Nearly paid off your mortgage? Close the loan or keep it open?

You're nearly there. The last payment is in sight. Do you close the loan, or keep it open for something you expect to need?

A planned expense next year is worth checking. Paying fees indefinitely because you might need the account one day is a different decision.

An offset is a separate account linked to the loan. Its balance reduces the amount used to calculate interest. Redraw is different: it lets you take back extra repayments you've already made into the loan, subject to the lender's rules.

If you owe $100,000 and have $100,000 in an eligible 100% offset, you may pay no interest. You still owe $100,000, and repayments and fees can continue under your contract.

Using that cash to repay the loan takes it out of your offset and reduces the debt. Before doing that, decide how much accessible emergency money you need and ask what will happen to the linked accounts.

Ask your lender to confirm the loan limit, available redraw, ongoing fees and what happens when the balance reaches zero. Don't assume leaving $1 owing will keep the account and redraw available indefinitely.

At Westpac, paying off the home loan doesn't automatically close the account, and applicable fees continue until you close it. You can request a lower limit, but that removes redraw above the new limit. Increasing it later needs a new application. Check your own lender's arrangements before deciding what to keep open.

Give 'just in case' an amount and a timeframe. What expense do you expect, and could existing savings cover it? Confirm the old loan allows the access you have in mind. Keeping it open doesn't guarantee approval for more borrowing later.

If you're planning on buying your next home, check the finance before closing accounts you might need during the move. Equally, a distant possibility of moving isn't necessarily worth years of fees.

With CommBank, your available redraw may reduce over the agreed loan term until both the loan balance and redraw reach zero. The amount shown as available can also differ from the total amount you are ahead. Before budgeting for a future renovation, ask how much of today's redraw will still be accessible when you need it.

That answers a different question from Westpac's account-closure rule above. An account staying open doesn't mean the amount you can withdraw stays unchanged. Our Commonwealth Bank home loan review and Westpac home loan review explain the wider features, but your existing contract and current lender confirmation are what matter here.

Before the final payment, ask for the available redraw now, how it changes and whether any zero-balance or loan-limit change would remove access. Keep emergency savings accessible while you confirm the answer.

If you expect to borrow again, book a free assessment before closing the account. We can compare retaining the existing facility with applying later, including fees and repayments. There is no reason to take a new loan simply because the old one is nearly paid off.

Bring the current statement, redraw amount, annual fees and the date of any planned expense. We can compare the cost of keeping access with applying again later. If you do not need more borrowing, closing the facility may be the simpler option; a new loan is not the default next step.

Ask for a payout figure for the date you intend to pay. The app balance may leave out interest accrued since the last charge or fees still due.

Then confirm 2 separate steps: closing the loan account and discharging the mortgage. The mortgage is the lender's registered claim over the property title. Paying the debt doesn't mean you can assume that registration has disappeared.

When it's finished, keep written confirmation of both closure and discharge. Ask your lender or conveyancer how the discharge is recorded in your state. It may not involve receiving a paper title certificate.

Before the accounts change, check:

• Where your offset balance will go, and whether the offset or transaction account stays open.
• Salary deposits, direct debits and scheduled loan repayments.
• Annual package fees, linked credit-card fees and benefits that may change.

Check each linked account separately. Closing the home loan doesn't automatically close the credit card too.

Keep home insurance in place. You still need to protect the property even though the bank no longer has a loan against it. Review the cover rather than cancelling it, and check the title position and your estate plans as well.

For investing the money you've freed up or planning retirement, speak with an appropriately qualified financial adviser. Finishing the mortgage gives you choices, but the loan decision alone doesn't settle which investment or retirement strategy suits you.

You can apply to borrow against the home again after discharge. The lender will assess you at that time, including your income. Owning the property outright doesn't replace that check. Our home-equity guide explains the borrowing options. Our borrowing power calculator is an initial estimate, not approval.

Put the flexibility into dollars. Suppose keeping an account costs a hypothetical $300 a year. Over 5 years that's $1,500 before any interest on money you borrow again.

Before moving the final payment, get the annual cost of keeping the loan, confirmation of the funds you could access, and the payout and discharge steps. If you expect to borrow again, our home loan brokers in Brisbane can check the finance options first. Call 1300 088 065.

No. Confirm account closure and release of the mortgage from the title separately. Keep written confirmation rather than relying only on an app balance.

Ask the bank what happens to that specific account, its fees and direct debits. Do not assume the linked account closes or keeps the same features automatically.

No. Future lending depends on the lender's assessment at the time, including your income and commitments. Home equity alone does not guarantee approval.