I have never borrowed money before. Where do I even start?

Start with your finances before you start looking at property. Before you look at a single listing, you want a clear picture of what you earn, what you spend, what you owe, and what you have saved. That picture is what a lender assesses, and it tells you what is realistic.

A broker can run this with you early. It costs you nothing and it means you are searching in the right price range from day one rather than falling for a place you cannot fund.

How much deposit do I actually need?

The common benchmark is 20 percent of the purchase price, because at that level you avoid Lenders Mortgage Insurance. But plenty of first home buyers get in with less.

With a 5 to 10 percent deposit you can usually still borrow, you just pay LMI on top, or you use a government scheme that waives it. The right answer comes down to your situation rather than a fixed benchmark.

What is Lenders Mortgage Insurance and who does it protect?

LMI protects the lender if you borrow with a smaller deposit and later cannot repay. It does not protect you. It is a one-off cost, often added to the loan. It can be worth paying if it lets you buy two years earlier in a rising market, but it is a real number you should see clearly before you decide.

What government help is available for first home buyers?

There are several, and they change. In Queensland you may be eligible for the First Home Owner Grant on a new build, stamp duty concessions, and federal schemes that let you buy with a smaller deposit without paying LMI.

Eligibility depends on price caps, whether the property is new or existing, and your income. We check what you qualify for as part of your first conversation, because using the wrong scheme or missing one can cost you thousands.

What is the difference between pre-approval and approval?

Pre-approval is a lender telling you, based on your finances, roughly how much they are willing to lend before you have found a property. It gives you a budget and shows agents you are serious.

Full approval comes after you have a specific property and the lender has valued it. Pre-approval is conditional and has an expiry, usually around 90 days. Treat it as a strong indicator rather than a firm guarantee.

How do lenders decide how much I can borrow?

They look at your income, your existing debts, your living expenses, and the size of your deposit. Then they apply a buffer, testing whether you could still repay if interest rates rose. Two people on the same salary can be offered very different amounts depending on their commitments, so a car loan or a credit card limit you never use can quietly reduce your borrowing power.

Will my HECS or HELP debt affect my application?

Yes. A study debt reduces your take-home pay through compulsory repayments, and lenders count that against your borrowing capacity. It does not stop you buying, but it is worth knowing how much it moves the number before you apply, because some lenders treat it more harshly than others.

How does my credit history come into it?

Lenders pull your credit file to see how you have handled money. Missed payments, defaults, and a string of recent applications can all count against you.

If your file is not perfect, it is better to know early. There are lenders who work with imperfect histories, and there are simple steps that improve your position over a few months. The worst move is applying blindly and collecting knock-backs, because each one leaves a mark.

Should I pay off my debts before applying or keep my savings?

It depends on the debt. Clearing or reducing credit card limits and personal loans often lifts your borrowing power more than the same money sitting in savings, because lenders assess the full limit of a card whether you use it or not. We model both so you can see the trade-off clearly before you decide.

What costs are there beyond the deposit?

Plan for stamp duty, though first home buyers often get a concession, plus conveyancing or legal fees, building and pest inspections, loan setup costs, and moving costs. A useful habit is to budget a few percent of the purchase price on top of your deposit for these, so settlement does not catch you short.

What does the journey actually look like, step by step?

From start to keys, it usually runs like this:

• Get your finances reviewed and your borrowing power confirmed
• Sort your deposit and any eligible grants or schemes
• Get pre-approval so you know your budget
• Search, inspect, and make an offer or bid
• Get the loan formally approved against that property
• Arrange inspections, conveyancing, and contracts
• Settle, and collect the keys

Most first home buyers move through this over a few months. Having your finance sorted before you search is what keeps it from dragging.

How long does the whole process take?

Getting finance-ready can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on how organised your paperwork is. Once you have a signed contract, settlement is commonly 30 to 60 days. The part you control most is the preparation, so the earlier you start, the smoother the rest runs.

Why use a broker for my first home instead of going straight to a bank?

A bank can only offer you its own products. A broker compares lenders across the market, knows which ones suit first home buyers and which schemes they accept, and handles the paperwork and back-and-forth for you.

For a first purchase, where you do not yet know what you do not know, having someone explain each step properly and put your application in front of the right lender makes a real difference. Our service is free to you, because the lender pays us when your loan settles.