, which settles the balance on death, disability or retrenchment, is usually required too, although an existing life policy ceded to the bank can often replace it.
Does comparing loan offers affect my credit record?
Requesting offers through Swiftbanker is free and non-binding. A credit agreement only appears on your record once you accept an offer and the lender concludes the agreement, so comparing first costs you nothing.
In short
A loan for a home in South Africa usually means a bond: credit granted by a bank and registered over the property at the Deeds Office, repaid monthly over about twenty years at a rate quoted as prime plus or minus a margin. Because the house itself is security, it is the cheapest large debt most households will ever hold, and the price you are offered is decided almost entirely by things you control beforehand – your credit record, your deposit, your job stability and how much other debt you carry.
Around that purchase sits a second layer of spending that no bond covers: transfer duty, conveyancing and registration costs paid in cash, and later the renovation, the move and the furniture. That is where an unsecured loan of R5 000 to R350 000 over three to seventy-two months earns its place, and where Swiftbanker helps. One free, non-binding application goes to our partner Myloan.co.za, which returns offers from multiple NCR-licensed lenders for you to compare on total cost. Borrow the smallest amount that solves the problem, keep the term short, and let the bond do the heavy lifting on the property itself.
Jacob Hartmann
Home financing is the largest decision most readers will make. Jacob has reviewed the bond costs, deposit effects and NCA requirements described here for accuracy.
Ready when you are
Compare loan offers for your home project
One free application, offers from multiple NCR-licensed lenders, and no obligation to accept any of them. See what you qualify for in minutes.
The application is free and non-binding, and you receive offers from multiple NCR-licensed lenders.