Our Customer Vivienne Lives Well At Home

Our retirement specialist Fiona Navarro chats to channel 10 host Kate about the way retired Australians can use their Household Capital to improve their retirement funding and Live Well At Home. Customer Vivienne talks about the ease with which she could access her home equity via a Household Loan to undertake some renovations of her apartment and be able to say ‘yes’ to things more often in retirement.

Transcription

Kate: Good morning folks. Well, it's been a challenging year for Australia's retirees. Not only has COVID increased worries about health, the pandemic has also impacted retirement finances. Fiona, good to see you on the show.

Fiona: Hi Kate.

Kate: Look, I hear retirees are doing it tough. You speak with retired Australians every day, so what are you hearing?

Fiona: Well, Kate, even before the pandemic, many older Australians were worried about how they'd live well for 20-plus years in retirement. And whether they're self-funded, solely reliant on a pension, or something in between, the people we speak to are worried about retirement funding. But they don't need to be.

Kate: Okay. So how can Household Capital help Australia's retirees?

Fiona: Well, Australians aged 60-plus can use their home equity, the wealth they've built up in their home.

Kate: Oh, okay.

Fiona: And we call that their Household Capital, and it can be accessed to improve long-term retirement funding. So we provide retirees with flexibility and choice to make decisions about their retirement lifestyle. So the family home can be both the best place to live, and the right way to fund retirement.

Kate: It makes a lot of sense. Why don't we cross via Zoom to one of the many retirees using their household capital to fund their lifestyle?

Vivienne: The help I had from Household Capital was brilliant. They sent someone around to talk to me, I didn't feel like an idiot. She sat down, she explained things very, very comfortably and easily to me so I didn't feel that I didn't know what I was doing.

Vivienne: I was really concerned that I wouldn't have enough money to enjoy my life over the next 10 years, and this has been a really great boost. It has given me enough money, I can have a little play, I can help my grandchildren if I need to. I've fixed up a lot of things in my own apartment already, I feel really good about that.

Vivienne: So thank you very much. I am thrilled that I have this extra money and I don't have to worry anymore.

Kate: What a great story. All right, so tell me, Fiona, how else are retirees using their household capital?

Fiona: Well, each retiree has the flexibility and choice to use their household capital to meet their own personal needs. So they might need a regular income, or capital, or both. We're meeting with older Australians who actually lost their job in COVID, but they're still trying to pay off a mortgage.

Kate: Oh wow, that would be very hard, wouldn't it?

Fiona: Yeah, it sure is. Trying to make regular repayments to the bank can be a big hit on retirement cashflow. So we can help retirees to refinance traditional bank mortgages, and because regular repayments aren't required, it frees up their income.

Kate: That's great, and it must be such a relief to get rid of those regular repayments. All right, so how else are retirees using their household capital?

Fiona: Well, capital might be needed to modify the home, pay for medical costs, or for a contingency fund for those unexpected expenses. Our funding for in-home or residential aged care gives older Australians choice and flexibility when it comes to their care needs.

Fiona: So finally, some of our customers are really well set up for their own retirement, so they use their household capital to be the bank of Mum and Dad. So to help pay for the first home for their kids, or their grandkids' education.

Kate: All right. Makes a lot of sense. So tell us about the application process then.

Fiona: Well, it's an easy three-step process. So firstly people can use our simple online calculator to see whether they're eligible and how much household capital they can access. The second step is a Zoom meeting with one of our retirement specialists. Personal service is really important to us. And the third step is the application process, and there's always someone available to help along the way.

Kate: So what sets Household Capital apart from others?

Vivienne: Well, we offer Australia's lowest rate reverse mortgage. That comes with personalized service and a focus on responsible lending. We want to help people improve their long term retirement funding. So Australians feel safe in their home, and we would like them to feel safe in their retirement, too.

Kate: That's fantastic. So what are you doing with your household capital?  To try out that calculator, go to householdcapital.com.au, or call 1300 622 100.

Kate: Thanks so much for coming in Fiona, and back to you guys.

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