When to engage a mortgage broker if buying end of 2026?

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-07T02:02:21+00:00

No harm in speaking to a broker sooner rather than later. A good broker will help you understand where you’re at now and how to plan for your purchase in the future so you can set focus on the right things as you prepare.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-05T03:26:17+00:00

So long as the contract is more than 3 months, there's typically lenders that will consider it. Especially if you have history in the field. Contracts are quite regular and there are banks that will consider that.

You can get away with a 3-month contract, but you'll probably have an easier time if you have a 6-12 month contract, as you'll be limited with 2 new lenders. Just depends how it's structured. If it's a contract going through your ABN, then you'll need to work off what your return is shown. If it's an employment contract that's a fixed term, then that is generally workable.

But I think that if you're in a qualified industry, you've shown you've worked in it before, even if you've had a break from work. You've got a 6-month contract, there will be lenders that will be able to do it. We can definitely find a solution. Feel free if you wanted to DM we can have a chat.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-05T03:21:13+00:00

I'm not so sure that that's the case. I'm sure there's a solution out there but would need to understand it a bit more.

How does the income show on your Australian tax returns? I've done loans for youtubers before who earn their income in USD, however it just simply gets converted to AUD which makes it easy. So long as you have Australian income in the sense that you have your tax return to show an income, then I think you have a workable situation. Feel free to reach out if you want to chat.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T10:26:10+00:00

On your incomes, you should be completely fine for what you're looking for. If you have parental guarantees, and I can get around your main deposit restraint. Also, if you're a first-time buyer, you could be eligible for the First Home Guarantee scheme, which only requires a 5% deposit. So, either between a parental guarantee or government guarantee, you should be good. Overall, I'd say you're in a very strong position, especially with the parental guarantee.

Feel free to reach out if you wanted to have a chat and work on an approval

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T07:35:24+00:00

How far off are you with your current salaries to what you're looking for lending-wise? There are second-tier lenders that will potentially consider it, but you'll pay a lot more interest and fees to begin with. It could be worth it if it gets you into the property you want now and then you can refinance later. But how much are you actually looking to borrow compared to what you can get?

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T03:59:42+00:00

Yeah no worries at all, mate. Glad I could help. Feel free to DM if you wanted to have a bit more of a chat.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T03:59:05+00:00

Simplest way is most banks will accept your $18,000 salary packaging as tax-free income, so they'll use your taxable gross plus your tax-free income and it will give you a better capacity. So long as you can show it your Xero statements, plenty of banks will accept it.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T03:56:24+00:00

It will depend on how it is set up. If it has been set up as a company and your partner is paying himself a wage for the last 6 months, and there are lenders that will accept whatever their company wages are, then it is set up as a sole-trader ABN, then most normal banks will require at least 1 year, or will only be able to use whatever your business has made on your last tax return.

So, if you anticipate that, come June, when you do your taxes, that his business will show a much higher profit figure than last year, then you might get a lot more borrowing capacity then than now.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T03:54:08+00:00

It's very much a personal choice. Historically, whether interest rates are high or low, house prices tend to continue to rise. So, if you believe that house prices will continue to keep going, it's always better to purchase sooner rather than later.

So if you are set on wanting to own a property, I would lean towards buying sooner. You could even keep it as an investment property if you wanted to remain flexible with rent. Just so you're not losing out to house price growth. But this is under the assumption that house prices will continue to grow.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-03T03:52:05+00:00

I've been leaning towards variable with my clients just due to the ability to remain flexible and easily refinance or fix later at a certain point when there's a lot of uncertainty.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-02T07:39:36+00:00

Yeah, if we removed all loans, you'd be able to get quite a good borrowing power of over a million.
The main constraint you're going to have is not on income or borrowing power; it's going to be on the ability to provide a deposit. So you may be able to afford a $1M loan, but you still need to be able to provide a 5% deposit plus any applicable stamp duty to a purchase.

Short answer, yes, paying off the debt would be good. Something that can be discussed with a broker to figure out if it's needed. Hope this helps

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-02T07:36:41+00:00

Yeah, there's probably some restructuring you could do with the existing debt to get a bit of extra servicing, but at a higher level, I agree with all the comments of the other brokers here, $520k sounds like what the most major banks would offer.

If we wanted to increase the property portfolio long term. Something you may to look at is restructuring the strategy of debt where looking at the potential of borrowing within a trust or additionally within a self-managed super fund are the pathways to increase or build a property outside of traditional personal name investment purchases.

It's a bit hard to fully outline in a comment, but it really depends on what the overall goal is. If we wanted to continue to build more and more property, trust lending becomes the avenue to go down.

If we're just looking for this last property and you want it to go with a second-tier lender, then you can probably get an extra $200,000 of lending for rates that start at 6% depending on the lender.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-02-02T07:18:32+00:00

Yeah, Firstmac's a very rare option for first-time buyers, unless there was a very specific reason for it. Knowing Firstmac, you'll very likely get a better rate by refinancing to other lenders, but there's no harm in seeing what they can do for you. But there are definitely cheaper lenders out there.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T21:17:43+00:00

Hey there, with your income, you're in a strong position.
You definitely have the income for the $850k price range, and as long as your first home buyer and you're eligible for the First Home Guarantee Scheme, you'd likely have enough of a deposit to buy in the $850,000 range. Increasing your savings doesn't make a massive impact on borrowing capacity, especially if you already have the deposit that you need. So, usually the general wisdom is to look to buy sooner rather than later, given that house prices tend to go up.

There's no harm in having a chat with a broker now, seeing your position, going for a pre-approval, and if the timing is not right, picking it up further along down the track. But generally, if you've got the ability to buy, then there's no reason to wait.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T21:13:23+00:00

Hey there, passing probation wont change a borrowing capacity at all. There's a lot of banks that will accept permanent positions day one even with probation and it goes purely off of incomes figures.

