Top tips to prepare for your first property purchase

Get your deposit sorted before you start looking

You need a genuine savings history before most lenders will take your application seriously. That typically means at least three months of regular savings sitting in your account, plus whatever other funds you've accumulated. The 5% deposit option under the First Home Guarantee sounds attractive, but lenders still want to see you can manage money consistently.

Consider someone working as a registrar at the Royal Hobart Hospital. They've been saving $800 a fortnight for six months and have $15,000 set aside. Their parents offer to gift another $10,000. Most lenders will accept that gift as part of the deposit, but they'll still scrutinise those three to six months of genuine savings to confirm the borrower can handle repayments. The gift helps with the deposit size, but it doesn't replace the savings pattern.

If you're eligible for the Regional First Home Buyer Guarantee in Tasmania, you can purchase with just 5% down without paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance. That makes the deposit hurdle lower, but your application still needs to show financial discipline. Keep payslips, savings statements, and any gift letters organised from the start.

Work out what you can borrow, not just what you want to spend

Your borrowing capacity depends on your income, existing debts, living expenses, and the lender's assessment rate. Two people earning the same salary can have wildly different borrowing limits depending on whether they're carrying a car loan, buy-now-pay-later accounts, or a credit card with a $10,000 limit they never use.

In our experience with medical professionals around Hobart, even a small personal loan or an old credit card can reduce your borrowing power by $50,000 or more. Lenders assess your capacity based on the limits and commitments you hold, not just what you actually owe. If you've got a credit card with a $15,000 limit and you only ever spend $500 a month on it, the lender will still factor in the full $15,000 when calculating your capacity.

Before you start attending open homes in Lenah Valley or South Hobart, get a realistic view of your borrowing capacity so you're looking at properties you can actually finance. It's worth cleaning up any dormant accounts or small debts well before you apply.

Understand what stamp duty concessions and grants you can access

Tasmania currently offers a full stamp duty exemption for eligible first home buyers purchasing established homes with a dutiable value of $750,000 or less. That concession is scheduled to run until 30 June 2026, so it's worth confirming it's still active when you're ready to buy. There's also a $10,000 grant available if you're building or buying a new home.

These concessions can be stacked with the federal First Home Guarantee, which allows you to borrow with a 5% deposit and no Lenders Mortgage Insurance. For someone buying an established home in Hobart at $650,000, avoiding stamp duty could save close to $25,000. That's a significant chunk of cash you can redirect toward furniture, moving costs, or keeping a buffer in your offset account once you settle.

Not every lender participates in the First Home Guarantee, and some have stricter lending criteria even if they do. It's worth checking which lenders are on the panel and which ones suit your situation before you submit your home loan application.

Get pre-approval before you make an offer

Pre-approval gives you a conditional commitment from a lender based on the information you've provided. It's not a guarantee, but it means you can bid at auction or make an offer with confidence that finance is likely to come through. Most pre-approvals are valid for three to six months, depending on the lender.

Pre-approval also helps you spot any issues early. If there's something in your credit file or your employment situation that might cause a problem, you'll find out before you've committed to a contract. In a market like Hobart, where stock can move quickly in certain suburbs, having your finance lined up means you're not scrambling to pull documents together after you've made an offer.

You'll need to provide payslips, bank statements, tax returns if you're self-employed, details of any other assets or liabilities, and identification. The lender will run a credit check, assess your income and expenses, and give you a maximum borrowing amount. Once you find a property, you'll need to provide a contract of sale so the lender can do a valuation and finalise the approval.

Decide whether you want a fixed or variable interest rate

A fixed interest rate locks in your repayments for a set period, usually one to five years. A variable rate moves with the market, which means your repayments can go up or down. Some borrowers split their loan, fixing part and leaving part variable, so they get some certainty and some flexibility.

If you fix your rate and need to make extra repayments beyond the annual limit, or if you want to refinance before the fixed term ends, you'll likely face break costs. Those costs can be significant if rates have dropped since you locked in. On the other hand, a variable rate usually comes with an offset account and unlimited extra repayments, which can save you interest over time if you're disciplined with your cash flow.

There's no one-size-fits-all answer, and it depends on your income stability, your risk tolerance, and what you think rates will do over the next few years. For medical professionals on fixed rosters with predictable income, a split structure often makes sense. You get some protection from rate rises and still have access to offset and redraw on the variable portion.

Make sure your employment and income are straightforward

Lenders prefer at least three to six months in your current role, and they're more comfortable with permanent employment than casual or contract work. If you're a doctor in your first year post-fellowship or a registrar on a fixed-term contract, some lenders will still support you, but others won't. Knowing which lenders are flexible with medical employment contracts can make the difference between approval and decline.

If you've recently changed jobs, even within the same field, some lenders will want to see you've passed probation before they'll assess your full income. Others will accept an employment contract and a payslip. If you're earning overtime, allowances, or shift penalties, different lenders treat those differently. Some will include 100% of overtime if it's consistent, others will average it or exclude it altogether.

Having your employment documentation clear and your income verifiable is one of the most important parts of preparing your home loan application. If there's anything unusual about your pay structure, it's worth discussing that with a broker before you lodge so you're not caught off guard during assessment.

Check your credit file before the lender does

Your credit file shows every application you've made for credit in the last five years, any defaults or missed payments, and any current accounts or loans in your name. Lenders pull this file as part of every application, and if there's something on there you weren't expecting, it can delay or derail your approval.

You can request a free copy of your credit file from Equifax, Experian, or illion. If you spot an error, you can dispute it, but that process can take weeks. If there's a legitimate default or missed payment, you'll need to explain it in your application. Most lenders will overlook a single small default from years ago if you've got a good explanation and a clean record since, but multiple defaults or recent missed payments will cause problems.

If you've been knocked back for credit in the past, or if you've got a thin credit file with very little history, that can also affect your application. Some lenders are more forgiving than others, and knowing which ones will suit your situation is part of what a broker does.

Line up your paperwork before you apply

Every lender will ask for payslips, bank statements, identification, and details of your deposit. If you're self-employed, expect to provide tax returns and financials. If you've received a gift from family, you'll need a statutory declaration confirming it's a genuine gift, not a loan.

Bank statements get scrutinised closely. Lenders are looking for regular income, spending patterns, evidence of savings, and any red flags like gambling transactions, dishonours, or unexplained cash deposits. If you've been buying crypto, using Afterpay, or regularly transferring money overseas, be prepared to explain it.

The sooner you can provide clean, complete documentation, the faster your application will move. Lenders don't like chasing missing documents, and every delay increases the chance that something changes - your circumstances, the property, or the lender's appetite.

If you're ready to start preparing your first home purchase in Hobart, call one of our team or book an appointment at a time that works for you.

Frequently Asked Questions