Buying your first home
You've saved, you've been to the open homes, and you're closer than you probably think. Let's work out exactly what's possible — and enjoy it while we're at it.
Buying your first home is genuinely exciting, and I never want the finance part to take the shine off it. Nobody is born knowing how any of this works, and most first home buyers I speak to arrive with the same three questions. Have I saved enough? Will I actually be approved? Am I about to make an expensive mistake I won't spot until later?
They're good questions — and all three are usually answerable in a single conversation. Then you can get back to the fun part.
How much deposit do I actually need?
The short answer is less than most people think, and the useful answer depends on your income, your existing commitments and which lender we go to. Twenty per cent avoids Lenders Mortgage Insurance, but plenty of first home buyers get in with five or ten — sometimes with a guarantor, sometimes through a government scheme, sometimes just by paying LMI because waiting would cost more. We'll do the numbers rather than guess.
What about the costs nobody mentions?
Stamp duty (or the concession you may be eligible for), conveyancing, building and pest inspection, lender fees, registration, and moving. I'll set the whole picture out early so your deposit doesn't quietly turn out to be smaller than you thought three weeks before settlement.
Grants and concessions
First home buyer grants, stamp duty concessions and shared-equity or guarantee schemes vary by state and change regularly. I'll tell you which ones you may be eligible for based on where you're buying and what you're buying — and which ones you're not, before you build a plan around them.
Getting pre-approved
Pre-approval tells you what you can realistically offer, so you're looking with a number rather than a hope. It's conditional — it still depends on a valuation and the lender's final assessment — so please talk to me before you bid unconditionally at auction.
The one thing I'd love to save you from
Applying to three or four lenders in a month because the first one said no. It's such an understandable thing to do when you're anxious, but every application leaves a mark on your credit file, and a cluster of them makes the next lender nervous. Far better that we do the research once and apply once, to the lender most likely to say yes. If you've already done this, please don't panic — tell me and we'll work with it.
Have a first-home question you're embarrassed to ask?
Ask it. Those are usually the good ones, and there's nothing you could say that would surprise me.
Other situations
Refinancing
Your loan should still be working as hard as you are. A fresh look often frees up more than people expect.
Read moreInvestment lending
Getting the first one right is what makes the second one possible. Let's set things up so your plans have room to grow.
Read moreSelf-employed & business owners
You've built something, and it should count for you rather than against you. With the right preparation and the right lender, it does.
Read more