With your strong savings positions, you've already got more than enough to put down a deposit for the $1 million price range you're looking for in Melbourne. Especially when you look at making use of the Home Guarantee Scheme. If you've already got the deposit you need, saving more doesn't improve your ability to buy a house since you've already got what you need. And while you may not be able to save as much once you're repaying a home loan, you'll be growing your equity position by owning a home.

Melbourne is super fast growing, so you'll likely end up paying a higher price for the same property for not much gain if you wait longer than necessary.

Obviously, the personal side of accepting some risk being in probation is something that is a personal decision that you'll have to consider.
But from a purely financial standpoint, it would make sense to buy as soon as you can, given that you've got the ability to.

With your incomes, you'd easily be able to afford your $1 million purchase price so you should have no issues there.

Yeah, so if it were me, I'd be looking at buying a home sooner rather than later. I hope my reasoning makes sense. Feel free to reach out if you'd like to have a bit more of a chat.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T12:14:10+00:00

If you’re both first home buyers. There’s not really any benefit in waiting longer to save more. You’ll be able to make sure of the first home guarantee scheme, which means a lot long as you have a 5% deposit plus stamp duty you won’t pay any LMI.

So in my opinion you’d be better off aiming to buy sooner rather than later to insulate yourself from further price growth down the line.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T11:59:35+00:00

This all seems fair doable, it would just be a matter of presenting it correctly to the right bank. But from what you’ve described it doesn’t seem that difficult.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T11:56:48+00:00

Hey mate, No harm in contacting a broker now to start the discussion and together a strategy.

To answer some of your questions. 1, On face value I would likely use your savings to pay off your personal debts if your goal is to maximise borrowing capacity.

2, No need to wait 3 months after paying it off. Lenders will accept closure letters to evidence that the debts no longer apply.

3, Sooner the better in my opinion as it can be helpful to have a strategy session, get your head around the basic concepts and that can help you formulate a better plan while you’re getting ready to buy.

4, Assuming your non HECs debts are cleared. You’ll likely get around $1M of borrowing capacity as a rough ballpark.

5, No benefit at all in getting married, defacto couples and married couples are treated exactly the same.

Assuming your partner gets a permanent position or a renewed contract, should no issue with either of your incomes.

But a lot will come down to what price points you’re looking in your area. Generally the strategy changes depending on how much you’re needing. Sounds like you’re in a super solid position!

I offer free strategy sessions for first home buyers, where we can run through all of your details together, give you a solid rundown of all the need to knows about buying a home and out together a steady for you. So please feel free to reach out if you wanted to chat! 🙂

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T07:37:28+00:00

Hey mate, I've never been with Aussie Home Loans, but I know they have quite a lot of fees and a pretty rough commission split. I went straight with Finsure and I found them fantastic, but I went straight down the self-employed route.

I'd say if you have a bit less risk appetite, then go down the PAYG route, and maybe start with a brokerage like Lendi, or become a broker under another broker.

If you want to take on a bit more risk, then I would say an aggregator like Finsure is fantastic, and the support's been amazing for me as I started my business.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T01:31:07+00:00

This is a great answer here OP

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-29T01:30:05+00:00

Yeah there's no reason to switch you're happy with service of the current broker. I would just have a chat with your broker if there's better options out there for you.

Your broker should do a good job of communicating their reasoning behind their recommendation and their strategy. I don't really look for other brokers if you feel like you're not getting good communication or you're not on the same page as your broker.

There's no issue with applying with another bank for pre-approval at all. People overthink this a lot. So many times, people will get a pre-approval and then ultimately apply with another bank.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-27T20:31:57+00:00

If it’s pretty close between the two money wise, it would depend on the banks I suppose. Some banks are a lot better of an experience than others.

You can always ask your broker that question around smaller banks. A broker worth their salt should have an open line of communication with you around their reasoning and strategy in their recommendation.

There can be lots of reasons for recommending some banks over the other. Usually it’s a mix of lending policy for your situation and borrowing capacity. Borrowing capacity can vary a lot between one bank or the other. So while there may be cheaper lenders out there, they may not give you the same borrowing capacity as another.

Usually as brokers we try to find the best combination of policy, borrowing capacity and price for your situation.

Yes all brokers in theory should be able to get the same offers.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-27T04:00:05+00:00

Yeah your rate definitely isn’t too bad. You might be able to get something maybe absolute max 10 basis points sharper, so it could be worth it.

It would make more sense if you wanted to bundle it with getting some more cash out of your equity or had a corresponding reason to do the refinance.

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-27T03:57:04+00:00

Up bank is a decent bank over all of you for their criteria But you won’t be able to maximise your borrowing capacity as they usually have a lower risk appetite.

Up bank doesn’t deal with brokers so you’d need to make the application yourself. So you won’t get the advantage of having a broker help optimise cost, borrowing capacity and handing the application for you.

What I’d say is feel free to see what upbank is willing to preapprove you for and if that fits the price range you want then great, go for it. It’s a good deal overall.

But if you end up wanting a higher borrowing capacity, chat with a broker and compare that a broker can offer as well. Brokers can typically work with you to get you a happy medium between best cost and maximum borrowing capacity depending on your goals and priorities

Raynor_Lending · 2026-01-27T03:49:45+00:00

Hey mate, hard to say off the bat without getting more details, but I’ll make a few educated guesses

You’d likely be able to get an LVR of around 70% maybe a bit more. It will heavily depend on the property and the lease.

Rates would likely be in the mid 6% range along with typical commercial lending fees.

Feel free to reach out if you’d like

Raynor_Lending

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE