As you know, banks make the majority of their profits from lending money to people.
As responsible lenders, NZ banks and home loan applicant need to always balance how much they 'could' or 'should' borrow. This is especially true for a first home buyer. When it comes to getting your first home loan, it shouldn't be a question of simply how much can I borrow? It really needs to be a question of how big of a mortgage can I afford to attain the property we need?
To help start understand this, begin by using our home loan calculator to get an idea of how much you may be able to borrow. Some people choose to try for a few months setting aside what would be the mortgage interest payments on that loan amount, into another bank account. Over a few months you will quickly get an idea if you really can afford to borrow that amount.
Once you understand how much you can safely afford, it then becomes a matter of having enough deposit for the loan. The more money you can put towards buying a property, the less money you have to borrow. This means that you’ll spend less time in debt. By engaging a broker your bringing into your team a professional who understands more than most on one subject - homeloans. Having the support that comes with this leads typically to better financial decisions being made.
Learn more about how much deposit you need to buy a house in NZ.