Credit Guide

About this Credit Guide

This Credit Guide is designed to assist you in deciding whether to use the services we offer. We will provide you with information on a range of lenders and products. Once you have chosen a loan or lease that is suitable for you, we will help you to obtain an approval.

All our credit representatives are accredited with RateUnity Pty Limited – Australian Credit Licence: 554016.

Our Best Interests Duty (BID) Obligations to You

As of the 1st January 2021, the best interests duty (BID) was enshrined into law that requires mortgage brokers to act in the best interests of the consumer when providing credit assistance. BID was largely introduced to improve customer outcomes after recommendations from the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry were made relating to mortgage broking. The law requires us to:

• act in the best interests of the consumer when providing credit assistance;

• give priority to consumers where a conflict of interest is identified when providing credit assistance; and

• not accept conflicted remuneration.

These obligations have largely improved how:

• mortgage brokers gather and document information about a consumers’ individual circumstances, requirements & objectives;

• mortgage brokers educate the consumer to make informed decisions;

• mortgage brokers assess relevant products in line with the consumer’s needs; and

• those options & the recommendation are presented.

Our Responsible Lending Obligations to You

We are obliged to ensure that any loan, or principal increase to a loan, we help you to obtain, or any lease we help you enter, is not unsuitable for you. To decide this, we may need to ask you some questions in order to assess whether the loan or lease is not unsuitable. The law requires us to:

• make reasonable enquiries about your requirements and objectives;

• make reasonable enquiries about your financial situation; and

• take reasonable steps to verify that financial situation.

Credit will be unsuitable for you if, at the time of the assessment, it is likely that the following would apply at the time credit is provided:

• you could not pay or could only pay with substantial hardship; or

• the credit will not meet your requirements or objectives.

For example, if you can only repay by selling your principal place of residence, it is presumed that the loan will cause substantial hardship unless the contrary is proved. For this reason, we must ask you to provide a significant amount of information. It is important that the information you provide is accurate, complete and up to date.

We will provide you with a copy of our preliminary assessment of your application, if you ask within seven years of when we provided assistance to you. This requirement is only triggered if we give you credit assistance.

If we arrange a loan for you to purchase or refinance real estate, remember you must make your own enquiries about the value of the real estate and its potential for future growth. Although we may obtain a valuation, that is for our own use and you should not rely on it.

Our Fees and Charges

No fees or charges are payable by you to us for our credit assistance. However, you may be charged a lender’s application fee, valuation fees and other fees associated with the loan. These fees are not charged by us and will be disclosed to you prior to submission of the credit application. Please note, however, that if a valuation is conducted and you ultimately choose not to proceed with the loan, you may be liable for the valuation fees.

Commissions, Fees and Referrals

We may receive referral fees or commissions from the lenders and lessors who provide finance for you as our customers. These fees are not payable by you.

When we provide you with credit assistance, you may ask us for a reasonable estimate of the commission likely to be received, directly or indirectly by RateUnity Pty Limited and its credit representatives.

Some or all of a commission received by RateUnity Pty Limited may be paid to our Credit Representatives.

Referral Commissions

RateUnity Pty Limited may pay Commissions to our credit representatives for referring to our Diversification Partners such as an insurance broker or settlement agency. Referral Commissions may be a percentage of professional fees charged by the Diversification Partner. These fees are not payable by you.

Referral Fees

We may pay a referral fee (i.e. commission) for third party referrals. An example of a referrer would be a real estate agent or solicitor. This fee is not payable by you

You may on request obtain a reasonable estimate of the amount of commission and how it is calculated.

Credit Assessment of your loan application

Before entering into a contract, the financial institution will perform a credit assessment. This assessment will include making enquiries about:

your objectives and requirements including the purpose of the credit; and
your financial situation.

We will also take reasonable steps to verify your financial information.

The purpose of the credit assessment is to ensure, based on the information provided, that the proposed contract, is not unsuitable for you.

The contract is unsuitable for you, if at the time the contract is entered into:

it is likely that you will not be able to comply with the financial obligations under the contract or you could only comply with substantial hardship; or
the contract does not meet your objectives and requirements.

The contract will create a substantial hardship if you would only be able to meet the requirements of the contract by selling your principal place of residence.

We cannot enter into a contract which is unsuitable for you. This is a legal requirement for any Financial Institution.

It is important that the information that you provide for this assessment regarding your financial situation, objectives and requirements is complete and accurate and includes any likely future changes that will impact your ability to repay the contract.

Final Assessment

If your contract is assessed as not unsuitable and you will enter or have already entered into the contract with us, you have a right to ask us for a written copy of the Final Assessment.

The Final Assessment will contain the factual information which we used to assess the contract as not unsuitable including:

the record of financial information you have given us;
the information about your objectives and requirements;
the enquiries we have undertaken to verify your financial situation;
details of a contract we have offered to you.

You should notify us immediately if the information in the Final Assessment is not correct or has changed.

You can request a copy of the Final Assessment at any time before entering into the contract. If you make such a request, we have to provide you a written copy of the Final Assessment before entering the contract. We cannot enter into the contract, until we provide you with a copy of the Final Assessment.

You are also able to request a written copy of the Final Assessment at any time up until seven years after the contract was entered into. If you request the Final Assessment within two years of the contract being entered into, the assessment must be supplied to you within seven business days. If you request the Final Assessment beyond two years but less than seven years, the assessment must be supplied to you within 21 business days. There is no charge for the supply of the Final Assessment.

Complaints and Internal Dispute Resolution

If you think have any concern over your RateUnity experience, or you are unhappy with our services, please contact the Complaints manager first at:

RateUnity Pty Limited - Complaints Manager

Telephone: 0451750021
Email: info@rateunity.com.au
Website www.rateunity.com.au

We will endeavour to resolve your complaint quickly and fairly. If you are unsatisfied with our internal dispute resolution process, we have an external dispute resolution process.

External Dispute Resolution

Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA)

If your complaint has not been resolved to your satisfaction, you may contact the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), which is an independent dispute resolution scheme for financial services complaints.

Telephone 1800 931 678
Email info@afca.org.au
Post GPO Box 3, Melbourne VIC 3001

Website www.afca.org.au

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)

If your complaint relates to how we handle your personal information you can also contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC):

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 2001

Telephone: 1300 363 992
Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au
Web: www.oaic.gov.au

Things you should know

You should ensure that you have approved finance, in writing from the lender, before entering a binding contract to purchase.

It is important you understand your legal obligations under the loan, and the financial consequences. If you have any concerns, you should obtain independent legal and financial advice before you enter into a loan contract. We do not make any promises about the value or future prospects of any property you finance with us. You should always rely on your own enquiries.

Before you accept your loan offer, make sure you read the credit contract carefully to understand full details of the loan. If you have any doubts, you should obtain independent legal and financial advice before you enter into any loan contract.

We represent lenders and have obligations to them, and in particular, to not provide any information we know is misleading or deceptive. We also have obligations under the law to report any fraud, forgery, or other illegal activities. Before using our services, it is important that you understand that we have these obligations to lenders, and under the law. RateUnity Pty Limited is required to have adequate arrangements in place to ensure you are not disadvantaged by any conflict of interests.

Updated 7th March 2025