Latitude Financial helps customers begin the year with a Better Start

Latitude Financial is helping customers get back in control of their finances through today’s launch of Better Start, a debt consolidation loan with no repayments and no interest charges for the first three months.

Better Start will support customers wanting to clear their debts by consolidating them into one personal loan of $20,000 or more at interest rates starting from 6.99 per cent p.a. for secured loans and from 7.99 per cent p.a. unsecured. The lowest comparison rates currently available are 8.25 per cent p.a. and 9.24 per cent p.a. respectively.

Better Start is the first debt consolidation loan of its type in Australia giving customers seeking to better manage their debts an upfront break from interest and repayments. Customers can also choose to make a head start on paying down their loan by voluntarily making a repayment in the first three months without attracting interest.

Australians consolidated in excess of $1.4b of debt in the 12 months to November 2019, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics, an increase of 23 per cent from the previous year.

Latitude grew last year to become the third biggest lender of new personal loans, gaining share from the big four banks.

Rohan Harrap, General Manager Lending, said that February and March were busy months for debt consolidation as customers looked to get on top of their finances to start the new year.

He said research commissioned by Latitude in January showed almost 60 per cent of consumers are prioritising saving more money and looking to sort out personal finances in 2020.

“We’ve researched what customers want and they are seeking to get back in control of their finances, especially after Christmas, by consolidating their debts. They want one simple monthly repayment schedule and a short-term break on their payments,” he said.

“Often, some or all of the debt they are looking to refinance is at a significantly higher interest rate on credit cards. Better Start is a first in Australia aimed at providing genuine relief from repayments and interest to customers looking to better organise their finances, while at the same time allowing them to consolidate loans at a very competitive interest rate.”

Latitude will also directly pay-out existing credit card balances or loans held by customers at other financial institutions when they consolidate their debt using Better Start.

Using Reserve Bank of Australia data and the ASIC MoneySmart tool, calculations show that if a customer consolidated $20,000 in credit card debt, attracting a standard interest rate of 19.77 per cent, they could save more than $9,000 and pay off their loan one year and five months earlier by using a Better Start loan with a 6.99 per cent p.a. interest rate (comparison rate 8.25 per cent*).

Better Start is available to new personal loan customers until 29 March 2020.

Media contact

Mark Gardy
Mark.Gardy@latitudefinancial.com
+61 412 376 817

* The Comparison rate for the above product is based on a secured loan for $30,000 over 5 years.
WARNING: The comparison rate of 8.25 per cent applies only to the example or examples given and may not include all fees and charges. Different terms, fees or other loan amounts might result in a different comparison rate.