**information edited so as not to be specific to the above member's case**
I work for the CBA in the Third Party Home Loans Sales Team (in English - loans sent to the Bank via a Mortgage Broker). I act as the Liaison between the Broker and the Bank for any product/processing enquires, as well as escalating urgent matters etc for finance/settlement approvals.
Any information i provide is of personal opinion only and will not apply in everyone's case, ie different product suit different people, its all about personal preference.
My advice is as follows:
First question is if you hold a Wealth (CBA direct package) or MAV (broker introduced package). As this will change what fees etc you will be charged for either topping up your existing loan or opening a brand new Line of Credit
Personally i prefer the LOC idea (I have one myself for my car), as you can have your pay go directly into it and use it as your daily transactional account and have your home loan directly debiting from there also. That way everytime you get paid you're effectively reducing your overall loan balance, therefore paying less interest every month.
To be perfectly honest the only benefit of topping up your home loan is that the interest rate (assuming you have a Standard Variable Rate home loan) is always going to be 0.1% lower than a LOC will be. However with the LOC i find that being able to use it as your day to day account and your pay going directly into it etc is better than 0.1% less interest (escpecially only on $30K)
- remebember this answer is only CBA specific, not sure about other banks/credit societies....
Like i said give me call (pm for my number) if you want and i can look into it a little further if you are unsure of what product you currently hold etc.
Or if you prefer just give your Mortgage Broker a call and have a quick discussion with him/her if you want, im sure they would love to help.
Who knows if you speak to your broker and there might even be a better option out there other than CBA. Just beware if you do find a better product elsewhere and you decide to close your current home loan, if you have held it for less than 4 years you will be up for a $700 deferred establishment fee, as well as discharge fee's etc. Just weigh up the pro's and cons of each product and make your decision that way.
Flick me an email at
sam.zurzolo@cba.com.au if you want to know anything more, or if it's easier you can just PM me on here. Hopefully i have been some help at least
Cheers
Sam