Cooking The Books

Each week the NZ Herald and Newstalk ZB's Cooking The Books podcast tackles a different money problem. Today, it's the third episode of our OneRoof-partnered series, looking at the tricks to negotiating a mortgage which could save you thousands. Hosted by Frances Cook.Saving up for a house is one thing, but then actually paying it off is entirely another. A mortgage interest rate may look small, with some rates currently under 4 per cent. That's an incredible deal, but there's a reason the banks are willing to give it to you. Over the course of a 30-year mortgage, that 4 per cent interest rate adds up several times over. In fact, by the time you take into account changes in interest rates over that time, the general rule of thumb is that you pay double for your house – once for the purchase price, and then the same amount again in interest payments to the bank. So you want to be smart about this from the beginning, because it means a difference of literally tens of thousands of dollars, maybe more. Happily th