How much do I actually need saved?

Deposit plus costs — stamp duty (unless concessions apply), legals, inspections, moving. As a rough shape: on a scheme with concessions the all-in can be far less than the textbook 20% — we’ll build your exact number in one conversation.

What is lenders mortgage insurance?

Insurance you pay that protects the lender when your deposit is under 20%. It can be thousands — but paying it to buy years sooner is sometimes the right call. It’s arithmetic, not ideology.

What’s a family guarantee?

A parent offers part of their home’s equity as extra security, so you can borrow with little or no cash deposit and no LMI. It’s powerful and it puts real obligations on the guarantor — we make sure everyone understands them before anyone signs.

How long does the whole thing take?

Pre-approval in days to a couple of weeks once documents are in; settlement typically 30–90 days after a signed contract. Starting the finance before the house-hunt is the single best de-stressor.

Casual job, short employment history — can I still buy?

Often, yes. Lenders differ a lot on casual income, probation and job tenure — matching you to the tolerant lender is exactly the kind of thing brokers are for.

FIRST HOME BUYERS

Your first home, minus the mystery.

Deposits, schemes, guarantees, pre-approval — it’s a lot of moving parts. We’ll sequence them and speak plainly.

Check My Options Book a Call

The deposit question, answered honestly.

Twenty per cent is the textbook answer; it’s not the only one. Five to ten per cent with LMI, a family guarantee that uses your parents’ equity instead of cash, or a government scheme place with no LMI at 5% — each has real costs and real conditions. We’ll show you all four side by side for your numbers.

Schemes and grants, decoded.

First-home guarantee places, stamp-duty concessions, first home owner grants — what exists changes with budgets and differs by state, and eligibility rules are precise. We check what’s current the week you apply, and we never build a plan around a scheme you might not get.

From “roughly ready” to keys.

Reality-check the budget.
Pre-approval.
House-hunt with a real number.
Offer, approval, settlement — coached the whole way.

First home, own business.

Self-employed and buying your first home is a double-complexity we happen to specialise in.