Bigger mortgages are leaving many customers at risk
money, lifestyle, celebrities | By Mark Bouris | Monday, 1 June 2015
House prices are skyrocketing, with Sydney in particular experiencing significant growth. Yet at least 60 per cent of Australians lack the insurance cover to pay their mortgage if something unexpected happens.
In New South Wales the average mortgage is now around $544,000. However, in suburbs such as Castle Hill, the median house price hit $1.1 million, and $888,000 in Baulkham Hills, as of March 2015.
However, a recent study by ASIC found up to 60 per cent of families with dependants didn’t have sufficient life insurance to care financially for the family for more than 12 months should the main breadwinning parent die.
Many homebuyers rush through the home loan process and ignore one of the most important questions. If you couldn’t work, who in your family would pay the home loan?
Accidents and terminal illnesses are not something people like to think about. However, at least 20 per cent of Australians between 21 and 64 will suffer some unfortunate event in their lives that will leave them incapable of working.
A mortgage is generally the biggest debt a person will take on in their life. When you consider that just about every car owner has car insurance, it’s amazing that so many Australians are inadequately insured when it comes to their home, their mortgage and providing for their family.
Insurance policies should begin at settlement, when you take ownership of the property.
This is when you take on the risk of owning the property and repaying the mortgage.
With home and contents insurance, some people deliberately underinsure their house, to save on premiums.
This is asking for trouble.
At settlement of the property sale, you should also have life insurance products — call them debt repayment policies, if you would prefer. They cover death, incapacitation and terminal illness.
But the most crucial aspect of these insurances is that they insure your income. Life insurances keep food on the table, bills paid and a roof over your head.
In the case of the breadwinner passing away, death benefit policies allow for a lump sum for your dependants to pay off the mortgage and to care for your family. Death benefit policies can include Total and Permanent Disablement (TPD) cover, which is a lump sum payable to your dependants if you have an accident and are unable to work again.
Be careful of the temptation to buy the cheapest insurance. Often this means the policy doesn’t cover you for as much money, or in many circumstances, as full-priced policies might.
The $100 per year you save won’t seem so great when you have to use your policy.
If you use a financial planner or insurance broker to source your insurance, they should make sure you have adequate cover and that the cover is upgraded as your circumstances change. But this is something you can also research yourself.
Australians expect their home to provide wealth and security, and that means guarding against risk.
So as house prices and mortgage sizes increase, remember to make settlement day your insurance day.
> tagged mark bouris, hills living, celebrity, mortgage, risk, yellow brick road, financial security, yellow brick road castle hill, ybr castle hill, carol russell