Wishing you all a happy and safe festive season with your families. Enjoy staying at home or travelling - and trust you get some relaxation after a busy year.

May be over the break you will have more time to discuss you home loan options, moves, and your insurance needs. For more information on the services we offer and how it all works,

please visit www.home-loans.co.nz

Thank you for your support throughout 2009, and as always we appreciate your referrals. Wishing you a great 2010, from the team at Taupo Home Loans.

As we approach the festive season with some speed now, the continued question seems to be what are interest rates doing? We have continued to see the longer term interest rates ie 3-5 year fixed rates tracking upwards. This has certinly made the choice of interest rate a little more difficult.

There are a number of clients that have asked, should I stay on the floating rate? Or look to lock in at a more expensive fixed rate with the certainty of knowing exactly what the repayments are likely to be for a fixed time period?

One of the key issues that needs to be carefully considered here is interest rate vs interest rate risk. Basically this means you need to consider what is the risk of taking a fixed interest rate which maybe higher than the floating rate but is confirmed for a period of time verses sitting on the floating rate and hoping rates stay low. Many household budgets are feeling the squeeze as many items in the budget are costing more. To know exactly what the loan payment is, provides security and comfort.

As part of our service we will provide you with information on likley repayments based on different fixed terms to make sure you are fully informed on the options so please give the team at Taupo Home Loans a call.

There have been some changes in the way some lenders calculate their break fees. After a Commerce Commission investigation some lenders have reviewed their break fee protical and revised the calculation. This means in some cases the cost of breaking could have in fact dropped. If you would like to look at options please give us a call at Taupo Home Loans and we will be happy to advise you.

Now we are in the holiday season it makes sense for you to take some steps to ensure your homes are secure if you are going away for a Christmas break.

A few simple precautions can go a long way in keeping your home and contents secure while you are away:

• Remember to cancel your newspapers
• Give a trusted neighbour a key to your home and ask them to pop in daily to check everything is ok
• Get the neighbour to clear your letter box
• Unplug your phone so that your messages will go straight to your message saver
• Ensure that all your doors and windows are securely locked
• Ask your neighbour if they would park their car in your drive
• If you are away for more than 2 weeks get your lawns mowed while you are away

Just by following a few sensible precautions could prevent a nasty surprise on your return.

Have a safe and happy holiday from the team at Taupo Home Loans.